The Bedrock of Inclusion: Why Investing in the Education Workforce is Critical to the Delivery of SDG4

This report summarizes lessons and recommendations from a multi-country study undertaken on behalf of ActionAid, Education International and Light for the World. The study looks at the current state of play, and the realistic requirements for investing in an education workforce that can support disability inclusive education systems in Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria and Tanzania.

Investing in the education workforce is the bedrock of inclusion and critical to ensuring that all children, especially those with disabilities, enjoy their right to education. Well-trained and qualified teachers are at the forefront of this process, but they cannot work alone. Support from equally well-trained and qualified education leaders, administrators and support personnel (such as therapists, psychologists, community-based rehabilitation workers and specialists in braille and sign language) is key to an education system equipped to respond to children’s diverse learning needs. As such, while much of this research centers on teachers, acknowledging their fundamental role in the education process, a wider scope of analysis has allowed us to assess the extent to which the broader education workforce is currently equipped to include all children, especially those with disabilities, and deliver on SDG4.

The research includes a combination of secondary data, including global and country-specific evidence on inclusive education, and primary data from key informant interviews in all five countries. This report starts with an introductory background which highlights key evidence from around the world that helped to shape the scope of the country studies. It then presents a series of lessons and recommendations consolidated from across the country studies. It also aims to highlight where the (often serious) gaps in knowledge and data hampered meeting the objectives of the country studies. The provision of quality, public disability-inclusive education involves system-wide change at all levels. However, some important issues were outside of the scope of the research project, such as strategies to address attitudinal barriers and discriminatory practices, and investments to improve access such as transport and accessible infrastructure. It is also important to note that the study focuses on public basic education and does not include the private education sector.