International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) 2021 was observed on December with a focus on creating 'an inclusive, accessible, and sustainable post-COVID-19 world' as advocated by the UN. "COVID-19 has resulted in further disadvantage and increased vulnerability for many persons with disabilities due to barriers in the health and social sectors, including discriminatory attitudes and inaccessible infrastructure," stated the UN in the light of the fact that persons with disabilities in the world are among the hardest hit by COVID-19, thereby, highlighting the equity and imperative in the present scenario.
Since communication is the innate tendency of living objects to convey and share needs, feelings or ideas, therefore, it needs to be understood that among human beings communication is channel or means of conveying meaning through mutual learnt and understood signs, symbols and their rules for structured and sequential use which is called coding which includes both the textual and dual codes.
Of late, neuro-science, brain-imaging techniques, nano-technology and artificial intelligence based digital devices, have provided new insights in bio-communication which exemplifies sign-mediated interactions in and between organisms. Consqentally, the Braille system of learning by blind is loosing significance and digital touch-screen devices assuming a central role.
Currently, the channel of communication can be:
Signing and gesturing
Visual
Tactile/hepatic
Multi-sensory such as olfactory, electromagnetic, or biochemical
Auditory
Abstract agreed codes or standard codes
Appropriate communication, adapted and adjusted or contextually designed and used in the present technology era can help children with disability to get accommodated or included equitably to the physical and social aspects of learning and life.
Since children are diverse and differently or differentially abled, they have diverse styles of learning. However, communication through signing and visual codes aided by digital technology can lead to meaningful non-verbal communication.
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