Inclusive Education in the Czech Republic

Bohumira LazarovaMasaryk University Brno

Schools for all pupils

Pupils with special educational needs - app. 71 000 pupils have special educational needs from app. 790 000 pupils in Czech basic schools (ISCED 1 and 2) (source: www.UIV.cz)

• a health and sensory disability or disadvantage,• a mental disability, (almost 22000)• a social disadvantage,• foreigners (culturally disadvantaged), (app. 14000)• learning difficulties or behaviour disorders, (over 36000)• but also gifted pupils.

Measures to support inclusion in education

• Czech law (Regulation No. 116/2011 Code of law, on providing counselling services in schools and counselling centres and Regulation No. 147/2011 on educating children, pupils and students with special educational needs and gifted children and pupils)

• Projects at the national level (cordinated by Ministry of Education, supported by EU)

• Project at regional level (i.e. regions with a high rate of risk population)

• Project at the school level and local community level (often EU financial support)

Legislative support

• Adjustments of the curriculum: supplements for pupils with a mild retardation in the Framework Educational Programme, individual educational plans,

• adjustment of evaluation of pupils,• teachers´ assistants (on request only, 1 year)• reduction of number of pupils in a class,• financing of recommended measures, special aids etc., according to the

recommendation of a counselling centre,• retraining groups in school, special classes in school etc.• preparatory years for pre-school pupils (especially Roma children and

children with a social disadvantage…),• establishment of a school guidance centre, hiring a school psychologist or

other experts (on request, no system),…

• Project “Centre for inclusive education“ (support for schools, prevention of the socially pathological phenomena activities (EU support) (www.nuv.cz)

• RAMPS-VIP III: Development and methodological support for counselling services in schools (EU support) (www.nuv.cz)

• Research projects focused on inclusive education i.e. Special needs of pupils in the context of the Framework Educational Programme for primary education (Faculty of Education Masaryk University /2007-2013/… a wide range of research activities aiming at the identification of the supportive factors in the education of pupils with SEN (see poster) http://www.ped.muni.cz/wsedu/index.php?p=vyzkumny-zamer

• A new interdisciplinary research project conducted at MU. Our role: Management of inclusive education in basic schools (GA MU MUNI/M/0012/2013)

Projects at the national level

Source: http://issuu.com/cpiv/docs/• Rejection of the idea of inclusion and negative experience. In some

schools it is rather difficult to create real inclusive climate … negative experience, cognitive stereotypes… (the relatively strong anti-roma feelings of the public).

• Insufficient material and financial situation in schools. • Curriculum. Only some schools take advantage of the possibility to

support the concept of inclusion within the design of their school educational programme…

• Services and support are not always available … school psychologists are not the part of the system, problems with school assistants (they role, education, availability) the information about potential external support (non profit organizations) is sometimes unavailable (especially to village schools)…

Barriers to inclusion

• Legislative barriers. Problems with the term “social disadvantage“ , it has not been possible to employ school speech therapists or social worker, support for school psychology is discussed for years, high number of pupils in a class, preparatory classes and other measures facilitating entrance of socially disadvantaged children (mainly Roma children) into school)

• Lack of system - not coordinated similar projects (care), not continuous and not following projects

• Thank you