Agency participation in national conference on inclusive education in Ukraine
An Agency representative took part in a recent conference entitled ‘Barrier-free Learning: How to make Ukrainian schools inclusive’ in Kiev, Ukraine.
Legislation Updates 2019
This document presents information on new legislation – laws and policies – for special needs and/or inclusive education that has been introduced in Agency member countries in recent years.
2019 International Day of Persons with Disabilities emphasises participation and action
Established by the United Nations (UN) and held annually, the 2019 International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) will be observed on 3 December through a series of official events.
Cypriot SRSS delegation study visit to Portugal
At the request of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth in Cyprus, the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service (SRSS) is co-operating with the Agency to assist in preparing a new bill for inclusive education in Cyprus. The initiative is funded by the European Union through the Structural Reform Support Programme.
Agency’s continued support for improving quality in inclusive education in Poland
On 28–30 October, the Agency contributed to a series of working meetings to support the Polish Ministry of National Education (MEN) in its work to improve the quality of inclusive education. Other participants included MEN staff and key stakeholders – representatives from other ministries and the MEN experts’ group.
Funding and resourcing systems that balance efficiency, effectiveness and equity issues are clearly linked to regulatory frameworks focusing on overall system governance, accountability and improvement.
Resource allocation mechanisms that promote the labelling of learners are not cost-efficient or equitable in the long term. Rather, areas for development within educational support and provision should be identified. Ineffective cross-sectoral collaboration (i.e. with health and social protection services) can result in duplication of services and inconsistency of approaches. The policy goals linked to this issue are:
Effective funding mechanisms can be an incentive for inclusive education. They can promote capacity building and empower stakeholders to develop innovative and flexible mainstream learning environments for all learners.
Funding mechanisms can act as an incentive for segregation and exclusion when teaching and support in mainstream settings is seen as inadequate for meeting learners’ needs. This may lead stakeholders to perceive that special settings (i.e. separate schools and classes) provide better educational support for some learners. The policy goals linked to this issue are: