Page 18 - Mainstreamer Volume 1, Issue 4, November 2023
P. 18
MAKING IT WORK
No child is left behind (UNICEF).
for them. Sanitation facilities accessible to people Tu Liem (urban). The initiative identified 1,078
with disabilities are even less common, available students with disabilities, including those requiring
in just 9.9% of schools. This disparity highlights extensive support. Professional development
the ongoing challenges faced by children with covered various aspects to promote inclusion,
disabilities in accessing truly inclusive education. like multi-level instruction, accommodations,
technical assistance and individualised education.
Inclusive Education Policies in Vietnam The project successfully included 1,000 students
with disabilities in general education classrooms,
Rooted in global human rights agreements, leading to positive shifts in teachers’ expectations,
th
Vietnam’s SEND policy began in the 19 century heightened sensitivity to individual needs,
with schools for deaf children, evolving into a focus improved community attitudes and optimism
on inclusive education models from the 1990s. The instilled in parents for their children’s future.
National Law on Disability (6/2010) guarantees
equal opportunities, with additional legal measures Building upon earlier achievements, CSE and
in the Law on Children (2016) and Education Law CRS collaborated with the United States Agency
(2019) preventing bias and discrimination. for International Development (USAID) in 1998,
Proactively advancing inclusive education extending inclusive education to three more
provinces. An evaluation of this effort highlighted
since 1995, the Ministry of Education and positive impacts, including increased community
Training (MOET) oversees schools for children support, enhanced infrastructure, appropriate
with disabilities (Decree 26/CP). Established in student placement, improved teaching quality,
2002 per UNICEF in 2017, a steering committee greater family involvement and overall educational
outlines eight priorities: promoting attendance, progress. The project’s success led to expansion
needs assessment, teacher training, specialised across six additional districts, establishing
programmes, content management, policy inclusive education as the primary model in ten
proposals, regulatory oversight and international provinces within eight years. Inclusive education
support. was notably more cost-effective than the US$400
spent in segregated schools, with the former
From Stigma to Acceptance: Redefining Life with costing an average of US$58 per student with
Disability in Vietnam disabilities. Pilot and expansion projects not only
Since 1991, the Centre for Special Education improved children’s education but also influenced
(CSE) has collaborated with NGOs like Catholic policy changes and teacher training initiatives,
Relief Services (CRS), Save the Children (STC), contributing to widespread integration across
UNICEF and Radda Barnen to pilot inclusive Vietnam.
models in two districts, Thuong Tin (rural) and In collaboration with national and provincial
17 November 2023 | Vol. 01, Issue 4
