Special schools for disabled fall behind demand

The number of disabled students in Korea has steadily increased over the past five years but the availability of special-education schools has barely risen, government data showed Wednesday.

According to statistics acquired by Yonhap News Agency, the number of kindergartners, elementary and secondary school students with physical or mental disabilities stood at 79,711 in 2010, up from 58,362 in 2005 and 75,187 in 2007.

The number of institutions reserved for such students rose only slightly from 142 in 2005 to 155 in 2010, causing the ratio of students receiving special education to fall to 29.7 percent last year, the data showed.

In Seoul, in particular, not one school for students with disabilities has been built since 2001. Currently, 29 such institutions exist in the capital city.

"Public outcry for more special schools has been mounting," said Shin Hyun-ki, a professor at Seoul's Dankook University. "The government should strive to meet the growing demand, while immediately increasing the capacity of existing schools." (Yonhap)