Exploring the barriers encountered by educators in implementing inclusive education in Male' schools / Anifa Ismail

Abstract

Inclusive education is a global movement that aims to provide equity in education regardless of any difficulty or disability in students. It is a notion that is recognized in developed and developing countries. Maldives is at the initial stage of its implementation after the enactment of an "Inclusive Education Policy" in 2013. The purpose of this study is to explore the barriers encountered by educators in implementing inclusive education in Male' schools. A qualitative approach, in which 4 classroom observations, 6 semi structured interviews, and two focus group discussions were employed. This consisted of two principals, two SEN coordinators and 16 teachers, from two selected government schools using purposive sampling technique. The findings of the study revealed that the barriers encountered by educators in implementing inclusion in Male' schools were mainly due to organizational barriers such as lack of training and knowledge, lack of information and awareness, lack of support and assistance, lack of availability of resources and infrastructure, and larger class size, while personal barriers like belief and attitude of educators is observed as minor barriers in implementing inclusive education. The evidence from this study suggests that special consideration has to be given on providing continuous professional development and on creating awareness among educators on inclusive education.

Keywords: Barriers, Educators, Implementations, Inclusive education.