New Delhi, Aug 5 (PTI) The Delhi High Court on Tuesday formed a committee of experts to evaluate whether a girl diagnosed with autism can be admitted in a private school in the capital or she needs a school for children with special needs.
A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela passed the order on an appeal filed by GD Goenka Public School against an order directing it to admit the child in Class 1, or in an age-appropriate class, as a fee-paying student.
“To allay apprehension in the mind of the appellant we propose constitution of a committee of experts, along with her mother and school counsellor, to evaluate the girl and give its opinion as to whether she can be admitted in G D Goenka or a school of children with special needs,” the bench said.
The bench also directed the doctor concerned to examine the child to conduct any study that was required to come to the conclusion.
The court was hearing appeal against a July 1 order of a single judge of the high court, saying “inclusive education” was about belongingness, recognising that every child had a place in the classroom not because they were the same, but because they were different, as the difference enriches the learning environment for all.
The petition before the single judge bench claimed the child was born in May 2017, and in November 2019, a doctor suspected her to be suffering from autism and started her therapy, which was interrupted by Covid-19.
The child was admitted to the school in academic session 2021-22 under the “sibling clause” and her parents informed the institution about the speech delay in the admission forms.
In December 2021, the child was diagnosed with mild autism and was recommended various therapies.
When the offline classes resumed in April 2022 after the Covid-19, the parents submitted the diagnosis to the school and requested support in the form of a shadow teacher, or allowing “special educator” to assist her in the classroom, the petition said.
Due to constant pressure and lack of support from the school, education of the petitioner was stated to have been discontinued from January 2023.
The court said the child should be permitted to attend school with the assistance of a parent-appointed shadow teacher, subject to the school’s basic norms of decorum and safety.
It further directed the Directorate of Education to monitor the reintegration of the child and ensure the school provides an inclusive and non-discriminatory environment. PTI UK UK AMK AMK
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