TOWARDS 21ST CENTURY: CURRENT TRENDS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION IN CHINA = TOWARDS 21ST CENTURY: CURRENT TRENDS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION IN CHINA

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

As a developing country with the uneven development pattern, China has been struggling in taking the best use of limited resources in providing the special educational services. The paper presents the general information and current trends of the special education regarding the issues like compulsory education, the expansion of service to preschoolers and post compulsory education, vocational and higher education for students with special educational needs and so on. Challenges and problems confronting in Chinas special education are also presented in this paper. Limited resources, integration vs. segregation, family supports and research work are those among the challenges discussed. Special education in China has been in a rapidly developing time since 1980s. As an integral part of the national education system, special education is providing to target people through 3 channels mainly: special school, special program, and integrating into regular class. Among them, integration is a new-tried and most challenging one. In this presentation, we will present the general information about special education in China, and focus on the current trends, which will influence the development of special education in China in the new century.