How to Improve Engineering Competencies for Students with Special Needs?

Abstract

The problem of vocational education for Children with Special Needs (CSN) is not only about the service profile, spectrum relevance and competency level, but also the carrying capacity of educational facilities. In this regard, two important things are highlighted. First, the different characteristics of the design of educational facilities between regular and exceptional schools. Second, the distinctive characteristics of the design of the school facilities are extraordinary for general education (academic) and vocational education. The purpose of this study is to describe the level of suitability of the architectural design of educational facilities with the needs of vocational learning behavior for children with special needs in West Java, Indonesia. The entire research used the Education Research and Development (R & D) method of Developing the Architectural Facility Design Guide to Support the Vocational Competence of Crew Competence in accordance with the stages developed by Thiagarajan (1974) known as Four-D Model. To achieve the above objectives, then the stages of the R & D method that is done is the define, design and develop stage. Evaluation results show the infrastructure of education of Special School (SLB) Cicendo, Indonesia has met the standards set by the government, especially on aspects of land and building areas have met the standards. Most aspects of accessibility such as the basic size of space, pedestrian pathways, and doors have been met. But other aspects such as guiding lines, ram, ladders, toilets, showers, sinks, furniture and signs do not meet accessibility requirements. The conclusion is the educational infrastructure of the school in general has met the standards set by the government.