Introduction

The homebound / hospital education program has been offered to pupils, who are unable to commute to special schools due to their profound and multiple disabilities, and/or severe health problems, since 1979 in Japan. In the program, teachers of special schools visit the residences of pupils such as personal homes, child welfare institutions, and/or medical institutions, and teach them there.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the role of the homebound / hospital education program, which has affected educational provision for pupils with profound and multiple disabilities.

Method

The process and current situation of the homebound / hospital education program is described mainly by the national survey (Takei, Kawasumi and Hayasaka 1997). The role and development of homebound / hospital education program in order to guarantee educational provision for pupils with profound and multiple disabilities is discussed.

Process and current situation of the program

1. Outline of the program
The homebound / hospital education program has been offered to pupils, who are unable to commute to special schools due to their profound

and multiple disabilities, and/or severe health problems, since 1979 in the whole areas of Japan. In the program, teachers of special schools visit the residences of pupils such as their homes, child welfare institutions and/or medical institutions, and teach them there. Pupils involved in the program belong to special schools. Since 1998, the program has executed in the advanced level, which is upper secondary education one. Figure 1 shows the structure of the program.

According to nationwide enforcement of the program, the number of children in compulsory education in 1978, who were permitted to exempt or postpone their school attendance, decreased sharply to 3,384 of 1979 from 9,872 of 1978. Afterwards the number of them has decreased gradually. It became 1,711 in 1999.

The number of pupils involved in the program was 7,535 in 1979 and 8,313 in1980. Since 1980, the number of them has decreased gradually. It became 2,567 in 1999 in compulsory education level. The ratio of pupils involved in the program to all pupils who belong to special school was 13.34? in 1979,14.16? in 1980, and 5.78? in1999. Since 1980 the ratio has decreased gradually, such as the number of pupils involved in the program.

2. Situation in executing the program In the homebound education program,

teachers visit the homes typically two or three times a week and provide their guidance about two hours a day. In the hospital education program executed in child welfare institutions and/or medical institutions, they visit the institutions for 3, 4, 5 or 6 days a week, where pupils lived. In the case of the hospital education program, the frequency of day and length of time when teachers visited depends on pupils' and residences' situation. .

The program included schooling, which means pupils involved in the program attend their special school with their parents. The schooling makes the pupils contact with other pupils and participate in activities at school. The frequency of schooling for pupils depends on pupils' situation. It is, for example, between from once a week to onc

a year.

Table 1 shows issues in executing the program. Teachers involved in the program in the survey pointed the issues.

Discussion

1. Role of the homebound/hospital education program

According to nationwide enforcement of the program, the number of pupils in compulsory education in 1978, who was permitted to exempt or postpone their school attendance, decreased sharply to 3,384 of 1979 from 9,872 of 1978. Afterwards the number of them has decreased gradually. It became 1,711 in 1999.

This means the program has played to guarantee educational provision for pupils with profound and multiple disabilities, and/or severe health problems.

And, I point out that the program has expanded the concept of the school education from the following two points of view. The one is that not only the place of school but also educational provision has come to be done in personal home, child welfare institutions and/or medical institutions. The other is that educational provision has come to be done even by children with profound and multiple disabilities and/or severe health problems.

2. Homebound / hospital education program in the future

The number of pupils involved in the program has decreased gradually since two years of the program enforcement. That is because pupils involved in the program have changed to attendance in special school due to increase of number of special schools and classes for pupils with profound and multiple disabilities in special schools. And moreover, the type and degree of disabilities of pupils involved in the program has been more serious. That is because the home

medical care has progressed more in mainly big and middle cities. Therefore Children with more profound disabilities will become the object of the homebound / hospital education program, especially in the homebound education program.

The program will keep a very effective educational provision in the viewpoint of the guarantee of educational provision for pupils with profound and multiple disabilities, and/or severe health problems, though pupils involved in the program will be more small number. The program has been and will be based on the policy for "Education for all." (HAYASAKA Masashi)