A five-day capacity-building programme on inclusive education was held by SCERT Kashmir Division in collaboration with DIET Pampore at GHSS Pampore, w.e.f. 12th February 2025, in which 70 lecturers from Pulwama district participated. The programme coordinator, Dr. Sajad Hussain Bhat, Sr. Academic Officer, Department of Education in Science & Mathematics, SCERT-KD, along with his team members, delivered valuable, knowledgeable, meaningful, and thoughtful lectures on different domains of inclusive education in consonance with NEP 2020, which we have to adapt and apply in our present teaching-learning process.
The lectures, including effective group discussions with participants, covered the main domains of NEP 2020, such as Inclusive and Equitable Education, Breaking Barriers, Empowering Every Learner, Beyond Labels, Building an Inclusive School Culture (Barrier-Free Enabling School Environment), Universal Design of Learning (UDL), Assessment of Diverse Learners, Gender Sensitivity in Schools, Understanding Disability, Culturally Responsive Teaching, and Health & Well-being. Other important topics included NAVCHETNA (A New Consciousness on Life Skills and Drug Education for School Children) and PRAYAAS (Promotion of Research Attitude in Young and Aspiring Students).
Moreover, at the end of the session, every participant was given a scenario to share his/her valuable suggestions and feedback, if any.
Moving to the main theme of this training programme, we must create an inclusive learning atmosphere in educational institutions to make the teaching-learning process enjoyable for all children so that it becomes inviting, learner-friendly, and helpful to all. Children should feel a part of it rather than apart from it. It allows all students to participate equally or nearly equally in all elements of the classroom.
Inclusive education has been characterized in a number of ways to address the learning needs of specially-abled children. Over the last five decades, the Government of India has worked hard to provide a broad spectrum of educational services to such children. The IEDC (Integrated Education for Disabled Children) scheme, launched in 1974, provided equal opportunities for children with disabilities in mainstream schools and ensured their retention.
The government’s efforts in the area of inclusive education can be traced back to the 1986 National Educational Policy, which set a goal of:
“Integrating the handicapped with the general community at all levels as equal partners, preparing them for normal growth, and enabling them to face life with courage and confidence.”
The Rehabilitation Council of India Act of 1992 established a training programme for professionals to cater to the requirements of disabled students. The National Policy for Persons with Disabilities (2006) aimed to establish the educational framework within which the government, public society, and the private sector must work together to promote a supportive and dignified life for specially-abled people.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (2009) was the most recent improvement, guaranteeing all children between the ages of six and fourteen the right to free and compulsory education. With this in mind, the Indian government has accelerated the new Inclusive Education scheme to meet the goal of Education for All.
Inclusion is an endeavour to ensure that various learners—those with disabilities, those who speak different languages and come from diverse cultures, those from different home environments, and those with different interests and learning styles—are included.
Inclusive education means the integration of all students into mainstream education, irrespective of their skills and deficiencies. With the publication of the Salamanca Statement on Inclusive Education by UNESCO (1994), many developing countries began reformulating their policies to promote the inclusion of students with disabilities into mainstream schools.
All school children, whether specially-abled or not, have the right to an education because they are the future citizens of the country. Today, it is universally agreed that including all students enhances their potential, protects their rights, and is the best educational strategy for the 21st century.
Inclusive education removes barriers, boundaries, and obstacles, making it possible to achieve the goal of universalizing the education system in building a well-structured nation. Every child has the ability to assimilate into their community and acquire a sense of belonging. Teachers play a key role in recognizing their strengths and weaknesses and preparing instructional programmes accordingly.
Students are taught the importance of caring for one another. Inclusive education eliminates a wide range of biases and contaminants while encouraging students to be self-sufficient, develop coping skills, think critically, make decisions, and solve problems. By imbibing the principles of equity and inclusion within the school education system, the foundation is laid for access to schooling for all and opportunities for lifelong learning. This, in turn, helps students thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
One of the key strategies for promoting equity and inclusion in education is removing systemic barriers and inequities that disproportionately affect marginalized and underrepresented groups.
Although Children with Special Needs (CWSN) may experience a variety of concerns and challenges in inclusive education, through collaboration, commitment, and collective effort, we can work towards building a more favourable and equitable educational framework where every child gets the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Moreover, by applying UDL (Universal Design for Learning), which is based on three main principles—engagement, representation, and action/expression—in the teaching and learning process, all students can be given an equal opportunity to succeed. UDL is founded on the idea of making learning accessible and engaging for all students.
Inclusion is more than just a means of educating disabled children; it emphasizes that every child is a treasured member of society who is capable of participating in that society, regardless of the severity and extent of his or her disability.
The difficulties can be overcome by increasing community awareness of human rights and publicizing success stories of specially-abled children and individuals thriving in inclusive education and beyond school life.
Article Credit: kashmirreader