Promoting Inclusive Education :  ICT University Breaks New Grounds!

Promoting Inclusive Education:  ICT University Breaks New Grounds!

Mowa who benefitted from a scholarship from the  Prof  Victor  Mbarika-founded ICT University in 2019  defended his masters  research work at the school’s campus yesterday.

The massively attended public defense session was before a four-person jury. It was presided over by the institution’s Professor Batibonack Sariette.

Mowa who is also General Manager of the Club of Young Rehabilitated Blind People of Cameroon known by its French acronym CJARC, defended his research dissertation in applied educational sciences.

The work was on the topic: “Representations Sociales des Acteurs et Inclusion Solaire Des Apprenants a Besoins Educatifs Spéciaux au Cameroun: Cas Des Apprenants De L’école publique pilote inclusive d’application de Nkolndongo”.

In  English , the topic reads: “Social Representation of Actors and Social Inclusion Of Learners with Special Educational Needs in Cameroon: Case Of Learners Of The Inclusive Pilot Public School of Application of Nkolndongo”.

The research Investigated the challenges of the Cameroon government’s policy in promoting inclusive education. The researcher in an interview with reporters recounted that government’s commitment in promoting inclusive education is facing a lot of difficulties.

The difficulties, whichh Mowa termed as “social representation of actors in the field”. According to results and findings of his research which he shared at the defense, actors find it very difficult to welcome children with disabilities in classes.

He said this Is because the actors, most especially teachers “don’t know how to handle cases of children with disabilities”. He further explained , that the teachers are or were not well trained to handle such cases of children with special needs.

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It is within the sidelines of this problem that the research aimed to bring to the attention of the government and other educational stakeholders, that it is very important for teachers to be trained on how to handle children with disabilities in schools in order to better sustain inclusiveness .

Call For More Investment In Education

In his recommendations and proposed solutions, the researcher called on the government to invest more efforts in the training of teachers. “The problem is that the teachers are in class but they are not well trained”. Government, he said, “needs to do all that is possible to train the teachers. Also, the environment of the school is not accessible. We need a school which is accessible to children with all types of disabilities. We also need equipment”.

According to Mowa, “ we can’t have inclusive schools without having adapted equipment for the children. We also encourage the teachers to train themselves to manage inclusive education. Not leaving out, I think that the family and the parents need to show love to their children. This is because without love, the child cannot be well accepted in our communities”.

 ICT & Promotion of  Inclusive  Education

Speaking on behalf of the President of the ICT University, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the institution,  Dr Alain Isoh, expressed happiness for institution’s symbolic steps in promoting inclusive education.

It should be noted that the academic defense is the fruit of a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the university with CJARC to promote inclusive education.

Prof Isoh said: “It’s our pleasure as a university to say that about four years ago, we signed a very important M.O.U with CJARC to promote inclusive education. Today, we are celebrating the fruit of that convention”.

The academic said: “ By this, I am saying that the ICT university stands tall to promote education at all levels. We are an inclusive education system”.

After due examination of the oral and public defense , the candidate was accorded a Master’s Degree by the jury, in Applied ICT in Education with Grade A with Minor Corrections.

The Man, Coco Bertin Mowa

Coco Bertin is founder of the Club des Jeunes Aveugles Réhabilités du Cameroun CJARC. It is an association that caters for the welfare of the visually impaired in Cameroon. He is a Cameroonian national and was born in October 1966. He lost his sight at the age of 15.

In October 1984, he joined the Rehabilitation Institute for the Blind, RIB in Buea where he graduated in 1986 with a certificate of training in English and French Braille, orientation and mobility, handicrafts, basketry, livestock and agriculture.

During his training, he met Martin Luther who became his faithful companion and friend. At the end of their training in 1986, they both received an installation bonus.

This donation facilitated the creation of the association of Young Rehabilitated Blind People of Yaoundé,COJARY which became the Club of Young Rehabilitated Blind People of Cameroon, CJARC on August 4, 1988.

Passionate about music since his early childhood days , he produced three music albums: Cécité in 1999, Victoire in 2005 and Surprise in 2010.  In 2011, he published his first book ‘’A la poursuite d’un rêve’’ (In pursuit of a dream) at the Editions Clés de Yaoundé.

His drive for knowledge and research has been rewarded with numerous specialized training courses in Cameroon and France. In order to improve the conditions of the learners integrated in the normal school system and to make proposals for improvement, he registered for and obtained his BEPC at the age of 49 years.

But he did not stop there. Coco Bertin continued his studies and today holds a professional degree in Project Management and a Master’s degree in Economics with a project management option obtained in November 2022.

Mowa is the General Manager of CJARC. He has coordinated various projects in several areas: digital, environment, training, advocacy, sports and inclusive education.

Following the signing of a partnership agreement between CJARC and ICT University whose main purpose is to provide scholarships to visually impaired people, Mowa will be one of the first beneficiaries of this scholarship and will start a master’s degree in Education at the ICT University which has resulted in another milestone for him.

Coco Bertin is now an undisputed role model for holistic rehabilitation for all people with disabilities. His expertise and contribution to inclusive development are recognized both in Cameroon and internationally.

By Beng Humphrey Fang