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Trinidad Down Syndrome: Special Schools

Trinidad Down Syndrome: Special Schools

I am not aware of how many kids with Down Syndrome are in Trinidad and Tobago (maybe someone can tell us?) If you are a parent with a child with Down Syndrome in Trinidad, are there enough special needs schools that deal specifically with this condition?

Schools Special Syndrome Trinidad

Name: TriniM
Country:

Comments: Yes, there is one in town. I teach my daughter but I know there is a school in town for children with Down Syndrome.

Trinidad Down Syndrome: Special Schools Caribbean / Tobago & Trinidad

If you are a parent or a teacher with a child with Down Syndrome, what is the biggest challenge you face at the moment? Is society kind to your special needs child? Does your family understand your situation?

Schools Special Syndrome Trinidad

Name: TriniM
Country:

Comments: The biggest challenge I face with my daughter is the "looks" we get when we go out, people just stares at her all the time and makes her feel very uncomfortable.

Schools Special Syndrome Trinidad

Name: Summer

Comments: My biggest challenge is finding a good school for my 3 year old. I teach him at home but there is only so much I can do. And everything including the different therapies are so expensive. I scour the internet daily trying to find things I could do at home to help him.

Trinidad Down Syndrome: Special Schools

Summer, isn't there a school for Down Syndrome children in Port of Spain? (I heard about it although I don't have reviews).

Trinidad Syndrome Special Schools

Name: Summer
Country:

Comments: Yes there are schools. My challenge is finding a good one. I am also so confused since two pediatricians and persons at the ministry have advised me to enroll him in a mainstream school.

Trinidad Syndrome Special Schools Trinidad & Tobago / Caribbean

Summer, I am the mother of three kids with mild autism (high functioning). Finding a GOOD school in Trinidad that meets their needs without the use of physical punishment or other forms of abuse has been my number one challenge.

I tried MANY, without success and if you check around other threads, you will see lots of parents with kids of all sort of special needs facing the same issue. It is truly sad the state of affairs with regards to schools for special needs children.

I wouldn't recommend to send your child in a mainstream school. He would be picked, bullied and neglected by both other kids and teachers. I'm sorry to say this but that's how I feel because I have seen it. Teachers in Trinidad aren't trained to deal with Down Syndrome children or any sort of special needs so they either ignore the child completely or get very frustrated. I'm pretty sure there must be some exceptions, unfortunately experience tells me otherwise.

Did you consider Homeschooling?

The reason doctors nowdays want special needs kids to attend mainstream schools is because the modern approach is now of inclusion and even though I understand it perfectly and it makes sense, this is not the US or Canada where there are things in place for the transition and the inclusion of these children in mainstream schools.

Abroad, there are individualized programs for these children, teachers are carefully trained, etc. Here they say "send them", they need "inclusion" without having the programs, the willingness, the concern or care to deal with the child. It doesn't work like that and is like sending a sheep and tell them to go and play with the wolves. If they want inclusion then they need to re-structure the education system and the training for that to take place.