Teachers Championing Inclusive Education Using Education Technology: A Case of Continuous Professional Development project in Uganda

• In Event: Inclusive and tech-driven education: lessons and challenges from global initiatives

Proposal

The increased advocacy for inclusive education (IE) has significantly changed education practice and policy. An education where ALL children have the opportunity to access, participate and complete school is fueled by strong international policies and global agenda. The Salamanca Statement of 1994 and the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) are among several frameworks that advocate for an education that is inclusive, equitable and promotes life long learning. Yet, education gaps have increased and significantly impacted education practice, with learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) at a risk of exclusion (World Bank, 2017). The outbreak of COVID-19 further widened the education gap where learners with SEND had fewer educational opportunities outside school (Jia & Santi, 2021), online learning was the new normal. At a time where the world has become a global village, equipping persons with disabilities with digital skills advances their inclusion (Chambers, 2020).
Technology has been highly received, appreciated and used in the modern-day world. It's vital that learners with SEND are exposed to current technologies that not only improve their participation, but also enable them to gain skills to thrive in the modern technological world (Modern, 2022). In pursuit to provide an inclusive learning environment, teachers' digital knowledge and skills is paramount. However, teachers’ limited knowledge in education technology coupled with pedagogical competence hinder use of education technology in the global south (Baguma, 2018). With technologies such as E-books, DAISY readers, audio to text and text to audio and AI are increasing access and participation of learners with SEND in education, teachers should be able to integrate them during the teaching and learning process. Its no doubt that technology is reshaping education environments, influencing learning outcomes, showcasing why teachers need to keep abreast with digital tools to advance inclusive education.
Drawing on a three years Continuous Professional Development (CPD) project, this paper explores teachers’ use of education technology to implement inclusive education. The CPD project was a collaboration with the Ministry of Education and local stakeholders to design a package to support teachers and other education service providers in providing quality inclusive education. Issues around inclusive teaching and learning, the early identification of children with disabilities and stakeholder engagement were addressed with a module on Educational Technology included. This was was informed by the urgent need to enhance teachers with skills, knowledge and expertise to meet the demands of an ever-evolving digital society. Teachers underwent rigorous training on the use of education technology to advance inclusive education in their classrooms. This paper is informed by a qualitative approach, case study design, and through the lens of the social model of disability. Data was purposively garnered from 20 primary school teachers and 8 school administrators across 4 primary schools. School administrators participated in individual interviews while teachers’ data was drawn from focus group discussions and lesson observations.
Thematic analysis revealed teachers gaining awareness of education technologies that don’t only support learners with SEND, but ALL learners. Schools were exposed to concepts of digital literacy and adaptive learning technologies, increasing capabilities to adapt teaching and assessment strategies to include learners with SEND. In general, teachers’ capacity increased to integrate education technology to promote equitable and effective learning. It was rewarding for teachers and school administrators to appreciate the impact of using technology. However, one of the central challenges was accessing digital devices. Learners with SEND solely depend on their parents’ abilities and other “good Samaritans” to provide technologies including assistive devices which come with high costs.
The findings underscore the importance of CPDs geared towards keeping teachers abreast with current practices including the use of education technologies. In the course of foreseeing the future of inclusive education in a digital society, it is paramount to recognise and empower teachers as key facilitators. This paper urges that teachers need to be equipped with the digital knowledge and skills amidst digital-access challenges in the global south. The CPD package has been validated for use across Uganda teacher training institutes, so there is opportunity to provide such guidance.

Authors

• Jacqui Shepherd, Sightsavers

• Veronica M Stapleton, Sightsavers