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Child Friendly Inclusive Education in Pakistan

Article · June 2012

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Itfaq Khaliq Khan Leena Ahmed

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 Child Friendly Inclusive Education in
Pakistan
Itfaq Khaliq Khan, Programme Officer, Pakistan
Leena Ahmed, Programme Officer, Pakistan
Ahmed Ghaznavi, Project Officer, Pakistan
©Sightsavers

A low vision child in the Federal Government School of Islamabad

Introduction countries do not attend school, and that

Inclusion is a term which expresses the
commitment to provide a quality education
in mainstream schools for every child, to
the maximum extent possible. It involves
bringing support services to the child, rather
than moving the child to the services, and
means that the child will benefit from being in
class. Full inclusion means that all students,
regardless of any distinguishing characteristic,
will be in a regular classroom/ programme
full time. All services must be provided for the
child in that setting.
Studies1 2 reveal that more than 90 percent
of children with disabilities in developing
30 percent are deprived or living on the
streets. Furthermore, only three percent of
adults with disabilities are literate, and in
some countries only one percent of disabled
girls attend school. In Pakistan, inclusive
education has gained importance in last few
years. One of the greatest milestones is the
Government’s recent commitment reflected
in the National Education Policy, which has
endorsed Child Friendly Inclusive Education.
This new policy reflects the impact of advocacy
carried out by Sightsavers and other like-
minded organisations. The action plan for
the new education policy identifies the need
to provide training in inclusive strategies for

1
Tahir, R., and Khan, N. (2010). Analytical Study of School and Teacher Education Curricula for Students with Special
Educational Needs (SWSEN) in Pakistan: analysis and research annual, pp. 88.
2
Sightsavers (2003). Current status of the aetiology, prevalence and distribution of childhood blindness in Pakistan:
a report.

Page 17
pre-service and in-service teachers. This is
because inclusive education cannot become a
reality unless teachers are equipped with the
necessary skills and knowledge.
Approach
Sightsavers believes in working systematically
with other stakeholders to pool efforts and
resources to promote the enrolment and
retention of all children who are currently out
of school, especially children with disabilities.
Sightsavers Pakistan has supported the
development of operational mechanisms and
procedures that facilitate inclusive strategies
within the wider education system, and will
work in close collaboration with the Ministry
of Education and other stakeholders focusing
on various aspects of Child Friendly Inclusive
Education.
Sightsavers supported a national blind school
survey in Pakistan in 2002, revealing that a
substantial number of students could be
enrolled in mainstream schools with some
support and guidance. The Government of
Pakistan’s National Policy for Persons with
Disabilities 2002 emphasised the inclusion of
3 in inclusive education strategies to support
children with disabilities in mainstream schools
by facilitating accessibility and opportunities for
learning in an inclusive environment. To endorse
this policy commitment, Sightsavers signed
a tripartite agreement with the Directorate
General of Special Education (DGSE) and the
Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) in 2003.
This agreement resulted in a project to pilot
inclusive education in Islamabad, in partnership
with DGSE and FDE.
The project facilitated the implementation of
inclusive education, initially in two schools, with
a special school selected as a midway centre
to prepare children with visual impairment to
move over to mainstream schools. With the
help of this initiative, Sightsavers has played a
key role in supporting FDE’s objectives to pilot the objective to pilot inclusion through the
inclusion in mainstream schools.
Sightsavers believes that the onus of
implementing inclusive education rests
with the Ministry of Education (MoE), but
that this requires assistance from special
needs experts to build capacity to absorb
children with various disabilities into regular
schools. Sightsavers has demonstrated that
the inclusion of a significant proportion of
3
Government of Pakistan Ministry of Women Development Social Welfare and Special Education (2002), National
Policy for Persons With Disabilities.
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children with disabilities in regular schools is
possible. This project was evaluated in 2006
and, following recommendations to expand
the scope of inclusive education, six more
schools were added to this initiative in 2007.
International Development Partners, Norway
also encouraged and supported inclusive
education in eight schools. The pilot project
is now embedded firmly with the Federal
Directorate of Education.
As part of this pilot to promote Child Friendly
Inclusive Education in Pakistan, Sightsavers
used the following approaches:
Increased inter-organisational links between
v
the Ministry of Education and the Ministry
of Social Welfare and Special Education
(MoSW&SE) to make them realise that the
education of children with disabilities is a
joint responsibility of both ministries.
Networking with other like-minded
v
organisations working on education, which
has resulted in the formation of a National
Inclusive Education Core Group under the
leadership of the MoE.
Building capacities of teachers and other
v
relevant staff of the MoE, FDE and DGSE
students with special educational needs.
Ensuring accessibility in terms of school
v
infrastructure and educational materials.
Involving communities and Parent Teacher
v
Associations and raising their awareness of
their role in education.
Working with key stakeholders to advocate
v
to the Government and policy makers, with
the aim of ensuring endorsement of Child
Friendly Inclusive Education within the
National Education Policy.
Successes and challenges
Sightsavers has played a key role in supporting
child friendly schools concept. This role has
been recognised by all stakeholders at national
level and has raised our profile in the field of
inclusive education.
Sightsavers, along with UN agencies, has been
instrumental in establishing a National Core
Group for Child Friendly Inclusive Education
in the Ministry of Education. The core group
consists of key organisations seeking inclusive
www.sightsavers.org

©Sightsavers
Two visually impaired students at school
strategies in the education sector. The
founding members of the group were UNICEF,
UNESCO, Save the Children Sweden, Children
Global Network Pakistan, Federal Directorate
of Education, Allama Iqbal Open University
and Sightsavers. After a series of meetings,
the terms of reference for the group were
finalised and the group provided feedback to
the Government of Pakistan on issues such
as national education standards and teachers’
curriculum. With funding from UNICEF, the
group also commissioned a study to review the
status of child friendly education in Pakistan.
However, we have also faced various
challenges, particularly around sensitising
parents, teachers, school management, parent
teacher associations and local communities
towards the enrollment of children with
disabilities in mainstream schools. The
competing priorities of the MoE and
MoSW&SE, and their different departments,
also proved challenging and, now that the
MoE and MoSW&SE have been devolved,
Sightsavers is undertaking rigorous advocacy
with the provincial departments to ensure
an increased allocation of resources for the
education of children with disabilities.
Learning
Inclusive education means the inclusion of
all vulnerable children in schools, including
children with disabilities, children who are
out of school, children living on the street
and minority groups. Real inclusion involves
a gradual realignment of a school’s entire
programme. It is the joint responsibility of
both the MoE and MoSW&SE to cater for the
educational needs of children with disabilities, resources, physical accessibility, classrooms
along with other vulnerable groups.
It takes time to institutionalise changes through devices, and the involvement of Parent Teacher
gradual capacity building, demonstration
of pilot initiatives, building Public Private
Partnerships, and through joined up advocacy. inclusive education into a reality.
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It is also vital to form partnerships and
alliances with relevant, influential stakeholders
to demonstrate pilot initiatives and to influence
the policy development and planning process.
Way forward
Our experience of working with teachers
has identified a dire need to train teachers
in inclusive strategies and health screening.
Sightsavers, with the support of other
stakeholders, will develop partnerships with
in-service and pre-service teacher training
centres to support this capacity development
process at provincial level. The establishment
of inclusive education resource centres
within pre-service teacher training centres
will be emphasised, so that the teachers can
acquire an awareness of the essential needs
of disabled children in schools, with the aim
of improving quality and retention. Sightsavers
will work with other stakeholders to integrate
inclusive education into both the pre- and
in-service teacher training curriculum across
Pakistan, undertaking advocacy with teacher
training institutes to achieve this goal.
Conclusion
To make ordinary classrooms truly inclusive,
we need a holistic approach to inclusive
education. This approach should focus on
developing inclusive education infrastructure,
providing accessible teaching and learning
resources, and building the capacity of
educators in inclusive education. It should also
focus on changing systems and structures
at school level, changing the curriculum to
be inclusive for all, and mobilising parents to
enroll their disabled children in mainstream
schools.
Providing quality education in an inclusive
setting is a challenging job, but it can be
achieved by developing strategic alliances
and networks with likeminded organisations,
building public private partnerships, and
undertaking joined up advocacy to raise the
awareness of those responsible for service
delivery. Committed and trained human
and resource centres equipped with assistive
Associations (PTAs) and the local community
can also pave the way for turning the dream of
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