Educational Inclusion of Disadvantaged Groups
Stockholm, October 2019
For over 30 years, the philosophy and practice of inclusive schools has grown from minimal awareness to a recognized bedrock component of schools around the globe that demands dual standards of excellence and equity for all students. Yet there is still confusion and widely varying definitions of the “inclusion.” The lack of a common understanding of this important practice actually impedes further progress for students, their families, and the educators who teach them. Simply stated, inclusive education means that all students are full and accepted members of their school community, in which their educational setting is the same as their non-disabled peers, whenever appropriate.
Source: inclusiveschools.org/category/resources/inclusion-basics/
Source: inclusiveschools.org/category/resources/inclusion-basics/
Inclusive education is when all students, regardless of any challenges they may have, are placed in age-appropriate general education classes that are in their own neighborhood schools to receive high-quality instruction, interventions, and supports that enable them to meet success in the core curriculum (Bui, Quirk, Almazan, & Valenti, 2010; Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
The school and classroom operate on the premise that students with disabilities are as fundamentally competent as students without disabilities. Therefore, all students can be full participants in their classrooms and in the local school community. Much of the movement is related to legislation that students receive their education in the least restrictive environment (LRE). This means they are with their peers without disabilities to the maximum degree possible, with general education the placement of first choice for all students (Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
Successful inclusive education happens primarily through accepting, understanding, and attending to student differences and diversity, which can include physical, cognitive, academic, social, and emotional. This is not to say that students never need to spend time out of regular education classes, because sometimes they do for a very particular purpose — for instance, for speech or occupational therapy. But the goal is this should be the exception.
The driving principle is to make all students feel welcomed, appropriately challenged, and supported in their efforts. It’s also critically important that the adults are supported, too. This includes the regular education teacher and the special education teacher, as well as all other staff and faculty who are key stakeholders — and that also includes parents.
Source: https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/inclusive-education/
The school and classroom operate on the premise that students with disabilities are as fundamentally competent as students without disabilities. Therefore, all students can be full participants in their classrooms and in the local school community. Much of the movement is related to legislation that students receive their education in the least restrictive environment (LRE). This means they are with their peers without disabilities to the maximum degree possible, with general education the placement of first choice for all students (Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
Successful inclusive education happens primarily through accepting, understanding, and attending to student differences and diversity, which can include physical, cognitive, academic, social, and emotional. This is not to say that students never need to spend time out of regular education classes, because sometimes they do for a very particular purpose — for instance, for speech or occupational therapy. But the goal is this should be the exception.
The driving principle is to make all students feel welcomed, appropriately challenged, and supported in their efforts. It’s also critically important that the adults are supported, too. This includes the regular education teacher and the special education teacher, as well as all other staff and faculty who are key stakeholders — and that also includes parents.
Source: https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/inclusive-education/
Inclusive education, ensuring that all excluded and marginalized persons have access to education, presents challenges in any setting. Yet inclusive education is a vital element for developing societies that challenge discrimination and that see diversity as a positive resource rather than as a threat. Arguably, the need for inclusive education is even greater in situations of crisis and conflict, where discrimination may be rife, even causing the crisis, and where acceptance of diversity and reconciliation is essential for moving the society forward again.
The international community has specifically addressed the issue of inclusive education through the following global conventions:
Girls attending the Hearing Impaired Foundation of Afghanistan, a school that helps prepare hearing impaired children to attend mainstream schools. © Karin Beate Nosterud/Save the Children
Source: https://inee.org/collections/inclusive-education
The international community has specifically addressed the issue of inclusive education through the following global conventions:
Girls attending the Hearing Impaired Foundation of Afghanistan, a school that helps prepare hearing impaired children to attend mainstream schools. © Karin Beate Nosterud/Save the Children
- UN Convention on the Rights of the Child,1989 introduces the right to protection from discrimination in grounds of disability for the first time in international human rights law.
- World Declaration on Education for All, 1990 highlights the steps needed to provide equal access to education to every category of disabled persons as an integral part of the education system.
- United Nations Standard Rules on Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, 1993 elaborate the steps needed to translate the principle of equal primary, secondary and tertiary educational opportunities for children, youth and adults with disabilities in integrated settings into practice.
- Salamanca Declaration and Framework for Action, 1994 introduces the guiding principle that ordinary schools should accommodate all children, regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other conditions.
- UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, 2006 introduces an obligation to ensure an inclusive education for persons with disabilities at all levels.
- CRPD General Comment on the Right to Inclusive Education, 2016 elaborates the measures States must introduce to guarantee inclusive quality education for all persons with disabilities.
- SDGs Goal 4 introduces commitment to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
- Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action, 2016 aims to ensure inclusive response and services in all emergency sectors with education being a key transitional component
- 2030 Education Framework for Action combines the new EFA goals with SDG4 committing to a single renewed education agenda to reverse the trend of missing global targets
Source: https://inee.org/collections/inclusive-education
Key Messages
Source: https://inee.org/collections/inclusive-education
- Education in emergencies provides an opportunity to build inclusive education systems from the beginning in situations where education systems have largely or sometimes entirely broken down.
- Support and training for educators working in emergency situations is critical to the success of inclusive education interventions, given that teachers are often untrained and often traumatized as a result of the crisis as well. Proper training and awareness-raising provides an opportunity for teachers to ensure accessibility for all learners, according to their needs.
- Inclusive education is “democracy in action”. It offers a chance to rebuild broken societies and bring people together from across divides as they face a common challenge in providing all learners with equitable access to safe and relevant education, as well as instilling a culture of acceptance of difference and diversity.
- Education For All as set out in the Dakar Framework for Action, really does mean education for all, including those children, numbering 65 million, whose education has been disrupted by humanitarian crises. That includes those who have disabilities from prior to the disaster or as a result of the natural or man-made disaster.
- Education in emergency situations arguably requires more focus on ensuring access for persons with disabilities given that natural and man-made disasters cause physical and psychological damage to people. Persons with disabilities are also likely to face increased risks and suffer even more of a disadvantage in terms of access to aid (including food, water, shelter), precisely because they are unable to physically access food distribution points, water points, sanitation facilities, schools, and so on.
Source: https://inee.org/collections/inclusive-education
Educational Inclusion of Disadvantaged Groups
Socially disadvantaged groups include groups of people who do not have full and equal access to basic social security (unemployment benefits or social benefits), education, social services. This includes many groups that cannot benefit from all civil rights in society. The reason may be targeted discrimination by the state apparatus or even prejudices of society. Especially in the field of education disabled children,immigrants, national, religious and ethnic minorities, students of sexual orientation that does not conform to mainstream norms are usually included in this category. The boundary between social disadvantage and exclusion is not clearly defined.
The socially disadvantaged group has both external and internal causes. External causes are beyond the reach and control of excluded groups. These include, for example, the social policy of the state, discrimination, limited access to educational resources. On the contrary, the internal causes (which result from the actions of specific people affected by social exclusion) include the inability to particpate actively in the educational process, low motivation, high dropout rates and focus on the immediate satisfaction of needs. The above causes are assumptions that can push people to the margins of society.
We distinguish several forms of disadvantages:
1. Spatial disadvantage.
2. Economic disadvantage.
3. Cultural disadvantage.
4. Social disadvantage.
5. Educational disadvantage
The main focus of educational interventions to the direction of engulfing students from disadvantaged social groups is to help them fulfil one of the most basic human rights, the Right to Education.
Socially disadvantaged groups include groups of people who do not have full and equal access to basic social security (unemployment benefits or social benefits), education, social services. This includes many groups that cannot benefit from all civil rights in society. The reason may be targeted discrimination by the state apparatus or even prejudices of society. Especially in the field of education disabled children,immigrants, national, religious and ethnic minorities, students of sexual orientation that does not conform to mainstream norms are usually included in this category. The boundary between social disadvantage and exclusion is not clearly defined.
The socially disadvantaged group has both external and internal causes. External causes are beyond the reach and control of excluded groups. These include, for example, the social policy of the state, discrimination, limited access to educational resources. On the contrary, the internal causes (which result from the actions of specific people affected by social exclusion) include the inability to particpate actively in the educational process, low motivation, high dropout rates and focus on the immediate satisfaction of needs. The above causes are assumptions that can push people to the margins of society.
We distinguish several forms of disadvantages:
1. Spatial disadvantage.
2. Economic disadvantage.
3. Cultural disadvantage.
4. Social disadvantage.
5. Educational disadvantage
The main focus of educational interventions to the direction of engulfing students from disadvantaged social groups is to help them fulfil one of the most basic human rights, the Right to Education.
Benefits for students
Simply put, both students with and without disabilities learn more. Many studies over the past three decades have found that students with disabilities have higher achievement and improved skills through inclusive education, and their peers without challenges benefit, too (Bui, et al., 2010; Dupuis, Barclay, Holms, Platt, Shaha, & Lewis, 2006; Newman, 2006; Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
For students with disabilities (SWD), this includes academic gains in literacy (reading and writing), math, and social studies — both in grades and on standardized tests — better communication skills, and improved social skills and more friendships. More time in the general classroom for SWD is also associated with fewer absences and referrals for disruptive behavior. This could be related to findings about attitude — they have a higher self-concept, they like school and their teachers more, and are more motivated around working and learning.
Their peers without disabilities also show more positive attitudes in these same areas when in inclusive classrooms. They make greater academic gains in reading and math. Research shows the presence of SWD gives non-SWD new kinds of learning opportunities. One of these is when they serve as peer-coaches. By learning how to help another student, their own performance improves. Another is that as teachers take into greater consideration their diverse SWD learners, they provide instruction in a wider range of learning modalities (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic), which benefits their regular ed students as well.
Researchers often explore concerns and potential pitfalls that might make instruction less effective in inclusion classrooms (Bui et al., 2010; Dupois et al., 2006). But findings show this is not the case. Neither instructional time nor how much time students are engaged differs between inclusive and non-inclusive classrooms. In fact, in many instances, regular ed students report little to no awareness that there even are students with disabilities in their classes. When they are aware, they demonstrate more acceptance and tolerance for SWD when they all experience an inclusive education together.
Source: https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/inclusive-education/
Simply put, both students with and without disabilities learn more. Many studies over the past three decades have found that students with disabilities have higher achievement and improved skills through inclusive education, and their peers without challenges benefit, too (Bui, et al., 2010; Dupuis, Barclay, Holms, Platt, Shaha, & Lewis, 2006; Newman, 2006; Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
For students with disabilities (SWD), this includes academic gains in literacy (reading and writing), math, and social studies — both in grades and on standardized tests — better communication skills, and improved social skills and more friendships. More time in the general classroom for SWD is also associated with fewer absences and referrals for disruptive behavior. This could be related to findings about attitude — they have a higher self-concept, they like school and their teachers more, and are more motivated around working and learning.
Their peers without disabilities also show more positive attitudes in these same areas when in inclusive classrooms. They make greater academic gains in reading and math. Research shows the presence of SWD gives non-SWD new kinds of learning opportunities. One of these is when they serve as peer-coaches. By learning how to help another student, their own performance improves. Another is that as teachers take into greater consideration their diverse SWD learners, they provide instruction in a wider range of learning modalities (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic), which benefits their regular ed students as well.
Researchers often explore concerns and potential pitfalls that might make instruction less effective in inclusion classrooms (Bui et al., 2010; Dupois et al., 2006). But findings show this is not the case. Neither instructional time nor how much time students are engaged differs between inclusive and non-inclusive classrooms. In fact, in many instances, regular ed students report little to no awareness that there even are students with disabilities in their classes. When they are aware, they demonstrate more acceptance and tolerance for SWD when they all experience an inclusive education together.
Source: https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/inclusive-education/
Getting all children in school and learning through Inclusive Education is the most effective way to give all children a fair chance to go to school, learn and develop the skills they need to thrive.
Source: https://www.unicef.org/education/inclusive-education
- Inclusive education means all children in the same classrooms, in the same schools. It means real learning opportunities for groups who have traditionally been excluded – not only children with disabilities, but speakers of minority languages too.
- Inclusive systems value the unique contributions students of all backgrounds bring to the classroom and allow diverse groups to grow side by side, to the benefit of all.
- Inclusive education allows students of all backgrounds to learn and grow side by side, to the benefit of all.
- But progress comes slowly. Inclusive systems require changes at all levels of society.
- At the school level, teachers must be trained, buildings must be refurbished and students must receive accessible learning materials. At the community level, stigma and discrimination must be tackled and individuals need to be educated on the benefit of inclusive education. At the national level, Governments must align laws and policies with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and regularly collect and analyse data to ensure children are reached with effective services.
Source: https://www.unicef.org/education/inclusive-education