IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LEVEL IN THE CURRENT INNOVATION EDUCATION IN OUR COUNTRY Nguyen Duc Huu (Ministry of Education and Training) Abstract Inclusive education for elementary school students with disabilities in our country has been of interest to the Party, the State and Ministries and Branches, especially in recent 20 years, and obtained some results to ensure opportunities for all students with different circumstances[.]
Trang 1FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LEVEL
IN THE CURRENT INNOVATION EDUCATION IN OUR COUNTRY
Nguyen Duc Huu
(Ministry of Education and Training)
Abstract: Inclusive education for elementary school students with disabilities in our country has been of
interest to the Party, the State and Ministries and Branches, especially in recent 20 years, and obtained some results to ensure opportunities for all students with different circumstances and characteristics to have equal opportunities in access to education and to school However, the education quality in general and the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities at the elementary school level in particular has also revealed shortcomings due to various reasons One of the main reasons is that the quality assessment activities are not yet system-related and regular to find the cause for ensuring and improving the quality This article presents related basic concepts, how to build a quality assurance system and solutions to improve the inclusive education quality for elementary school students with disabilities in the current education innovation in our country.
Keywords: Quality, Quality assurance, Inclusive education; Children with disabilities; Elementary School Students.
1 INTRODUCTION
Educating students with disabilities at elementary school level according to the method of inclusive education is a right policy of many countries, and in our country Inclusive education has been selected since the beginning of the pilot in 1991 Implementing the legal documents of the State and
of the Education and Training Sector, according to the annual reports of the Departments of Education and Training, there are now more than 600,000 out of a total of 1,329,000 children with disabilities attending school, mostly study in Inclusive education methods and concentrate at the elementary school level However, at present, there is still a gap between the Inclusive education quality for students with disabilities and the requirements of elementary education The cause can be determined to be the management mechanism, funding shortfalls, the qualifications of teachers, of support staff, etc The quality assessment has not been given enough attention to find the cause for the quality improvement
In 2014, UNESCO introduced a set of documents “Enhancing the training and retraining of inclusive education teachers” including 5 books: Introductions; Policies; Curriculums; Learning materials; Methods [1] In the country, scientists and educators have conducted researches on inclusive education for students with disabilities and published many of their research works on and related to the problem However, there have not been many published research works on quality assurance for inclusive education
From practical requirements, it is necessary to build a quality assurance system and solutions to improve the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities at the elementary school level in
Trang 2the current educational innovation process To solve the above problem, what must be handled and how
to proceed? This is a question that needs to be answered scientifically
2 CONTENT
2.2.1 Basic concepts
2.2.1.1 Inclusive education for persons with disabilities
According to the Law on Persons with Disabilities, in Article 2: “A person with a disability means
a person who has a defect in one or more body parts or a impairment of function that is presentedas
a disability that makes it difficult to work, live and study” In Article 3, there are the following types
of disabilities: a) Mobility disability; b) Hearing and speaking disabilities; c) Visual impairment; d) Neurological and mental disabilities; d) Intellectual disability; e) Other disabilities [2]
The concept of inclusive education is flexible Inclusion education is an activity in all activities What is required is dedication, hard work and a sense of humor from everyone to the challenges of inclusive education [3]
The concept of inclusive education is currently being recognized and used relatively commonly in our country Inclusive education for persons with disabilities means “a method of sharing people with disabilities with non-disabled people in educational institutions where children live” [2]
Inclusive education has the following basic characteristics: 1) Education for all children, regardless
of gender, ethnicity, religion, economic conditions and social backgrounds; 2) The children go to an educational institution where they live; 3) Do not equate every child, every child is different; 4) Adjust
in accordance with the ability and needs of the children in terms of goals, contents, methods, and assessment of educational results [4]
2.2.1.2 The quality of education
The quality of education is understood in different ways We use the concept of quality of education
as “the degree of achievement of the educational goals required by the stakeholders The quality of education is verified by the quality of educational products” [5] [6]
To the overall approach, the quality of education to a large extent corresponds to the educational category itself The quality composition of the factors that create the quality of education Partial or partial approach, quality education emphasizes on considering the quality of education in each part, stage or different field of the overall educational process Both these approaches point out the quality factors of the educational process itself, which have a great impact on the quality of input resources, creating quality and improving the quality of education [7]
The quality of inclusive education for students with disabilities: On the basis of the overall approach, the concept of the quality of inclusive education is understood in a wide range, including input quality, implementation quality and quality output - results To the divisional approach, the quality of inclusive education emphasizes on different stages, divisions or areas, including the quality of resources, the quality of activities - processes and the quality of products
In any educational system, the school is always considered as the core unit of the system and all activities of the school are aimed at best serving its customers, which are learners [8] Therefore, it can
be understood that the quality of inclusive education for students with disabilities is the total quality
Trang 3or the quality composition of the components of the entire process of vocational education in schools, which is the result of the development of disability students
2.2.2 Building a quality assurance system for inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level
2.2.2.1 Basic issues of quality assurance and quality assurance for inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level
In general, Quality Assurance is the process of applying appropriate theories, perspectives, policies, objectives, resources, processes, measures, procedures and tools to ensure that the set standards or quality levels are met throughout the entire activity from initiation to completion and product acquisition [9] The quality assurance or the quality management at the quality assurance level (QA) can be described as a systematic, structured, and ongoing concern for quality with respect to the maintenance and improvement quality In Vietnam, the concept of “Quality Assurance is the entire planned and systemual activity conducted in the quality system and proved to be sufficient to create a satisfactory confidence that they (object) will fully meet the quality requirements” (Vietnamese Standard 5814) The Quality Assurance is considered “the total number of mechanisms and processes applied to ensure pre-defined quality or continuous quality improvement – including planning, monitoring, encouragement, assessment and quality control” The quality assurance is the quality management process at the educational institutions, which attaches great importance to prevention before and during the product creation process Quality assurance in education is the process of applying appropriate attitudes, policies, objectives, resources, processes, measures, procedures and tools to ensure that standards or levels of quality are defined throughout the entire activity from initiation to completion and product acquisition It is one of the basic stages of educational quality management as described in the diagram above [6]
Thus, ensuring the quality of inclusive education for disability students is the process of applying the viewpoint of inclusive education quality, policies, objectives, appropriate resources, measures and tools to ensure the implementation of the educational goals of students with disabilities (knowledge, skills, behavior, language - communication, emotional - social, ) have been set [10]
2.2.2.2 Building a quality assurance system for inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level
3 main contents must be implemented as follows:
a Building the quality system suitable to the inclusive education process for students with disabilities (including the quality policy and strategy for the inclusive education process for students with disabilities) The quality system or the quality standards system include all standards and procedures to be followed for all 3 stages: INPUT - PROCESS - OUTPUT of the inclusiveal education process The purpose of these standards is to “check” all elements of product creation activities, to prevent arbitrary work, and to be the basis for “the quality supervision” at all stages, all people to do their jobs
- For the INPUT: to build the quality standards for: (1) Inclusive education program and inclusive
education program development for students with disabilities; (2) Student quality; (3) Facilities and equipments for teaching and learning (classrooms, function/thematic rooms, etc.) are fully equipped and updated; (4) The dedicated library and learning resources are fully equipped and updated; (5) Environmental, health and safety standards are determined
Trang 4The most important input for inclusive education for students with disabilities is the suitable program for the educational objectives and objects The content orientation of the inclusive education program for students with disabilities at elementary school may include:
(i) The content of inclusiveal education teaching must be adapted to the needs of students Therefore, schools must have appropriate teaching contents and programs for children with different abilities and interests; especially for each student with disabilities
(ii) Students with disabilities must receive extra tutoring/individual lessons to be able to meet the regular content and to be adjusted to suit them, not a separate program The guiding principle is to give children the same education and to organize extra tutoring to support for those who need help
(iii) The educational content should be aimed at raising the standards and needs of each individual,
in order to enable children to actively participate in the process of personal development Teaching must
be based on the characteristics of students with disabilities themselves and on the things they care about
to motivate them to make better progress
(iv) In order to monitor the progress of the students with disabilities, it is necessary to review the assessment process Assessment must be integrated into the educational process to help students and teachers know how well students have met their goals of inclusive education, and to identify difficulties and help them to overcome
(v) For students with disabilities who need regular help, which can range from minimal in-class help
to additional school assistance programs and beyond if necessary, is the help of specialized teachers and support staff inside or outside the school”
It is necessary to mobilize the support of resources for the inclusive education for students with disabilities When mobilizing, it should be noted:
+ Children’s differences are used as a source of teaching and learning support
+ The experience of staff, teachers and employees is made the most of.
+ Teachers, staff and employees develop resources to support learning and the participation of those with related interests
+ Everyone participating in the process of inclusive education for students with disabilities must know and use the support resources from the community
+ The school’s resources are evenly distributed to support inclusive education to achieve good results.
- For the PROCESS: Implementing the quality system or realizing a quality standard system
includes all standards with performance indicators and procedures to be followed when implementing, and the program of all levels in general and inclusive education for students with disabilities in particular Organizing the implementation of quality standards with performance indicators and processes and procedures for activities related to the teaching of the teachers, related to the organization of student learning activities, related to support activities of the process of inclusive education for students with disabilities at schools When it comes to the PROCESS, it is also associated with a system that monitors the compliance of standards with implementation indicators, with issued procedures for all stages of the education process Keeping the evidence for the assessment is also a requirement in this stage
Trang 5- For the OUTPUT: Assessing the achievement of the quality system with performance indicators
(implementation of the set out - standards, criteria and processes) and self-assessing the product quality
of the school: the quality standards system includes all standards with performance indicators and procedures to self-assess the quality of the teaching products and support activities as well as the level
of satisfaction of those involved The internal assessment is conducted by participants in the process of creating the educational product quality in general, inclusive education for students with disabilities in particular The assessment must not be sentiment but stick to the quality objectives with the performance indicators of each activity and have evidence to “be able to trust” the assessment results
b Operating the quality system
After “having written the right things to do” to achieve the quality goals with performance indicators for each job and stage in the educational process in general, the inclusive education for students with disabilities in particular, it is the turn to “do it right what has been written” through “job descriptions and processes with performance indicators” and at the same time, it is necessary to thoroughly give those involved a “quality culture” so that they are “committed” to doing exactly what is announced Monitoring the level of implementation of “commitments” when implementing work is very important based on evidence of the level of performance indicators and the level of quality goal implementation In the process implementation, the content, the education program and the inclusive teaching for students with disabilities should stick to the quality goals with the following notes:
+ The program quality is consistent with the purpose of the inclusive education for students with disabilities and feasible under specific circumstances when implemented in practice
+ The educational program aims to standardize knowledge and skills for all students Students with disabilities need to learn the same content as other students as possible The difference between students with disabilities and other students is that: a) Expected to meet specialized learning goals for students with disabilities; b) To be required to carry out activities suitable to the level of competence and characteristics of the students with disabilities
+ The educational programs and contents are always supplemented and adjusted to adapt to the needs of students with disabilities, rather than forcing them to follow all already in the program Therefore, the educational programs and contents need to be suitable for students with disabilities and for their different benefits
During the operation, it is necessary to record, monitor and take specific notes in detail the stages of organizing the implementation of criteria and indicators to form the basis for editing and improving the unspent stages, completing the built processes and ensuring the continuous operation of the management process, in that way to ensure the expected education quality Furthermore, during the implementation process, regular control must be made so that the operation process does not deviate from the stated objectives of the inclusive education quality In the control, each member and leader of the department always have to detect errors and defects to learn from and perfect according to Deming’s PDCA cycle (Plan - Do - Check - Act) and, importantly, to create output products that satisfy the requirements and needs of the students with disabilities, based on the evidence of how well the performance indicators are achieved and the level of implementation of the published quality goals
Trang 6c Creating and developing the quality culture
Culture is associated with beliefs, consciousness, knowledge, behavior, and when those factors become stored values and form habits, culture is associated with self-discipline and voluntariness With the above concept, the concept of quality culture is associated with the belief that “without quality, there will be no sustainable existence”; a sense of compliance with standards and implementation processes
so that the product is qualified; The quality culture is also associated with knowledge about quality and quality assurance and the level of application of such knowledge to “behaviors” in the creation of quality products If the above factors are firmly formed, it will create habits, self-discipline and voluntariness
to carry out activities according to the set quality goals The necessary condition to ensure quality is to build a quality system and operate it effectively; The sufficient condition here is the quality culture It is necessary to build an inclusive, friendly educational environment, ensuring that students with disabilities are respected, supported, cooperated and equally involved in all educational activities
In order to build the quality culture, it is necessary to pay attention to 3 stages with very detailed contents of each stage:
1 Stage 1 To find out the current level of quality culture in the school, including: a) To find
out the consciousness and awareness of teachers and leaders about the education quality; b) To find out the consciousness and awareness of students and parents/guardians and people living in the local community; c) To identify priority objectives for improving the education quality
2 Stage 2 To build a development quality culture plan at schools in general and inclusive education
for students with disabilities associated with the stated quality goals This is part of the participation of members of the school’s quality planning team This team will decide on the extent and scope of changes
to the quality plan after studying the inclusive education guidelines for students with disabilities They will incorporate the priorities agreed upon among teachers and staff at the end of the Stage 2 into the school development plan
3 Stage 3 To implement the priority objectives (continuously): a) To realize the selected priority
objectives into real-world implementation; b) To maintain the sustainable development of the achieved quality; c) To record progress and plan for quality improvement
2.2.3 Some solutions to improve the quality of inclusive education for students with disabilities
at elementary school level
2.2.3.1 To raise awareness, supplement knowledge and skills for management staff and teachers on inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level with quality assurance approach
Teachers must have been trained in the Faculty of Special Education, or have received intensive training and fostering during the annual summer vacation to have knowledge and skills in inclusive education for students with disabilities
In fact, the number of graduated students from the Faculty of Special Education of Hanoi University
of Education and Ho Chi Minh City University of Education annually cannot meet the needs of inclusive education in institutions teaching inclusive education across the country; On the other hand, it is difficult for these students to be recruited as civil servants in the localities… therefore, it is necessary to foster knowledge and skills for elementary school teachers (without special education training) in inclusive education for students with disabilities The content of the training should focus on the knowledge of the biological - psychological characteristics of students with disabilities as well as their inclusive ability
Trang 7To foster an approach that is appropriate to students with disabilities as well as specific methods in inclusive education for them; especially skills in creating learning environment and inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary schools
2.2.3.2 To research to develop and apply a set of quality assurance standards to meet the requirements
of the inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level
The quality assurance standards to meet the requirements of inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level are associated with the goals of the inclusive education for students with disabilities in the current period according to the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training, and at the same time to ensure that the general principles of this set of standards must be associated with the input, processes, output of the inclusive education for students with disabilities It
is necessary to properly identify the content and characteristics of the input - processes - outputs of the inclusive education for students with disabilities when developing this set of standards When building a system of standards and indicators for the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities, it is necessary to master the specific and appropriate objectives of the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities of the educational institutions to achieve the highest efficiency
2.2.3.3 To train and foster a contingent of qualified teachers and support staff in inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary school level
A team of qualified teachers or support staff in inclusive education for students with disabilities at elementary level is very necessary and important because teachers at schools participating in inclusive education for students with disabilities can not avoid certain limitations and it is necessary to mobilize support teachers (preferably those who have been trained in the Faculty of Special Education in universities of education) or support staff (preferably those who have been working in centers of special education or teachers who have been trained in topics of special education in universities of education)
In order for this team to work effectively, the school must let them participate right from the stage of building the quality goals of inclusive education for students with disabilities and create conditions for them to actively participate in the process of implementing the inclusive education for students with disabilities at school
2.2.3.4 To build a friendly inclusive education environment, and ensure the conditions of facilities, means and equipment to support inclusive education activities for elementary school students with disabilities according to the quality assurance approach.
In order to achieve the necessary quality, there must build a friendly inclusive educational environment, ensuring the conditions of facilities, means and equipment to support the inclusive education activities for the educational process in general, and the inclusive education for students with disabilities in particular To do this, the school must have a specific plan for this work and mobilize the participation and contributions of all members of the school and its stakeholders
2.2.3.5 To strengthen the inspection and supervision of the inclusive education implementation for students with disabilities at the elementary school level according to the quality assurance approach of educational management levels.
It is important to monitor the level of implementation of “commitments” when implementing work based on evidence of the level of implementation indicators and the level of implementation of educational quality goals in general, the inclusive education for students with disabilities in particular
Trang 8In summary, in order to improve the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities in elementary school/and schools with elementary levels, it is possible to guide thinking according to the diagram below:
3 CONCLUSION
The inclusive education for elementary school students with disabilities in our country has been directed by educational administrators and implemented at elementary education institutions across the country for many years and achieved some very respectable results to ensure opportunities for all students with disadvantaged backgrounds, different characteristics to have equal opportunities in accessing and going to school
However, the education quality in general and the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities at elementary school level in particular have also revealed disadvantages due to many different reasons One of the main reasons is that the quality assessment has not been systematic and regular to find the cause for ensuring and improving the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities at the elementary level The content of the article contributes to the correct identification of the concept of inclusive education for students with disabilities and the issue of ensuring the quality
of the inclusive education process for students with disabilities in general, and for elementary-school students with disabilities in particular If schools do well in our research results, they will definitely contribute to improving the inclusive education quality for students with disabilities in the context of education innovation in our country today
On that basis, we recommend the implementation of the proposed solutions to improve the quality
of inclusive education for students with disabilities at primary school level to improve the quality of inclusive education for students with disabilities before the requirements of educational reform in our country today
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