On the occasion of World Day of Social Justice, the Faculty of Education at the University of Science and Arts in Lebanon (USAL) held a panel discussion with the General Director of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Judge Abdullah Ahmad. The event was held on Wednesday, February 20th and focused on Human Rights Watch’s report, “Barriers to Teaching Children with Special Needs in Lebanon”.

The seminar was moderated by the coordinator of special education Mrs. Nidal Jouni and attended by a number of directors of educational institutions, and private educational institutions in Lebanon as well as students of the Faculty of Education. Students focused their questions surrounding law 220/2000, its implementation and the relationship between the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Social Affairs.

The General Director highlighted the new efforts in the Ministry, including the development of evaluations to diagnose learning difficulties, the adoption of a new international classification in the diagnosis and classification of people with special needs, in addition to the preparation of standards for institutions and centers funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs to improve the level of services for people with special needs.

The students’ questions reflected their awareness of the challenges faced by these children and their families based on the content of the educational curricula and their observations in the various centers and schools. They also revealed showed their adoption of issues pertaining to special education in Lebanon.
The meeting was attended by directors representing some of the associations dealing with people with special needs, such as Asil and Imdad, school principals and care institutions from Al-Mabarrat Association and beyond, the principal of Siraj Center, university professors from the Lebanese University and the Lebanese International University and a number of specialists in the field of special education.

The Dean of Faculty of Education, Dr. Walid Hammoud, wrapped up the meeting by granting the General Director of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Judge Abdullah Ahmad an honorary shield, as a token of appreciation for his visit.