Gulf Education and Social Policy Review

ISSN: 2709-0191

Pioneering research on education and social policy in the Gulf region.

Inclusive Education for Exceptional Children in Egypt and the US: Reforming Egyptian Inclusive Education System in Post-pandemic World

Published date: Jan 16 2023

Journal Title: Gulf Education and Social Policy Review

Issue title: Gulf Education and Social Policy Review (GESPR): Volume 3, Issue 2

Pages: 318–344

DOI: 10.18502/gespr.v3i2.12617

Authors:

Noha Abbasnohaabbass@yahoo.comInternational and Comparative Education, Faculty of Education, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt

Abstract:

Inclusive education means that exceptional children (EC) can fully participate in the learning process alongside their typically developing peers, supported by reasonable accommodations and teaching strategies that are tailored to meet their individual needs. The main goal of inclusion policies for EC is to provide high-quality education for all without discrimination and to ensure the implementation of equal opportunity principles. The primary purpose of this study is to explore the reality of inclusive education systems in Egypt and the United States (US) and to develop a better understanding of similarities and differences and thus identify the lessons learned. The study applied a comparative analysis method. Research findings revealed that the progress towards inclusion practices in Egyptian inclusive public schools is minimal and hindered by many challenges. Among them are lacking financial resources and a shortage of qualified teachers trained to differentiate curricula for EC. Based on the research findings, the study concludes with recommendations to improve the Egyptian inclusive education for EC.

Keywords: Inclusive education, Exceptional children, Individual educational plan (IEP)

References:

[1] American Montessori Society (AMS). (2022). Montessori Public Schools: AMS is dedicated to bring the Montessori Method to public schools nationwide. https://amshq.org/Educators/Montessori-Schools/Montessori-Public-Schools

[2] Anwari, I., Yamada, S., Unno, M., Saito, T., Suwarna, I. R., Mutakinati, L., & Kumano, Y. (2015). Implementation of authentic learning and assessment through STEM education approach to improve students’ metacognitive skills. K-12- STEM Education, 1(3), 123–136.

[3] Author. (2020). Development of inclusive education system for exceptional children at pre-university education in Egypt in light of the experiences of other foreign countries [Doctoral dissertation]. Faculty of Education, Ain Shams University.

[4] Bray, M., & Thomas, R. M. (1995). Levels of comparison in educational studies: Different insights from different literatures and the value of multilevel analyses. Harvard Education Review, 65(3), 472–490.

[5] CCSSO. (2007). Key elements for educational accountability models [A paper commissioned by the Council of Chief State School Officers Accountability Systems and Reporting State Collaborative]. Washington, DC: CCSSO.

[6] The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). (2017). Egypt census 2017. https://censusinfo.capmas.gov.eg/Metadata-env4.2/ index.php/catalog/405

[7] Congressional Research Service (CRS). (2019). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Funding Report: A Primer. USA: Congressional Research Service.

[8] Dattke, J. (2014). A Montessori model for inclusion. The NAMTA Journal, 39(3).

[9] Dell’Erba, M. (2019). Policy considerations for STEAM education [Policy brief]. USA: ARTS Education Partnership.

[10] Dryfoos, J. (1998). Full-service schools: A revolution in health and social services for children, youth and families. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

[11] Egyptian Parliament. (2019). Demands to abolish educational inclusion expose the problems of students with disabilities, November 5th 2018. http://www.parliament.gov.eg

[12] Egyptian Parliament. (2018a). Law No. 10 on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, issued on 2018, February 19th. Cairo: The Official Gazette, No. 7C, Articles 11 & 12.

[13] Egyptian Parliament. (2018b). The Executive Regulations of Law No. 10/2018 on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, issued on 2018, December 23rd . Cairo: The Official Gazette, No. 51.

[14] Egyptian State Information Service (SIS) website. (2022). Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt 2014, as amended to 2019. https://constitutionnet.org/vl/item/egypt-constitution-2014

[15] Gargiulo, R. (2015). Special education in contemporary society: An introduction to exceptionality. USA, California: SAGE Publication.

[16] Gess, A. H. (2017). STEAM education: Separating fact from fiction. Technology and Engineering Teacher, 7(3), 39–41.

[17] Ghanem, T. (2017). STEM Education and its application at the global and local levels. Review of the National Center for Educational and Developmental Research, in Arabic, 1–29

[18] Handicap International. (2016). Inclusion of students with disabilities in primary education in public schools: Assessment report, handicap international and IRCKHF. https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/occupiedpalestinian- territory/assessment/handicap-international-inclusion-students.

[19] Hassanein, E., Adawi, T. R., Johnson, E. (2021). Barriers to including children with disabilities in Egyptian schools. Journal of International Special Needs Education, 24(1), 25–35

[20] Henriksen, D. (2017). Creating STEAM with design thinking: Beyond STEM and arts integration. The STEAM Journal, 3(1), 11.

[21] Hussein, A. (2019). Assessing community based education in Upper Egypt failure and success [Master’s thesis]. The American University in Cairo, AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/285

[22] Langsten, R. (2014). The experience of CARE’s multi-grade schools in three upper- Egyptian villages. In M. Fam & K. Kassab (Ed.), A second chance: Community based education in Upper Egypt: Its prospects and challenges (p. 59). Cairo: CARE Egypt.

[23] Martha, L., & Rachel, F. (2017). Standard-based reform and students with disabilities. In D. Hallahan & J. Kauffman (Eds), Handbook of special education (p. 134). London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

[24] McLeskey, J., Waldron, N. L., Spooner, F., Algozzine, B. (Eds). (2014). What are effective inclusive schools and why are they important? In Handbook of effective inclusive schools: Research and practice (p. 9). New York, USA: Routledge.

[25] Ministry of Education (MOE). (2021a). Statistical annual book 2020-2021: Schoolsclasses- students (p. 1). https://emis.gov.eg/annual_book.aspx?id=400.

[26] MOE. (2021b). International day of people with special needs/Efforts of the MOE in the field of educational integration in Egyptian schools within the framework of the education system (2.0). https://moe.gov.eg/en/what-s-on/news/international-dayof- people-with-special-needs

[27] MOE. (2019). Technical and Administrative Inclusion Guidance Bulletin, Central Administration for Special Education. In Arabic. p. 1–37. https://moe.gov.eg

[28] MOE. (2017). Ministerial Decree No. 252 about the admission of students with mild disabilities in public schools, issued on 2017, August 5th. Cairo: MOE, Article 12.

[29] MOE. (2014). The national strategic plan for pre-university education in Egypt (2014–2030): Egypt National Project. https://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/sites/default/ files/ressources/egypt_strategic_plan_pre-university_education_2014-2030_eng_ 0.pdf

[30] Ministry of Finance. (2021). Spotlight on children in the 2020/21 and 2021/22 budget [Budget Transparency Brief No. 5]. https://www.unicef.org/egypt/media/7541/file/ spotlight%20on%20children%20transparency%20brief%202021.pdf

[31] Mitchell, D. (2015). Education that fits: Review of international trends in the education of students with special educational needs (2nd ed.). New Zealand: University of Canterbury.

[32] Mitchell, D. (2014). What really works in special and inclusive education: Using evidence-based teaching strategies (2nd ed., p. 16). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

[33] National Authority for Quality Assurance and Accreditation (NAQAAE). (2013). National academic reference standards for the faculties of education (1st ed., pp. 12–28). Cairo: NAQAAE.

[34] National Center for Community Schools (NCCS). (2011). Building community schools: A guide for action (p. 19). New York: The children’s Aid Society.

[35] National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (2021). The condition of education at a glance: Children with disabilities (p. 1). Washington DC, USA: NCES.

[36] Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE). (2021). 21st century community learning centers. https://oese.ed.gov/offices/office-of-formula-grants/schoolsupport- and-accountability/21st-century-communitylearning-centers/

[37] Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2020). Mapping policy approaches and practices for the inclusion of students with special education needs [OECD Education Working Paper No. 227]. https://www.oecdilibrary. org/education/mapping-policy-approaches-and-practices-for-the-inclusionof- students-with-special-education-needs_600fbad5-en

[38] Salend, S. (2016). Creating inclusive classrooms: Effective, differentiate and reflective practices. USA: Pearson Education.

[39] Schreffler, J., Vasquez III, E., Chini, J., & James, W. (2019). Universal design for learning in postsecondary STEM education for students with disabilities: A systematic literature review. International Journal of STEM Education, 6, 8.

[40] Shaddock, A., MacDonald, N., Hook, J. Giorcelli, L. & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2009). Disability, diversity and tides that lift all boats: Review of special education in the ACT. Chiswick, NSW: Services Initiatives.

[41] Stanicek, B. (2021). Egypt’s foreign policy within a challenging regional context (pp. 1–8). European Parliamentary Research Service EPRS, European Union.

[42] Stayton, V. D., & McCollun, J. (2002). Unifying general and special education: What does the research tell us? Teacher Education and Special Education, 25(3), 211–218.

[43] Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners (2nd ed.). Alexandria VA: ASCD.

[44] UNESCO. (2020). Global Education Monitoring Report: Inclusion and education: All means all. Paris: UNESCO. https://en.unesco.org/gem-report/report/2020/inclusion

[58] Waston Institute. (2021). Incorporating STEAM learning into special education curriculum. https://www.thewatsoninstitute.org/incorporating-steam-learninginto- special-education-curriculum/

[59] The White House. (2014). Preparing a 21st Century Workforce-Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education in the 2014 budget. http://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp.

[60] World Bank. (2018). Supporting Egypt education reform project, International Bank for reconstruction and development project appraisal document on a proposed loan [Report No: PAD2644]. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/346091522415590465/pdf/PAD- 03272018.pdf

[61] Will, M. (1986). Educating children with learning problems: A shared responsibility. Exceptional Children, 52(4), 411–415.

[62] Zaalouk, M. (2013). Educators, professionalism and politics: Global transitions, national spaces and professional projects. In T. Seddon & J. Levin (Eds.), World year book of education 2013 (p. 207). USA: Routledge Group.

[63] Zaalouk, M. (2005). The pedagogy of empowerment: Community schools as a social movement in Egypt, Cairo (pp. 32, 34). American University in Cairo Press. DOI

[58] Waston Institute. (2021). Incorporating STEAM learning into special education curriculum. https://www.thewatsoninstitute.org/incorporating-steam-learninginto- special-education-curriculum/

[59] The White House. (2014). Preparing a 21st Century Workforce-Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education in the 2014 budget. http://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp.

[60] World Bank. (2018). Supporting Egypt education reform project, International Bank for reconstruction and development project appraisal document on a proposed loan [Report No: PAD2644]. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/346091522415590465/pdf/PAD- 03272018.pdf

[61] Will, M. (1986). Educating children with learning problems: A shared responsibility. Exceptional Children, 52(4), 411–415.

[62] Zaalouk, M. (2013). Educators, professionalism and politics: Global transitions, national spaces and professional projects. In T. Seddon & J. Levin (Eds.), World year book of education 2013 (p. 207). USA: Routledge Group.

[63] Zaalouk, M. (2005). The pedagogy of empowerment: Community schools as a social movement in Egypt, Cairo (pp. 32, 34). American University in Cairo Press.

Download
HTML
Cite
Share
statistics

999 Abstract Views

347 PDF Downloads