Inclusive education: Breaking barriers, building futures

Inclusive education is vital to civilization and a global strategy for harnessing human potential.

Article 25 of the 1992 constitution affirms the access to educational opportunities and infrastructure as a basic right of all persons.

For the sake of context, let us assume inclusive education is this anticipated bowl of spicy, light soup from the opening anecdote. Simply by virtue of the fact that this delicacy has been paid for, our access to the entirety of the meal is legitimate.

Imagine being served second-rate, bland soup you have paid for, simply because your dressing is perceived to be shabby and unsophisticated.  

Barriers to inclusive education

Imagine indigenous marginalized groups like girls and persons with disabilities unable to access education because of the limitations of stigma and other barriers to inclusive education.  

Once inclusivity is trivialized, rights are violated. Stifled rights inevitably limit the growth potential of individuals, and by extension, societies. Inclusive education provides a thriving context to contemporary education.

It is a rights-based education which emphasizes equity in access and participation, with a proactive response to the varied needs and learning competencies of all.

This article explores the sustenance of inclusive education in Ghana from the perspective of a two-pronged approach: Breaking barriers and building futures.  

Breaking barriers to inclusive education represent the targeted efforts which objectively identify and demystify factors that exclude marginalized groups. It is a reactive strategy to curb the prevailing damage opposing a rights-based education. 

The gusto to break barriers, first admits that there is an existing problem. The 2015 Inclusive Education Policy delineates a number of antagonists to inclusive education. Challenges of negative societal attitudes and limited resources are the most pressing of these hindrances.  

The barrier of negative societal attitudes consists mainly of stigma and discrimination. For too long the financial cost of education has been overrated. We underrate the cost of stigma and discrimination in inclusive education. Stigma is costly. It robs a society of the exceptional value of the marginalized. 

Stigma control

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports that about 240 million children with disability have been denied basic rights. Out of this figure, 49 per cent of them have never been to school, and stigma is a primary contributor to this menace.

These numbers look abstract, until they are juxtaposed to names and faces. If potential Ghanaian presidents and leaders were captured in those numbers, what would we do differently?  
Stigma control strengthens the esteem of marginalized groups and creates an enabling environment for them to be educated.

Through awareness campaigns and public education, attempts have been made to vitiate negative perspectives with regards to the socio-economically unfortunate, persons with disabilities, girls and other neglected groups.

Limited resources

Limited resources significantly decrease the quality of inclusive education. Side-lined groups have distinct needs and competencies. Persons with disabilities require assistive devices such as wheelchairs and hearing aids to ease everyday living and learning.

Adolescent girls in deprived communities are usually in dire need of affordable sanitary materials to handle their menstruation safely. 

When basic logistics are unavailable, there is a tangible premise for marginalized groups to exclude themselves from educational pursuits. Many educational facilities are still not disability-friendly.

Persons with walking disabilities are often gaslighted into ‘exercising’ in settings where staircases are the only structures of access to venues. Furthermore, there is a need for targeted training of professionals for guiding persons with special needs in schools.  

The panacea to limited resources in inclusive education is not entirely capital dependent.  Innovation and improvision can equally suffice in the face of financial constraints.

Teachers and professionals for persons with special needs can participate in free training programmes organized by philanthropic foundations and NGOs. Architects and property developers can be more proactive in the design of educational facilities, so as to make them more disability friendly.  

Building futures

Building futures in inclusive education is the coordinated attempt to maximize available resources in unleashing the potential of disregarded groups.

It is a proactive strategy to achieve optimum output from prudently invested input. Effective governance, is a pivotal gamechanger in building the future of anything- from a thriving national educational climate to satisfactory livelihoods. 

There could be all the right ingredients for a bowl of indigenous light soup, but if the chef is poorly skilled, the overall taste of the soup is compromised.

An abundance of resources and effective strategies for inclusive education is useless if the leadership of a nation is incompetent.  

Good governance and leadership would significantly maximize available resources for maximum impact. What should a robust leadership body do differently to augment prevailing efforts in inclusive education?

First, there should be a restructuring of the educational curriculum. Inclusive education would require a unique skillset that conventional education may lack. Priority must be given to skillsets that are globally relevant, easily accessible and student-centered. 

A healthy educational climate should never relegate the responsibility of teaching and learning entirely to the student. Education is a partnership. Secondly, there should be functional legislation and policies that govern inclusive education.

These policies and legislative provisions should be consistently reviewed to ensure that they are relevant in supporting the uniqueness of this educational revolution. 

Thirdly, the private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and philanthropic foundations also play an important role in the sponsorship and support of this costly programme. 

Through effective collaboration with these powerhouses, the burdens of inclusive education are not borne by the government alone.  

Finally, there should be periodic monitoring and evaluation. It is important to set measurable and observable criteria for inclusive education in order to assess progress objectively. Lapses and setbacks can then be easily identified and managed accordingly.

Inclusive education in Ghana is a partnered, targeted effort. There must be both breaking and building, if we intend to establish an inclusive education revolution that stands. The synergy of these two constructive approaches is expedient in leadership and governance.  

The writer is a Level 500 Medical student of the university of Cape Cost 

Email: aguduphilomena@gmail.com