Turning to the concept of "corrective and developmental work," it should be noted that the term "correction" as a certain form of psychological and pedagogical activity first appears in defectology in relation to variants of abnormal development. There, it means a system of special pedagogical measures aimed at overcoming or weakening disadvantages in the development of children.
Modern modernization of education is aimed at ensuring adequate conditions of education and upbringing for all categories of students. In recent decades, in most countries of the world, the number of children who do not have developmental abnormalities, but who experience various kinds of difficulties in the process of schooling, has been increasing. The reasons for children's school difficulties are related to the deteriorating health of parents and children, unfavorable ecology, drug addiction, alcoholism, unfavorable heredity, accelerated rhythm of life, deteriorating living conditions in a number of countries for the majority of the population. The problem is so acute that one of the most important areas of work in general education schools is the organization of remedial and developmental work to help such children. Differentiated and individualized instruction (Beecher & Sweeny, 2008), use of stimulation methods, organization of group work, a person-centered approach, and so on are considered as conditions for overcoming school difficulties. At the same time, corrective and developmental work with students with school difficulties is highlighted by a number of researchers as a necessary condition for overcoming learning delays and behavioral deviations.
A large number of studies by specialists in various fields (teachers, psychologists, doctors, etc.) are devoted to the issue of creating special conditions in mass educational institutions in order to overcome students' school difficulties. In developing the issues of teaching this category of students and the organization of corrective influence on them in the process of education, most authors note the need to implement a comprehensive psychological and pedagogical interaction with the inclusion of various kinds of social measures. The importance of general reinforcing treatment, a gentle regime and the need to create a favorable psychological microclimate in an educational institution are noted. If these conditions are observed, children with mild developmental disabilities can successfully attend a regular school. At the same time in many publications the question is quite fairly raised about the inappropriateness of an overly uniform approach to all children in the educational process, including students with school difficulties. For example, a one-size-fitsall pace of instruction is cited as a major shortcoming of the lesson. The introduction of an individual pace of learning is suggested, as well as students' own choice of the level of difficulty. Some educators suggest dividing the class into two groups with the ability to move from one to the other, allowing each student to progress at his or her own individual pace. Other researchers, sharing this point of view, continue to explore various possibilities aimed at differentiating the learning process, allowing to take into account the individual capabilities of children.
Analyzing the history of the development of almost 30 years of foreign experience (Reyes, 2006), it is possible to point out the following conditions under which integration is successful
- A democratic social structure with guaranteed observance of individual rights;
- financial security, the creation of an adequate range of remedial and educational services and specialized living conditions for children with developmental problems in the structure of a mass school;
- non-violent nature of the course of integration processes, the possibility of choice, alternatives in the presence of a guaranteed list of educational and correctional services provided by the education system to persons with developmental problems.
The main objectives of the remedial-developmental education system are to protect and strengthen, through organized influences, the physical and neuropsychological health of children at risk, to correct deviations in their development, to compensate for shortcomings in preschool development and family education, to promote their personal potential as the main support for remedial work, to provide a full education in accordance with State standards and within the prescribed time limits. The general education program in classes of remedial and developmental education is supplemented by a program of remedial and developmental work, which provides:
- purposeful development of social and moral qualities of children necessary for their successful adaptation in school conditions;
- developing meaningful learning motivation and consistently replacing formal learning motives, which are typical for children at risk at the initial stage of schooling, with cognitive interests;
- development to the necessary level of psycho-physiological functions that provide learning activities;
- enrichment of the outlook and development of speech to the level that allows children to join the educational process, communicate in accordance with its logic and consciously perceive the educational material;
- development of personal components of cognitive activity (cognitive activity, independence, overcoming intellectual passivity, lack of initiative);
- formation to the necessary level and the subsequent purposeful development of learning skills
- general-activity and intellectual-perceptual.
Depending on the degree and nature of developmental deviations of students at risk, remedial and developmental work is conducted in the following forms:
remedial-developmental education classes;
remedial-developmental groups focused on filling developmental and academic deficits in schoolchildren;
individual remedial classes.
The last two forms of organization of remedial and developmental education may take place both as part of in-class and out-of-class activities, which determines the nature of the changes made to the curriculum and the school schedule. The fundamental thing in the organization of remedial and developmental education classes is the changing composition of the class. Children who, in the process of work, overcome developmental delays and acquire the necessary qualities of learning activity (independence, autonomy, pace) are transferred to regular classes. Other children in need of pedagogical assistance can be enrolled in their place. Passing the same state program makes the transition in both cases painless. In addition to classroom instruction, the curriculum provides for group and individual forms of remedial and developmental work. Group or individual classes are held outside school hours by specialists in the correction of certain defects in children's development (speech therapy groups, psychological correction groups, physical therapy, etc.). These forms of corrective and developmental work are temporary (until the necessary level of development is reached) and are in addition to instruction in the classroom. Of principal importance in the methodology of corrective and developmental education (CDE) is the constantly conducted diagnostics of the level of the child's current and nearest development zones, the construction of individual assistance in connection with this and individual evaluation of the quality of the completed educational path. The child's active, interested, comfortable state in the process of learning is supported if the difficulties arising in the process of activity are overcome, and the goal set in the end is achieved. Qualitative diagnostics of learning outcomes, as a prerequisite for feedback, is recorded in the pedagogical cards of students, teacher's diaries, qualitative registers of progress and success developed for the ELL classes. The diagnostic-corrective nature of pedagogical work in compensatory classes sets the approach to determining the participants in the pedagogical process. In addition to a teacher knowledgeable in diagnostics and pedagogical correction, psychologists, social psychologists, social teachers, physicians, and other specialists are mandatory participants in remedial and developmental work with children in these classes.The peculiarity of classes of remedial and developmental education is the need to implement a close relationship with the social environment in which students develop. The main lines of interaction are: active influence of school on society, providing prevention of social and school maladaptation; common psychological climate of school; common nurturing correctional and developmental environment; openness of transition of children from class and to compensatory education class (Flores & Fabela, 2015).
In conclusion, we would like to point out that this field of work is different from the usual, familiar field of work in education. It will be decades before every educator's dream that every student on the planet can have the opportunity for an education that is within their reach and abilities becomes a reality. However, the more people think about it, the faster the community of passionate professionals who can pass on their expertise on an ongoing basis will grow (Long & Boatman, 2013). And perhaps former students, graduates of a school of inclusive education, can be just such teachers.
References
Beecher, M. & Sweeny, S.M. (2008). Closing the achievement gap with curriculum enrichment and differentiation: One school’sstory. Journal of Advanced Academics, 19 (3), 502–530. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ810785.pdf
Flores, R.P., Monroy, G.V.,Fabela, A.M.R. (2015). Compensatory policies attending equality and inequality in Mexico educationalpractice among vulnerable groups in higher education. Journal of Education and Learning, 4(4), 53-63. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1097791.pdf
Long B. T. & Boatman A. (2013), CHAPTER 5: THE ROLE OF REMEDIAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL COURSES IN ACCESS AND PERSISTENCE https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/btl/files/long_boatman_2013_role_of_remediation_in_access_and_persistence_- _acsfa_routledge.pdf
Reyes, A. (2006). Texas state compensatory education. Journal of Education Finance, 31 (3), 221-237. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40704262
