FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN DECIDING ON AT
Planning for Inclusion

School Planning for the Integration and Inclusion of Pupils with Disabilities into Mainstream Education

Planning for the integration and inclusion of pupils with disabilities is an issue for all schools, for a number of reasons:

Under legislation - Education Act 1998, Education Welfare Act 2000, and the Equal Status Act 2000 - there is a legal obligation on schools to identify and provide for the needs of all pupils.
The Mission Statement of many schools refers to the desire to cater for the holistic development of all pupils.
Every school has an obligation to meet the educational needs of the community that is served by the school.

Schools must therefore develop policies and procedures to ensure that more than lip service is paid to these issues. In the specific case of pupils with disabilities, schools must recognise that these pupils have not only a general right to education but also a right to receive this education in their local school, subject to the school being capable of meeting their needs.

The model below suggests a guide as to how to approach this issue effectively. The support of school partners is essential in this regard:

Trustees
Board of Management
Staff -Teaching and Non-teaching
Parents, through the Parents' Council
Pupils, through the Students' Council
Local Community
External Agencies, including Department of Education and Science (DES Inspectorate), National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS), NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) etc.

The overall aim of the planning process is to ensure that each pupil is given a reasonable opportunity to experience the best possible education available to him/her. This opportunity is best provided where the pupil's total learning experience is enhanced by the effective integration and inclusion of the pupil within the school community. Unsupported integration may lead to the pupil not receiving an inclusive educational experience, resulting in loneliness and a lowering of self-esteem.

The School Development Planning Initiative (SDPI) for Post-Primary Schools offers the following step-by-step approach in order to assist schools to achieve this aim:

Step-by-step guide to action for the integration and inclusion of pupils with disabilities:
 

1. Establish a Task Group

Ideally this group should consist of teachers, including the Principal/Deputy Principal as appropriate, who will support all pupils with disabilities on an ongoing basis within the school. There should be one person who has overall responsibility for the pupils, supported by other teachers, who either teach the pupils or have a formal role in the school in relation to guidance, learning support, home school liaison, or pastoral care. Provision may be made for the involvement of parents/guardians in the task group. In this way there is teamwork, with one person acting as co-ordinator. This structure should ensure that both the individual and social needs of the pupils are catered for.

Where a school has more than one pupil with a disability, it is desirable that a sub-group of the task group is formed for each individual pupil. Each sub group would act as a direct link to the parents/guardians, and significant others (including subject teachers), who continue to assist the pupil. Ideally the task group co-ordinator would be a member of each sub group, or a nominated member of the sub group would act as a liaison to the task group co-ordinator.

 

2. Develop a Whole School Policy on Pupils with Disabilities

The issue of developing a policy for the integration and inclusion of pupils with disabilities is best approached in the context of overall policy for the induction of new pupils into the school. Such a policy would create awareness among the school partners of the issues arising for all pupils, including those with special needs. Where such a policy already exists, the task group must use it as a basis for dealing with action planning for pupils with disabilities. If such a policy does not exist, it would be appropriate for the task group to recommend that one should be developed in conjunction with the school partners.

For details on policy development, please refer to the web site of the School Development Planning Initiative (SDPI) at www.sdpi.ie or contact the SDPI Regional Coordinator serving your school.

 

3. Pre-Enrolment - Identify Needs and Resources

A. Needs Identification:
Early contact should be made with the parent/guardian of each individual pupil, and the pupil's former primary school. Liaison with agencies that have been assisting the pupil can be developed through such contact. It is important to explore the suitability of the school for the individual pupil. Integration and inclusion of the pupil into mainstream education may not be the most suitable option. This issue is best explored through an initial case conference, whereby people familiar with the pupil share with the school their experience of the pupil, and indicate the needs of the pupil in second level education.
Needs can be classified as:
a) Learning: Suitability of curriculum; Skills acquisition (keyboarding skills etc) to reduce difficulties created by the disability; Follow-on study opportunities etc.
b) Socialisation: Integration into mainstream classroom activity; Inclusion in ongoing interaction at school; Peer group support; Participation in extra-curricular activity etc. Awareness among the pupil body can assist the socialisation process - this could be encouraged through the Students' Council.
c) Physical Needs: Necessary alterations to school buildings; Location of classrooms; Toilet facilities etc.
d) IT and AT Needs: Special aids to enhance the educational opportunity available to the pupil.
B. Resource Identification
This can be done by comparing existing resources against identified needs. Resources can be classified as:
a) Physical: Ability to cater for physical needs out of existing school resources, and/or external grant aid/support.
b) Human: Availability/willingness of existing staff to co-ordinate the integration and participation of the pupils; Identification of staff training/awareness needs on both a group and individual level; Development of awareness among the general pupil body of issues surrounding disability; Ability to provide for specific training and support; Identification of support available from external agencies etc.
c) Financial: Budgeting for provision out of existing resources, and/or sourcing funds from external agencies.
The results of this step should lead to a decision on both the school's part, and that of the parents/guardians, as to whether the school can realistically cater for the needs of the individual pupil.
 

4. Pre-Entry - Action Planning

The action plan must focus on catering for the needs of the pupils. An overall template for the action plan can be developed for the group of pupils with disabilities. This template can then be tailored by each sub-group, to address the specific needs of each individual pupil. The action planning template answers the following questions:
What is to be done?
How is it to be done?
Who will do it?
When it will be done?
What resources are required?
How will we know it has been done?
What criteria are to be used in order to evaluate success?

 
For details on action planning, please refer to the SDPI web site at www.sdpi.ie or contact the SDPI Regional Coordinator serving your school.

In developing the action plan for the pupils, schools must be realistic as to what can be done, as an over ambitious plan could lead to disappointment.

 
5. Implement the Action Plan
The task group needs time to meet regularly in order to ensure ongoing implementation of agreed actions, and regular monitoring of outcomes. Such meetings would necessarily involve contact with the sub group for each pupil, the parents/guardians, and significant others.

Efficient record-keeping of progress in relation to outcomes for the pupil would provide the task group with the information necessary for ongoing monitoring of the implementation process. Therefore, it is important that for each pupil, a Profile of Pupil Learning is developed, which allows progress to be recorded over time.

From this profile adjustments can be made to the plan in light of the impact of actions to date on the developing and ongoing needs of the each pupil.

 

6. Evaluate the Action Plan

Regular evaluation of the outcomes of the action plan by the task group is an essential ingredient of the planning process. This should occur at least once each year, so that there is a solid basis of evidence for ongoing planning. For guidelines on techniques of school self-evaluation, please refer to www.sdpi.ie.