Inclusive education: an overview Susie Miles

Paper presented to an International Workshop, Handicap

International, London, September 2007 International agreements The development of inclusive education internationally needs to be seen in the context of the major international agreements, or key milestones, on the journey to a rights-based approach to inclusive education for all children. Although there were earlier efforts to promote universal primary education in the 1960s and 1970s, recent history begins with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), of 1989, which built on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. The UNCRC Key articles include: Article 2 (Non-discrimination); Article 28/29 (The right to quality education); Article 23 (Disabled children’s education). This article recognises disabled children’s need for special care and assistance, and could be used to promote more segregated forms of provision. The World Conference on Education for All (EFA), 1990 This was the first time that a world conference had acknowledged the fact that a large number of children from marginalised groups were excluded from education. The slogan of the conference was ‘Education for All by the year 2000’ and the main focus was on ‘access’ – getting children into school. The conference is commonly referred to as ‘Jomtien’, the name of the place in Thailand in which the conference took place. UN Standard Rules on the Equalisation of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, 1993 These Rules were adopted by the UN General Assembly following the Decade of Disabled Persons (1981-1991). They represented a significant step forward on disability rights internationally. Rule 6 focuses on the education of disabled learners in integrated settings. Salamanca Statement on Special Needs Education: access and quality, 1994 The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action has been very influential in promoting inclusive education, although it mainly uses the language of ‘special needs education’. Here are two of the most frequently quoted sections. “… schools should accommodate all children regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, linguistic or other conditions. This should include disabled and gifted children, street and working children, children from remote or nomadic populations, children from linguistic, ethnic, or cultural minorities and children from other disadvantaged or marginalized areas and groups.” (Salamanca Statament, para 2)

Inclusive schools are “the most effective means of combating discriminatory attitudes, creating welcoming communities, building an inclusive society and achieving education for all; moreover, they provide an effective education to the majority of children and improve the efficiency and ultimately the cost-effectiveness of the entire education system.” (Introduction to Framework for Action, para 3) 2000 World Education Forum, Dakar, Senegal, This forum took place to review the goal of ‘EFA by 2000’ and set new targets, given the lack of progress made. The emphasis at the conference shifted from access to a concern about quality. Disability-focused organisations complained about the lack of mention of disability at Dakar. Instead the term ‘special learning needs’ was used. 2000 Millennium Development Goals These were agreed later in 2000 and now form the basis of the work of most international agencies. Central to the goals is the alleviation of poverty, but the second goal, linked to poverty reduction, is Universal Primary Education(UPE) for all children aged 6-11 years. 2006 UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities Article 24 focuses on education. It took a long time to reach agreement on this very contested issue. Segregated education almost became a right, but fortunately the final wording enables inclusive education to be recognised as a right, as the following excerpts show: All disabled children and young people “can access an inclusive, quality, free primary and secondary education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live”. However the following phrases could enable a more specialist approach to education services and lessen the emphasis on inclusion: “Reasonable accommodation of the individual’s requirements”. Support should be provided, “within the general education system, to facilitate their effective education”. “The education of … children, who are blind, deaf and deafblind, is delivered in the most appropriate languages and modes and means of communication for the individual, and in environments which maximize academic and social development”.

Definitions of inclusive education The term ‘inclusive education’ is used inconsistently throughout the world. Definitions vary according to context and organisational interests: EENET

� all children can learn

� inclusive education is a dynamic process which is constantly evolving

� differences in children, such as age, gender, ethnicity, language, disability, HIV and TB status, should be acknowledged and respected

� education structures, systems and methodologies should be developed

to meet the needs of all children

� inclusive education should be seen as part of a wider strategy to promote an inclusive society

� progress need not be restricted by large class sizes or a shortage of

material resources.

Based on the Agra Conference on Inclusive Education, 1998 A UK Department for International Development (DfID) definition, 2000 “Inclusive education in a developing country implies the equal right of all children to the ‘educational package’, however basic that package may be.” Disability Awareness in Action, 2003 “When we refer to ‘inclusion’, we mean the participation of disabled children through the provision of fully accessible information, environments and support.” A UNESCO definition of inclusive education, 2001

“Inclusive education starts from the belief that the right to education is a basic human right and the foundation for a more just society. Inclusive education takes the Education for All (EFA) agenda forward by finding ways of enabling schools to serve all children in their communities…. Inclusive education is concerned with all learners, with a focus on those who have traditionally been excluded from educational opportunities – such as learners with special needs and disabilities, children from ethnic and linguistic minorities”.

The role of practitioners Knowledge of international documents is essential for all practitioners as they can be used to lobby for changes in policy. It is also important to remember that inclusive education policy is not only developed at international and national levels. Local government, communities, schools, families can all play a role in developing practice. The work practitioners do with individual children can also contribute to policy change. The following diagram shows the wide range of ways in which practitioners can become involved in inclusive education. �

Key Issues

Poverty, gender, race, HIV/AIDS,

disability, language

Policy development Teacher

education and development

Role of disabled people and

their organisations

Child to Childand pupil voice

Inclusive learning

environments

Information and accessibility

Early childhood development

Family and Family and community community involvementinvolvement

(CBR)(CBR)

Adult and non-formal

education

Education is: lifelong; formal and informal; and involves community members and consumer organisations as well as teachers. Inclusive education is not only about disability, but is concerned with poverty and other issues of difference and discrimination. Listening to children and encouraging their active participation in their own education is key to progress. Ensuring that information is available in accessible formats, and learning environments (whether in classrooms or in the community) are accessible, is also a fundamental part of inclusive education. At the beginning of my presentation I showed the following photographs to stimulate thinking about what inclusive education looks like. We all have different pictures and ideas of what inclusion is and what it looks like – usually based on our own experience of education. The first picture was taken by a Zambian school child who had never used a camera before. He was asked to take pictures of where he felt comfortable (included) and where he felt uncomfortable (excluded). He took the picture because he believed this male teacher to be a good teacher; he has a good

rapport with the children, his lessons are lively and he smiles a lot. A discussion was held with teachers, parents and learners at the school about the photos. This photo led to a lively debate about what makes a good teacher. Some children criticised the teacher because the children on the back row were not in their seats. This led to a discussion about seating arrangements and whether children should sit in rows or in groups. The second picture was taken by a male teacher in Nigeria who also works as an advocate on child marriage issues. The teacher in the photo helps educate out-of-school girls and they are reading a child rights book together. The photo raises issues about the location of education, and about flexibility and access. Conclusion There is no room for complacency when the majority of disabled children do not go to school, and large numbers of children who grow up in income-poor, rural homes unable to break out of the cycle of poverty because of their exclusion from educational opportunities. Disabled children are often seen as ‘ineducable’ and ‘not worth wasting resources on’, given the high cost of school fees and the demands of subsistence agriculture. Where disabled children do gain access to education it is often seen as ‘mainstreaming’ rather than ‘inclusion’, and so segregated education often co-exists within so-called ‘mainstream’ education. This sometimes takes place through ‘special units’ and specialist teachers are seen as essential. When the specialist teacher leaves, mainstreaming often falls apart because ‘mainstream’ teachers haven’t been encouraged to develop the relevant skills and attitudes required to teach all children. The term ‘inclusive education’ is used to mean different things in different places. It is a contested, controversial, confusing and complex term – the four ‘C’s! Models of inclusive education are often imported from very different contexts making them unsustainable. It is hardly surprising that teacher education rarely keeps up with changes in policy and practice: “First it was special education, then we changed to integrated education, now the donors want us to call it inclusive education!!”���

EFA efforts tend to focus on the narrow concept of ‘schooling’, rather than the broader concept of education. Systems tend to be inflexible and fail to recognise viable alternatives to formal education in the form of home-based or community-based initiatives. The importance of early childhood education and parental support and involvement is largely overlooked by the Universal Primary Education agenda. Nevertheless there are many reasons to be optimistic. School fees have been abolished in many countries. UNESCO is promoting the broad concept of child-friendly schools which encompasses the principles of inclusive education. Inclusive education is now a right, following the ratification of the new UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities in 2006, signed by over 100 countries so far.

The inclusion of disabled children in educational settings needs to be seen as a catalyst for change, rather than a burden. It has the potential to challenge EFA to be more inclusive. This workshop shows that people are passionate about sharing their experience of making inclusive education a reality. It is not only about international conventions and high-powered meetings, it is about the hard work of individuals committed to transforming their schools and communities so that they embrace difference and see inclusion as a right not a privilege. �

The following diagram attempts to illustrate the many players involved in promoting EFA and inclusive education. There is so much work to do – and not enough people or organisations so it is really important that each practitioner and policy maker understands their role, potential contribution and how it fits into the wider framework. If not there is a danger of duplication, reinventing wheels and of petty disagreements between the different players and their particular passions. I hope that what we all have in common is to ensure that all children have an equal opportunity to have a quality education in their own community.

An inclusive approach to education for all

Inclusive education

Focus on disability rights

Education for All

Universal PrimaryEducation

Improving the quality of education

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