For the last 22 years, OLS has been conducting a two-year full-time training course “Diploma in Education, Special Education, Cerebral Palsy (D.Ed. SE.CP) approved by the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), New Delhi to address the emerging need of developing a cadre of professionals to support children with special needs. To date, 21 batches have completed the Professional Education. The centre is equipped with infrastructure, human resources, expertise, and experience to run the RCI-recognized course in this field.
The training centre provides both theoretical knowledge and practical experience in dealing with children/ persons with cerebral palsy, autism, intellectual disability, and 32 multiple disabilities under various circumstances. The centre has adequate capacity to handle behavior problems of the children, self-help skills and independent living skills guide the family regarding available services and assistance facilities. Almost all trainees who have passed out from the centre are successfully working with various Government and Non-Governmental organizations.
During the year 2021-22, the batch strength was 8 in the first year and 15 in the second year. Due to the pandemic situation this year, the admission process started in November 2021 and was completed by January 2022 and the regular classes started in March 2022.
Classes are conducted regularly to complete the course syllabus. Besides regular internal faculties, during this year the services of 10 guest faculties were mobilized for imparting specialized classes on specific subjects. The Core Faculties and the Guest Faculties in the training centre are chosen from among a host of eminent educationists and activists from the field including retired professors from reputed universities.
The trainees gain practical experience regularly as the institute is attached to the special schools for children with autism, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, and multiple disabilities run on the same premises with nearly 200 children. Speech therapy and physiotherapy units are also attached to the centre which is an added advantage for the students of the diploma course.
As part of a Continuing Rehabilitation Education (CRE) program, the centre conducts various programs from time to time. In the recent past a program “Understanding and Applying Right to Information ACT” was conducted from 2nd September to 4th September 2021 in which 30 rehabilitation professionals from across the state participated and upgraded their knowledge and skills. Given the COVID 19 situation. The training program was organized in a virtual mode. Dr. Dillip Kumar Nayak, Regional Centre In-charge (Bhubaneswar), Odisha State Open University joined as a guest for the inaugural session and interacted with the participants. Mrs. Kasturi Mohapatra, former Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities of Odisha was the Guest at the closing function. She encouraged the participants to make use of the Act for the Persons with Disabilities as well as for the betterment of society.
As part of the training curriculum, the trainees are provided with exposure visits to different local and national institutions to get a first-hand experience of the best practices. Owing to the travel restrictions given the Covid-19 pandemic, this year the same could not be conducted.