Some lessons from international efforts to Foster inclusive education

This paper analyses international developments aimed at finding ways of including all children and young people in schools. In doing so, it addresses three overall questions: what forms of classroom practice can help all children to participate and learn? How can such practices be developed? And, what does this mean for school organisation and leadership? The paper argues that schools already have much of the expertise that is needed to support the participation and learning of all of their students. This being the case, the logical starting points for inclusive development within a school are through a detailed analysis of existing practice and with the sharing of expertise amongst staff members. The paper suggests five propositions that can be used to guide actions to make school systems more inclusive

Promoting inclusion and equity in Latin America: making sense of the challenges

Finding ways of including all children in schools is a challenge facing education systems throughout the world (Ainscow, 2016). In economically poorer countries this is mainly about the millions of children who are not able to attend formal education (UNESCO, 2015). Meanwhile, in wealthier countries many young people leave school with no worthwhile qualifications, whilst others are placed in special provision away from mainstream education, and some choose to drop out since the lessons seem irrelevant (OECD, 2012). Faced with these challenges, there is evidence of an increased interest in the idea of making education more inclusive and equitable. However, the field remains confused as to the actions needed in order to move policy and practice forward. This paper uses evidence from our experiences in five Latin America countries (i.e. Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay) to address this agenda. In particular, we focus on the following questions: • What are the barriers that limit the participation and learning of some children in Latin American countries? • How can these barriers be best understood? • What does this mean for moving education systems forward? The analysis presented leads us to describe and reflect on the processes we have used to generate evidence in relation to these questions. As a result, we propose a framework that might be useful to those wishing to review the situation in other countries. We start, however, by outlining the contexts for our work.Organization of American States Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Inclusion and equity in education: making sense of global challenges

This article provides an introductory commentary to the papers in this Prospects special issue on inclusive education. In so doing, it stresses the need to be cautious as we read accounts of inclusive education from other parts of the world: whilst lessons can undoubtedly be learned from the accounts in this special issue, they must be adopted with care. There is no doubt that evidence of various kinds can help in identifying the barriers facing some learners and the resources that can be used to overcome these difficulties. However, efforts to promote inclusion and equity within education systems should be based on an analysis of particular contexts. To that end, this article outlines a research-based framework that can be used to carry out such contextual analyses. The article concludes by arguing that an emphasis on inclusion and equity can potentially improve the quality of education for all young people within a national education system

Promoting inclusion and equity in education: lessons from international experiences

This paper focuses on a major challenge facing education systems around the world, that of finding ways of including all children in schools. In economically poorer countries this is mainly about the millions of children who are not able to attend formal education (UNESCO, 2015). Meanwhile, in wealthier countries many young people leave school with no worthwhile qualifications, whilst others are placed in special provision away from mainstream education and some choose to drop out since the lessons seem irrelevant (OECD, 2012). Faced with these challenges, there is evidence of an increased interest in the idea of making education more inclusive and equitable. However, the field remains confused as to the actions needed in order to move policy and practice forward

Diversity and equity: A global education challenge

This article sets out the international context for this special issue on equity and diversity. Tracing the development of the United Nations’ policy ‘Education for All’ since 1990, it notes the struggles that have gone on to ensure that this is, in fact, concerned with all children, whatever their characteristics and circumstances. This inclusive vision was recently endorsed by the Incheon Declaration, which emerged from the World Forum for Education in 2015. A groundbreaking document, it makes a commitment to address all forms of exclusion and marginalisation. In so doing, it points to the need to focus efforts on the most disadvantaged learners to ensure that no one is overlooked. Bearing this new international policy in mind, the article draws on findings from the author’s own research in order to suggest an overall agenda for change, focusing on national policies for equity and the development of inclusive school practices