POLICY REFORMS AND INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR EARLY LEARNERS IN KILIFI COUNTY, KENYA
Keywords:
Non-discriminatory policies, Education for all policies, Full inclusion of all learners, Partial inclusion, Mainstreaming
Abstract
The disability assessment reforms in Kenya sought to streamline the identification, classification, placement and enrolment of children with disability. But the extent of implementation of the assessment reforms is unclear, inconsistent and under-resourced, which has an effect on inclusivity in education for early learners. Inclusive education is also hindered by retrogressive cultural practices, stigma and high poverty rates in Kilifi County, hence the need for the reforms. Thus, the focus was on policy reforms as a means of improving inclusivity in education. The study’s theoretical underpinning was the zone of proximal development and ecological systems theory of human development. A mixed research approach was adopted and the targeted populace consisted 6 special needs education director/assistant directors, 38 managers and officers in the educational assessment and resource centers: 19 county officials in-charge of early childhood education, 3 PwDs council members and 7 principals of the schools providing inclusive education in Kilifi County. 87.5% of the questionnaires were filled and returned and 66.7% of the interviewees were conducted. Analysis showed that policy reforms had a great predictor effect to inclusive education, and the relationship between the variables was both positive and significant. The paper concludes that policy reforms including inclusion of non-discriminatory and education for all policies enhanced conduction of disability assessment for children. This led to improved placement and enrolment of children with disabilities in inclusive school system. The study recommended the harmonization of disability and education policies to meet the agenda of education for all.
References
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Chiu, T. K., & Lim, C. P. (2020). Strategic use of technology for inclusive education in Hong Kong: A content-level perspective. ECNU Review of Education, 3(4), 715-734.
Chong, P. W. (2018). The Finnish “recipe” towards inclusion: Concocting educational equity, policy rigour, and proactive support structures. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 62(4), 501-518.
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Obat, F. J. (2020). The influence of culture on the education of students with disabilities in Kenya (Doctoral dissertation, Wichita State University)
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Opoku, M. P., Rayner, C. S., Pedersen, S. J., & Cuskelly, M. (2021). Mapping the evidence-based research on Ghana’s inclusive education to policy and practices: a scoping review. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 25(10), 1157-1173.
Rezaee, A. A., & Azizi, Z. (2012). The role of zone of proximal development in the students’ learning of English adverbs. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 3(1), 51-57.
Santrock, J. W., & Lansford, J. E. (2002). A topical approach to life-span development. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Schuelka, M.J. (2018). Implementing inclusive education. K4D Helpdesk Report. Brighton, UK: Institute of Development Studies
Tonegawa, Y. (2019). Policy and practice of “inclusive education” in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: An analysis from the perspectives of teachers and parents of children with disabilities. Nilo-Ethiopian Studies, 2019(24), 31-45.
Vygotsky, L. S., & Cole, M. (1978). Mind in society: Development of higher psychological processes. Harvard university press.
Xi, J., & Lantolf, J. P. (2021). Scaffolding and the zone of proximal development: A problematic relationship. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 51(1), 25-48.
Adoyo, P. O., & Odeny, M. L. (2015). Emergent inclusive education practice in Kenya, challenges and suggestions. International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies, 2 (6), 47-52
Amor, A. M., Hagiwara, M., Shogren, K. A., Thompson, J. R., Verdugo, M. Á., Burke, K. M., & Aguayo, V. (2019). International perspectives and trends in research on inclusive education: A systematic review. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(12), 1277-1295.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1977). Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American psychologist, 32(7), 513.
Byrne, B. (2022). How inclusive is the right to inclusive education? An assessment of the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities’ concluding observations. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 26(3), 301-318.
Chiu, T. K. (2021). Digital support for student engagement in blended learning based on self-determination theory. Computers in Human Behavior, 124, 106909
Chiu, T. K., & Lim, C. P. (2020). Strategic use of technology for inclusive education in Hong Kong: A content-level perspective. ECNU Review of Education, 3(4), 715-734.
Chong, P. W. (2018). The Finnish “recipe” towards inclusion: Concocting educational equity, policy rigour, and proactive support structures. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 62(4), 501-518.
Cosmas, J. K. (2021). Pre-primary Education for Children who Experience Disabilities in Tanzania: Practices and Constraints. Üniversitepark Bülten| Universitepark Bulletin.
Darling, N. (2007). Ecological systems theory: The person in the center of the circles. Research in human development, 4(3-4), 203-217.
Engelbrecht, P. (2020). Inclusive education: Developments and challenges in South Africa. Prospects, 49(3-4), 219-232.
Hayes, A. M., Elder, B. C., & Bulat, J. (2020). Assessment as a Service Not a Place: Transitioning Assessment Centers to School-Based Identification Systems. Occasional Paper. RTI Press Publication OP-0064-2004. RTI International
Ireri, B. R., King'endo, M., Wangila, E., & Thuranira, S. (2020). Policy Strategies for Effective Implementation of Inclusive Education in Kenya. International Journal of Educational Administration and Policy Studies, 12(1), 28-42.
Karangwa, E. (2022). Stifled or Loosened Course of Inclusive Education in Rwanda: Interrogating Policy and Practice in Africa. In Reading Inclusion Divergently (Vol. 19, pp. 127-141). Emerald Publishing Limited.
Kaščák, O., & Strouhal, M. (2023). Inclusion discourses in contemporary Slovak education policy–From the individual to the community and from right to performance. European Journal of Education, 58(2), 197-208.
Kikkawa, Y., Wakui, M., Iketani, N., & Bryer, F. (2022). Inclusive Educational System and Practice in Japan. In The Inclusion for Students with Special Educational Needs across the Asia Pacific: The Changing Landscape (pp. 133-150). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
Kirby, M. (2017). Implicit assumptions in special education policy: Promoting full inclusion for students with learning disabilities. In Child & Youth Care Forum, 46(2), 175-191).
Kiru, E. W. (2019). Special education in Kenya. Intervention in School and Clinic, 54(3), 181-188.
Knight, C., & Crick, T. (2022). Inclusive Education in Wales: Interpreting discourses of values and practice using critical policy analysis. ECNU Review of Education, 5(2), 258-283.
Lambrev, V., Kirova, A., & Prochner, L. (2020). Education reforms for inclusion? Interrogating policy-practice disjunctions in early childhood education in Bulgaria. Education Inquiry, 11(2), 126-143
Larsen, T. C., Holloway, J., & Hamre, B. (2019). How is an inclusive agenda possible in an excluding education system? Revisiting the Danish Dilemma. International Journal of inclusive education, 23(10), 1049-1064
Maber, E. J., & Aung, K. M. (2019). Gender, Ethnicity and Disability: Approaching Inclusivity in Myanmar’s Education Reforms. The SAGE Handbook of Inclusion and Diversity in Education, 404
Malet, R. (2023). Policies for inclusive education practices in teacher education in the United Kingdom and France. European Journal of Education, 58(2), 221-232.
Mantey, E. K. L., Vanderpuye, I., & Asamani, L. (2023). An Assessment of Inclusive Education Experiences of Teacher-Trainees with Sensory Impairment in Colleges of Education in Ghana. Open Journal of Educational Research, 75-92.
Matolo, M. F., & Rambuda, A. M. (2022). Evaluation of the Application of an Inclusive Education Policy on Screening, Identification, Assessment and Support of the Learners at Schools in South Africa. International Journal of Education and Practice, 10(1), 11-24.
Musenyente, E., Han, M. L., & Knigge, M. (2022). Implementation of UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in public and private schools in three districts of Uganda. African Journal of Disability (Online), 11, 1-13.
Ncube, M., & Sedibe, M. (2022). Exploring Challenges to Inclusion of Children with Intellectual Disabilities in Early Childhood Development in Mutoko District, Zimbabwe. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21(10), 195-211.
Nyika, J. M., & Madaraka, F. (2021). The mirage and reality of special education in developing countries. In Handbook of research on critical issues in special education for school rehabilitation practices (pp. 143-159). IGI Global
Obat, F. J. (2020). The influence of culture on the education of students with disabilities in Kenya (Doctoral dissertation, Wichita State University)
Ohba, A., & Malenya, F. L. (2022). Addressing inclusive education for learners with disabilities in the integrated education system: the dilemma of public primary schools in Kenya. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 52(1), 19-36.
Opoku, M. P., Rayner, C. S., Pedersen, S. J., & Cuskelly, M. (2021). Mapping the evidence-based research on Ghana’s inclusive education to policy and practices: a scoping review. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 25(10), 1157-1173.
Rezaee, A. A., & Azizi, Z. (2012). The role of zone of proximal development in the students’ learning of English adverbs. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 3(1), 51-57.
Santrock, J. W., & Lansford, J. E. (2002). A topical approach to life-span development. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Schuelka, M.J. (2018). Implementing inclusive education. K4D Helpdesk Report. Brighton, UK: Institute of Development Studies
Tonegawa, Y. (2019). Policy and practice of “inclusive education” in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: An analysis from the perspectives of teachers and parents of children with disabilities. Nilo-Ethiopian Studies, 2019(24), 31-45.
Vygotsky, L. S., & Cole, M. (1978). Mind in society: Development of higher psychological processes. Harvard university press.
Xi, J., & Lantolf, J. P. (2021). Scaffolding and the zone of proximal development: A problematic relationship. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 51(1), 25-48.
