Measuring reading and language skills of learners with disabilities: Formative and summative assessment case studies from East Africa

Group Submission Type: Formal Panel Session

Proposal

The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) recognizes the right for persons with disabilities to access inclusive and quality education. Unfortunately, 4/5 people with disabilities in developing countries are still excluded from education (WB, 2019). Inclusive education is more than just granting children with disabilities physical access to schools; the curriculum also needs to be accessible and enable their active participation in the classroom. It is, however, difficult to determine the extent of education inclusion with no reliable assessments to accurately capture persons with disabilities’ learning outcomes. Despite significant investments to make learning assessments more inclusive and the widespread use of adapted/modified assessments across national education programs and bilaterally and multilaterally funded projects, the way the assessment information is presented, and requirements for how responses are provided, is still disadvantaging or even excluding learners with disabilities (ACR GCD & GEC, 2023).

In recent years, the research community has gained substantial experience in how to most reliably and validly measure learning outcomes of children with disabilities. The purpose of this panel is to share experiences in adapting and administering formative and summative learning assessments to children with disabilities in two East African countries. Presenters in this panel will share the processes through which the they adapted and administered assessments, the lessons learned and recommendations for those seeking to undertake a similar process, and guidance on how to engage government officials to include learners with disabilities in national assessment systems.

World Bank. (2019). Every learner matters: Unpacking the learning crisis for children with disabilities. Retrieved from https:// openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/31946

ACR GCD & GEC (2023). TOWARDS EQUITY IN ASSESSMENT: Making Standardized Learning Assessments More Accessible for Learners with Disabilities. Retrieved from: TOWARDS EQUITY IN ASSESSMENT: Making Standardized Learning Assessments More Accessible for Learners with Disabilities (acrgcd.wpenginepowered.com).

Sub Unit

• Inclusive Education SIG

Chair

• Aimee Reeves, School-To-School International

Individual Presentations

• Local Early Grade Reading Assessment adaptation and piloting: Lessons learned - Protogene Ndahayo, FHI 360; Alphonse Ntirenganya, FHI 360; Jean Claude Sabato, FHI 360

• Sharing lessons learnt from including learners with disabilities in learning assessments in Tanzania - Nicoletta Giulivi, Mott MacDonald Ltd