Local Response to the International Agenda: The Case of Inclusive Education for Children with Hearing Impairment in Ethiopia

• In Event: Inclusive Practices at the Local Level: Homes, Schools, and Communities

Proposal

Inclusive education has become a significant concern in recent years partly because Goal 4 in Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 urges measures to “[e]nsure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” (UN n.d.). Although many countries have formulated inclusive education policies for children with disability, they still face various challenges. A major challenge is to accommodate children with disabilities in regular schools, which is emphasized by the international agenda.
The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has also practiced inclusive education for children with disabilities. This study examines the current local practice of inclusive education with a focus on children with hearing impairment in Ethiopia, considering the international discussions of educational settings for children with disabilities. More specifically, by examining a unique shift of special classes for children with hearing impairment toward regular classes in Ethiopia, this study clarifies the issues regarding the local inclusive education practices for children with disabilities by referring to the international agendas, and adduces certain implications for the realization of inclusive education that meets the local situation of Ethiopia.
This shift of special classes to regular classes is a unique initiative in Ethiopia. Having both children with and without disabilities in the special school-based regular schools is intended to afford both children with and without disabilities opportunities for the acquisition of non-cognitive skills. Furthermore, from the perspective of children with hearing impairment, the informants valued the special school-based regular schools because children without disabilities can better understand people with disabilities, which would help children with disabilities in practice and contribute to developing a comfortable society for people with disabilities. The parents of children with disabilities also value knowledge and understanding about disabilities and place importance on living with them in the society. Furthermore, some parents of children with hearing impairment feel equality by learning alongside children without disabilities. These expectations actually overlap with those of accepting children with disabilities into regular schools (e.g. Tonegawa 2019). Therefore, these expectations further highlight the significance behind children with and without disabilities learning together.
A unique finding from the special class-based regular class from the perspective of the children without disabilities enrolled in these special school-based regular schools is that some parents are paying attention to the additional support for educational materials and the acquisition of sign language skills as a future option for children with disabilities. Some parents perceive that the special school-based regular schools offer quality education due to the small number of students in each class and greater individual support by teachers.
Due to such advantages, this special class-based regular classes seemed to be an ideal inclusive education for children with and without disabilities. However, the interviewed parents and teachers observed differences in learning comprehension between children with and without disabilities partly due to gap in learning readiness caused by a lack of pre-primary education. This exposed the fact that the pre-primary education available to children with disabilities is limited in Ethiopia. In addition, the informants claimed that environment in which children with hearing impairment learn in both sign language and spoken languages does not allow them to fully develop their sign language skills. This is partly due to the lack of sufficient sign language skills among teachers. These two issues need to be considered in regular schools that have children with disabilities. This study emphasizes that it is necessary to consider the differences in learning readiness and skill education required for each disability.

Author

• Yoshiko Tonegawa, Waseda University