Access to quality education in Nigeria: Challenges of persons with special needs

Abstract

Education as an instrument of social change must be given serious and adequate attention in other to achieve the national goals of education. Good preparation of teacher in the solid foundation for effective development of any nation. This paper examines persons with special needs and access to quality education in Nigeria. The paper itemizes persons with special needs, special needs education effective. These include economic access, sociological access, psychological access and cultural access, providing education for all it citizen. Funding, negative attitude of the society, inadequate teaching and learning in schools, lack of training in special education by most teachers are the challenges in accessing quality education by persons with special needs. It concluded with the following recommendations that quality education should be provided by government at all levels through qualified and competent teachers in other to bring out quality students with special needs as it is in developed countries of the world. Emphasis should be place on women and girl child with special needs education, there should be proper funding of the entire education industry to make education accessible and affordable for persons with special needs and there should be good training in the field of special education for teachers at all levels of education.