Reflecting Upon ACR-Cambodia’s Inclusive Education Legacy

• In Event: Inclusive Education: Reflections from the Cambodian Context

Proposal

ACR-Cambodia supported children with and without disabilities to access high-quality early grade literacy instruction. Inclusive education interventions in general education classrooms included the provision of large-print and easy-read teaching and learning materials, the embedding of inclusion tips in teachers’ guides, and hearing and vision screening pilots. These interventions had varying levels of success and impact, and generated many lessons learned. In addition to general education school supports, the ACR-Cambodia team provided teacher training, teaching and learning materials, and follow-up support to children with hearing and vision disabilities attending Cambodia’s government-funded special schools. ACR-Cambodia also supported 14 children with hearing disabilities to access basic Cambodian Sign Language (CSL), where they previously had no access to education at all. Each of these efforts was accompanied by close collaboration with Cambodia’s Ministry of Education Youth and Sport (MoEYS), which helped to endorse and co-deliver each of these interventions.

This presentation will provide an overview of these key activities led by ACR-Cambodia which supported children with disabilities in general and segregated education classroom settings. This will include a description of the hearing and vision screening activities, the development of teaching and learning materials for children with disabilities, and an overview of the instructional strategies teachers were supported to use to educate children with disabilities.

Author

• Sean Kosal