In August, 2015, I prepared a Submission to the Australian Federal Senate Committee conducting the Inquiry into Education of Students with Disability in Australia, titled “Achieving Inclusive Education -The Need for Systemic and Structured Transformation of Education in Australia”.
In my Submission, I introduce the notion of inclusive education from a human rights perspective, and I present evidence-based research that supports inclusive education for ALL students. Subsequently, I describe the current situation in Australia: sadly, a very considerable proportion of Australian children with disability, and in particular intellectual disability, continue to be educated in segregated “special” school or “special” unit settings; and of those that get to attend mainstream schools, many routinely experience poor practices, exclusion and discrimination.
Sadly, a very considerable proportion of Australian children with disability, and in particular intellectual disability, continue to be educated in segregated “special” school or “special” unit settings.
In the final part of the Submission, I propose a systemic and structured transformation of the Australian education system: in particular, I present the SWIFT program developed by Dr Wayne Sailor, a Professor of Special Education at Kansas University and the Director of the SWIFT National Centre.
The SWIFT model addresses important factors that have been identified in the research as essential to implementing inclusive education:
- the role of “administrative leadership” and a “strong educator support system”;
- a “multi-tiered system of support” that covers both “inclusive academic instruction” and “inclusive behaviour instruction” (the latter being seen as equally important to address learning barriers for some students);
- an integrated educational framework and organisational structure within schools backed by a “strong and positive school culture”;
- appropriate engagement with family and community to ensure improved outcomes for all students;
- inclusive policies and practices within schools to guide responses and expectations.
The full Submission is available for download HERE.
[Head photo © Larry Darling]
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