An Examination of the evolution of policies and strategies to improve access to education for children with disabilities, with a focus on inclusive education approaches, the success and challenges of such approaches and implications for the future policy

his paper provides an overview of the way inwhichpolicies and strategies have evolved to improve access to education for children with disabilities. It examines the successes and challenges faced by inclusive education approaches and their impact on the inclusion of children with disabilities in schools. Case studies are provided of four countries, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Viet Nam, Malawi and Zambia and these serve as tools to explore in closer detail, the way in which policies have been developed and implemented. The paper concludes that whilst there is evidence to indicate that international policies and treaties such as CRC, EFA and CRPD have influenced individual states to develop and implement their own disability legislation and EFA action plans, there is little evidence of educational system reform removing discriminatory barriers to the education of children with disabilities. Much of the data which has been collected regarding the inclusion of children with disabilities in education indicates that they are less likely to attend school and more likely to fail to complete primary school if they do enrol. The paper concludes in order to ensure that children with disabilities are fully included in the future they must be placed clearly at the heart of a post 2015 framework. A series of recommendations are made to ensure that educational reform is based on inclusive principles.