European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive

Transcript:European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive:
European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education Potential contribution of Inclusive Education in fighting ESL and preparing for the labour market Harald Weber JOINT Public Hearing on The reform of educational systems in Europe as a way to fight early school leaving, child poverty and youth unemployment 26 February 2015, 15.00 - 17.30, European Parliament, Brussels European Agency Focus (1) National networks in 29 European countries The Agency’s main focus is upon inclusive education within its widest interpretation – that is dealing with learner difference and diversity in all educational settings as a quality issue The Agency’s work is essentially concerned with how the achievement of all learners at all levels of inclusive lifelong learning can be improved in a meaningful way that enhances their opportunities for an effective participation in society European Agency Focus (2) In order to account for the heterogeneity of contexts and approaches in member countries, Agency projects and activities take a broad view of inclusive education as a systemic approach to meeting the needs of all learners, with a specific focus on the pupils identified as having special educational needs (SEN) Common views Reducing school failure has a positive impact both on society and on individuals. The highest performing education systems across OECD countries are those that combine quality with equity [2] Rather than looking at individual support, systems of support should aim to increase schools’ capability to meet the requirements of all learners • Inclusive systems should develop forms of teaching and learning that enable all learners to participate fully in the learning process and prevent them from dropping out of school Governance and cooperation Governance and cross-sectoral cooperation Key actors include policy makers, educational authorities, parents, pupils, teachers and their representative associations Strong coordination and cooperation between national, regional and local actors required ([1] p 13) Key representatives from policy fields such as employment, youth, health, welfare and social policy need to be involved in a collective approach to reducing ESL from the start ([1] p 14) Collaborative policy and practice Services should be provided in local communities through close collaboration – in policy and practice – between education, health, social services and other agencies Co-operation and networking are needed at all levels – national, local area, school and classroom – between all stakeholders, learners and families [3] Improvement processes based on evidence Data collection towards evidence-based policies Transparency of data beneficial