About 80 per cent of Scotland’s estimated 5,500 children with a hearing or visual problem attend mainstream schools, yet there are only around 80 specialist teachers of the deaf and 58 of the visually impaired, according to Holyrood’s Education Committee.
The shortage is set to worsen as fewer teachers are training as specialists and almost half today’s workforce are set to retire within the next 10 to 15 years.
The MSPs called for more incentives to become specialist teachers. They also urged schools to make more use of technology such as iPads for deaf and visually impaired children, as well as providing better preparation for life after school.
Stewart Maxwell MSP, the committee’s convener, said education for pupils with sensory impairments could be improved in several ways.
He explained: “While there is some fantastic work going on in some areas of Scotland, for many, this is not the case. Proper support is needed for those pupils in mainstream schools.
“For example, it is simply unacceptable that there are occasions when basic technological failures mean pupils are unable to access learning materials.”
Heather Gray, director of the National Deaf Children’s Society (Scotland and Northern Ireland), said: “If we are to close the education attainment gap in Scotland it is vital that every child is given the opportunity to achieve their full potential and be ready to succeed, including those who are deaf. The Scottish Parliament is to be commended for carrying out this important inquiry.
“Its proceedings illustrated approaches that are working well for deaf learners, and also clearly highlighted many of the national and local challenges involved in delivering specialist support to deaf learners, 80 per cent of whom are within local mainstream schools.”
She hoped the report would bring “a sense of urgency” and a fresh perspective to the issue.