Innovations in inclusive education policy to practice: How to make inclusive education a reality in low- and middle-income contexts

• In Event: Roundtable Session (Wednesday II)

Group Submission Type: Refereed Round-Table Session

Proposal

Under the Education Equity Research Initiative, the Disability Task Team was established in 2017 with the objective of improving the availability and quality of data on the prevalence, access and achievement of children with disabilities in education. This is in direct response to growing international demand for more inclusive education for all children. With its 2018 Strategy on International Basic Education, the U.S. Government has joined other international donors in articulating a foundational cross-sectoral priority of expanding access to quality basic education for marginalized and vulnerable populations. This is a lofty goal echoed by USAID’s Universal Design for Learning to Help all Children Read toolkit that challenges all implementers and stakeholders to promote full, quality inclusion for all children.
These mandates apply particularly to children with disabilities. It is estimated that only 5 percent of all students with a disability complete primary school (Peters, 2003). Even when students with disabilities attend school, a curriculum that has not been adapted to their needs may mean they do not have the same access to education as their classmates do. This is a population that cannot be ignored if Sustainable Development Goals are to be met.
Many low- and middle-income countries have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and are putting inclusive education policies in place, and substantial guidance on how to develop policies exists (see the USAID Universal Design toolkit for a useful summary). However, they struggle with exactly how to implement these policies given severely constrained resources. They are calling for specific recommendations and examples of proven good practices in inclusive education reform as they move from policy to practice, resources that are largely lacking. Even with its expansive literature review, the USAID toolkit is unable to identify more than several examples of successful transition.
Our four presentations share sustainable innovations in moving from quality inclusive education policy to practice in low- and middle-income countries, including innovations in two core areas of challenge: financing inclusive education systems, and making the shift from stand-alone segregated schools and units to fully inclusive schools. Our first presentation will explore investment trends of 10 major donors, specifically related to early childhood develop programs and will present best practices for inclusive investment funding across donors. Our second presentation will share an in-depth analysis of expenditures of an inclusive education program in one country in Sub-Saharan Africa (Senegal), including guidance on how to make projections of the resources required to scale up inclusive education. Our third presentation will summarize an analysis of how inclusive education policies for pre-primary and primary education have been put into practice, including where challenges have been encountered and where opportunities exist, across a sample of countries from Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, and Asia regions. Finally, our fourth presentation will present strategies that governments, donors and implementers can take to move towards an inclusive education system.

Sub Unit

• SIG: Inclusive Education

Chair

• Stephen Luke, FHI 360

Individual Presentations

• “Leaving no one behind when learning starts”: An investigation of inclusive education investment strategies across major international donors - Nafisa Baboo, Light for the World

• Costing inclusive education of children with disabilities: Analysis of expenditures of an inclusive education programme in Senegal - Elena Schmidt, Sightsavers

• An analysis of policy to practice best practices: Effective steps toward inclusion - Jennae Bulat, RTI International

• Strategies for moving from segregated toward inclusive education systems - Anne Marie Hayes, Independent Consultant