Working Paper 23
By Abdi Bishar Bashir, York University, Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER) Program
Executive Summary
This research investigates barriers to the implementation and provision of inclusive education for learners with disabilities in Hagadera Primary Schools. Inclusive education is an educational philosophy based on human rights and democratic principles that aim to address educational exclusion faced by learners with disabilities. Its implementation facilitates an education system that fits and responds to the need of all learners particularly, to those living with disabilities. As the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) implementing primary education in Hagadera camp are trying to provide inclusive education for all, overcoming barriers for learners with disabilities remains the most difficult challenge. This research seeks to better understand the barriers that not only hinder the implementation and provision of inclusive education, but specifically those that lead to the exclusion of learners with disabilities, particularly to those with hearing, vision, and physical impairments.
The paper employs a qualitative research design conducting semi-structured interviews for three learners with disabilities and an administrative teacher. The semi-structured questions are guided by the intensive understanding of barriers to the implementation and provision of inclusive education while also addressing some tangible solutions. Findings explore that insufficient teaching and learning resources, exacerbated by the disability-unfriendly environment, ignited the negative attitudes of learners with disabilities and contributed to their discrimination in the classroom and elsewhere. The findings also acknowledged the need to enhance public awareness and sensitization of educational rights of persons with disabilities.
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DOI
Citation
Bashir, A. B. (2025). Barriers to Inclusive Education For Learners With Disabilities in Primary Schools in Hagadera Refugee Camp. Accessibility Institute at Carleton University, Ottawa. https://doi.org/10.22215/glrnw/254042