5011-EENET-Issue12:EENET 21/8/08 14:20 Page 1 Enabling Education ISSUE 12 – AUGUST 2008 Special Edition: Language www.eenet.org.uk 5011-EENET-Issue12:EENET 21/8/08 14:20 Page 2 2 EENET - ENABLING EDUCATION, ISSUE 12, AUGUST 2008 Contents EENET news What’s in this newsletter? We would like to hear from: EENET news 2 This year’s newsletter contains a • the 335 people who have visited A focus on policy: Afghanistan 3 special section on the issue of EENET’s website more than 200 Inclusive vocational education, language and inclusion (pages 9- times in the last two years. That is Morogoro, Tanzania 4-5 24). Often, we are so used to dedication! Are you one of these Inclusive higher education in accepting ‘the way things are done’, frequent users? We’d love to Rwanda: the story continues 6 or so focused on trying to promote interview some of you for the next The views of blind and deaf inclusion for specific groups of newsletter, to find out how you university students, Namibia 7 children (e.g., disabled children or use the information you get from girls), that we don’t notice some of EENET’s website. How inclusive are national the most common problems in education policies and plans? 8 education; obstacles that potentially The most visited webpage is still: exclude huge numbers of children. • ‘Early marriage and education’ – Special edition: language 9 For instance, globally, millions of an article in Enabling Education Language as an inclusive children are being taught using issue 7. education issue 10-11 languages they can barely understand. Many of the articles in EENET volunteers Supporting language the special section share the It is becoming increasingly difficult learning in experiences of people who are for one part-time co-ordinator to Qinghai Province, China 12-13 trying to promote education in meet the growing demands placed The benefits of mother ‘mother tongue’ (the child’s first on EENET. So this year, EENET tongue education in Senegal 14 language). They show how use of recruited a small team of volunteers Language for effective mother tongue languages at the to help with administration and family learning, Uganda 15 start of, and throughout, a child’s specific projects. They only work a Language for education can help prevent few hours a week, usually in national reconciliation: exclusion and drop-out, and between their studies or paid jobs, Southern Thailand 16-17 promote diversity and reconciliation but their help has been valuable. A Community participation in society. big thank you to Alex, Hattie, in mother tongue based Kalpana, Nola and Olivia! multilingual education The newsletter also contains articles in Bangladesh 18-19 on other inclusive education topics. EENET’s Steering Group In particular, we have four pages This year we are reviving our The growing demand looking at inclusion in vocational Steering Group, following feedback for private education and higher education. If you have a from EENET’s evaluation in 2006. in English: a barrier story to tell about making education The Steering Group oversees the to inclusion? 20-21 more inclusive for learners from direction of EENET’s work, and Introducing multilingual different language groups, or for ensures that the network’s vision for teaching in Vietnam 22-23 learners in vocational, higher or creating conversations about Useful publications: informal education settings, we’d inclusive education in the South is Language and inclusion 24 love to hear from you. maintained. Steering Group members represent the viewpoints Website news of EENET’s user groups, its regional Writing for EENET 25 We continue to be amazed by how networking partners, its founders, Building bridges, Russia 26-27 much the website is used. and the international NGOs and EENET interview 28 donors that support EENET’s work. Regional news 29 In the last two years, the site has This year we held an open REDEinclusão – been used by 187,484 individuals. application process for two Steering Inclusion Network 30 They live in: Group vacancies for ‘grassroots’ • 213 countries or territories. Only representatives. We received Debating the role Chad, Central African Republic, applications from 24 countries and of special schools North Korea, Turkmenistan and we were very encouraged by the in inclusive education 31 Western Sahara are missing! number of people interested in Useful publications 32 • over 8,000 different towns and EENET’s development. The new cities around the world, though for Steering Group will meet in Editors: 15% of visitors we have no record September 2008. Ingrid Lewis and Susie Miles of the city/town. 5011-EENET-Issue12:EENET 21/8/08 14:20 Page 3 EENET - ENABLING EDUCATION, ISSUE 12, AUGUST 2008 3 A focus on policy: Afghanistan Parween Azimi Two decades of war destroyed thousands of schools. The Ministry of Education (MoE) says hundreds of trained teachers emigrated or were killed. But education is seen as central to the modernisation of the Afghan state. “Equal access to quality education for all” is enshrined in the 2003 constitution and National Education Strategic Plan, 2006–10. Particular attention is paid to ethnic minorities and children identified as having special needs, and to compensating girls for discrimination during the Taliban era. Parween describes a recent initiative to include disabled children in mainstream schools in Kabul. Challenges but were unsure how it would work to challenge attitudes, encouraging The school enrolment rate for girls in reality. They thought extra difference to be valued and disabled has risen from a little more then resources would be required, and children to be accepted in class. By 0% in 2001 to 35% in 2006. learners with intellectual evaluating their existing teaching impairments would be disruptive, methods, teachers discovered new In the 1990s a generation of children bullied, and unable to learn. educational approaches, e.g.: had little access to schooling. Now • songs and repetition – made Afghanistan has one of the world’s Inclusive education is the only way learning more accessible for lowest literacy rates. The situation to reach the 196,000 disabled children of all abilities worsened when the Taliban children of school age. • drama – helped communicate outlawed the education of women abstract concepts and and girls, although communities set Teacher-parent relations explanations to deaf or up secret schools. A problem-solving approach meant intellectually impaired children parents and teachers worked • games – were used to develop Enrolment targets are now 75% for together to analyse barriers faced memory and communication skills boys and 60% for girls by 2015. by disabled children. Teachers • making school more accessible. Targets for disabled boys and girls learned more about medical are 45% and 30%, respectively. aspects of disability. Parents of Responses to the programme There has been a seven-fold disabled children were visited by The final evaluation showed that: increase in teacher numbers since medical specialists and teachers • Teachers learned a range of 2001, but only 22% meet the with advice on supporting their practical skills; became more national qualification grade. children at home. creative, inventing their own methods; and developed greater A focus on policy and practice Teachers and parents were not awareness and more positive The United Nations Development used to collaborating. Parents attitudes towards the inclusion of Programme (UNDP) has helped to saw no need to participate in their disabled learners. develop education policy and has child’s schooling and viewed • Parents were happy about the worked with schools to increase teacher involvement in the inclusion of their disabled accessibility for all children. UNDP community as intrusive. But they children. has encouraged the enrolment of became more supportive when they • Teachers and parents said disabled boys and girls. Involving saw the benefits of the programme. children were more engaged in parents in their children’s Co-operation became seen as learning and enjoyed the new education and challenging crucial for success, as parents often methods. negative attitudes about disability had to go to great lengths to bring • Disabled children learned new are vital aspects of work. their children to school. skills and had opportunities to socialise. Three mainstream schools in Kabul Promoting inclusive • Non-disabled children became were chosen to take part in a UNDP- classroom environments more aware of the needs of supported programme which Play was recognised as others, and learned more quickly included 32 disabled learners (the developing physical, social and then before. programme is now also supported intellectual capacity in all children. by UNICEF, UNESCO, UN Mine Parween Azimi is the focal point for Action Centre for Afghanistan and Resource persons were trained by inclusive education at the Ministry the MoE). Parents and teachers the MoE (supported by UNICEF) to of Education, through UNESCO were initially sceptical. Teachers facilitate understanding of inclusive Afghanistan. She can be contacted liked the idea of inclusive education, education. Teacher training sought at: [email protected]. 5011-EENET-Issue12:EENET 21/8/08 14:20 Page 4 4 EENET - ENABLING EDUCATION, ISSUE 12, AUGUST 2008 Inclusive vocational education, Morogoro, Tanzania Emma Machenje Bigwa Folk Development College (FDC) offers vocational education to students from rural areas, many of whom have not completed primary or secondary school. Daily travel is impossible for many students, so they board at the college during term time. The college promotes an inclusive approach to education – not just through its commitment to enrolling disabled students, but also through the welcoming, student-focused environment created for all learners. Bigwa’s principal, Emma Machenje, explains how this inclusive approach has developed. Our approach to learning We believe that every person is a We decided to embrace inclusive At Bigwa FDC we offer students a resource who can help in the education because we thought it chance to learn a skill (tailoring, learning process.