After on the eve of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Prime Minister Robert Abela invited Naomi Pace Gasan to follow closely the work carried out in the Office of the Prime Minister, today it was the turn of Dr. Abela who visited Naomi’s school in Wardija. The Dun Manwel Attard Resource Center in Wardija, which is part of the Marija Reġina College, welcomes around one hundred students and the age of these young people varies between 16 and 21 years. The school offers the highest quality academic, vocational and extra-curricular opportunities to students with different skills while also offering many training opportunities in the world of work.
While Naomi turned to the Prime Minister at the Fr Manwel Attard Resource Center and showed him how to spend her day, Dr Abela was able to hear more about how the administration and staff work hand in hand to offer to the students the best educational experience so necessary to live an independent life with also prospects of suitable work.
The college offers traditional subjects like PSCD, physical education and ICT but also other subjects like gardening, dancing, work exposure and pottery work. The school strives to also offer therapy related to art, drama and even through animals, including horses, dogs and even rabbits. Students follow the educational objectives that are offered by the Learning Outcomes Framework and even the Achieve Program so that where possible students acquire useful skills for the world of work with the necessary support.
The school is involved in many various activities, including environmental and entrepreneurial and has even won many awards in these sectors because it is very active in the community and among the activities it does, the staff trains the students to prepare. souvenirs for weddings, and many other items that can be given as a souvenir. The school is also considered the first organic school in Malta.
The Prime Minister said that he is impressed with the service and dedication shown by all the staff of this school. “It is crucial to ensure a comfortable transition for all students who complete their education at this educational institution in order to enter the world of work and offer their direct share in society,” said Dr Abela.
Head of School Nicholas Agius thanked the government for its help in making the school operate efficiently. Mr Agius said the school was a living example of how people with disabilities were able to integrate into the world of work and become more independent in everything they did.
Education Minister Justyne Caruana emphasized the importance of inclusion in the education system and said the Wardija Center was another example of this. “At this center there is coordinated work that is leading to the highest possible level of life-wide learning and education, in a quiet environment where every student is included. This work also leads to the knowledge of each student to develop into a participating citizen, who respects himself and supports himself according to his abilities and needs “, said the minister.
The Minister for Inclusion and Quality of Life Julia Farrugia Portelli expressed her satisfaction for the way these students are being tangibly included in the education system and are being prepared for the world of work. from different aspects. “Hands-on learning is the biggest tool they are being given because it offers them a taste of the world of work”, said Minister Farrugia Portelli.
