Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697750179530.pdf (India)
Index for Inclusive Schools Your classroom will reflect the spirit of inclusivity when your students witness your efforts to be inclusive of all and begin internalizing it themselves.

This is demonstrated in your approach to the students, your child-friendly, disabilities friendly and inclusive language, teaching practices and classroom organization.

When all the students feel included, it will reflect in their own ap- proach to each other, making your work at creating inclusivity easier.
Hopefully, this handbook will help you towards creating such a classroom, where all in the classroom feel that they are equal participants to what you, the teacher, have to teach them.

Index for Inclusive Schools Foreword The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) rec¬ognizes the right of all children with disabilities, both to be included in the general education systems and to receive the individual support they require.
Systemic change to remove barriers and provide reasonable accommodation and support services is essential to ensure that some children who belong to vulnerable groups are not excluded from educational opportunities that are available to all children in the neighbourhood schools.

Similarly Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals aims to ensure inclusive and equitable education for all.
The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RTE) 2016 also mandates the Government and local authorities to provide inclusive education by making schools more responsive to the special needs of children including accessible buildings, transportation and suitable pedagogical and other measures.
There has been considerable progress in this regard in the last few years with a number of international instruments to which India is signatory, legal frameworks, national level policies and the National Curriculums.

Despite this, development of inclusive schools that give equal opportunities to participate to all has been far from satisfactory.
Although enrolment has significantly increased as a result of Right to Education Act, 2009, there are children and youth who are still deprived of good quality education.

There are children who are less likely to start school or attend school as compared to other children.

They also have lower transition rates to higher levels of education.

Lack of intervention at an early age also has a significant impact on educational opportunities for some children.
The Index aims to facilitate inclusive education by developing schools so that they meet the learning needs of all children and youth.

It is a self reflecting instrument that would help teachers, educational administrators and all other stakeholders to understand the challenges involved, and discover the strategies to overcome barriers.

This Index is peer reviewed conscientiously by high level experts and I am very grateful to the time and support they gave for the development of this Index.
I am hopeful this publication will impact the whole school system towards change by identifying and removing barriers, and providing reasonable accommodation for ena¬bling every learner to participate and achieve within the regular school settings.
Hrushikesh Senapaty Director National Council of Educational Research and Training PREFACE Responding to the diversity of students in local schools, especially after the Right to Education Act, 2009, calls for restructuring school cultures, policies and practices for facilitating participation of all students in education, including those with disabilities.

Inclusive schools do not view individual differences as problems to be fixed, but as opportunities for enriching the teaching and learning processes.
Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Developmentadopted by UN General Assembly in 2015, clearly states that obtaining quality education is the foundation to ensure sustainable development.

In addition to improving quality of life, access to inclusive education can help equip locals with the tools required to develop innovative solutions to the gravest problems of the world.
However, for providing quality education to all, it is important that parents, teachers, educational administrators and communities understand why inclusion matters as this is what will lead to sustainable development.

This Index focuses on all children, but is especially useful for facilitating inclusion for children who continue to be left out of school.

A substantial proportion would be children with some form of disability, children belonging to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and girls.
They wouldalso be amongst the poorest.

Inclusive education is a significant part of our policy and legislative frameworks.

The Index for inclusion will provide support for improving the reach and effectiveness of strategies under the Government.

It will develop the understanding and knowledge required to make inclusive education a reality.

There are a range of interventions which could improve quality of teaching and learning for children.
The extent to which these can be implemented will depend upon the overall education context and culture in terms of school resources, teacher training, curriculum development and administrative support.

The Index highlights how to increase inclusiveness in schools through teachers, headmasters and other administrators responsible for planning, managing and supporting education in local contexts.

The present Index is a revised version of an earlier Index developed nearly a decade ago.
It is based on a number of new developments in policy and practice of inclusive education in this country, and also internationally.

A number of eminent experts have reviewed the Index and helped in giving it a final shape.

The Index is built upon theoretical and practice-based analysis, designed to provide a framework for personal reflection and self-directed activities.

I hope it will prove useful for all those who are interested in developing inclusive schools that welcome and respect diversity.
Professor Anita Julka Department of Education of Groups with Special Needs NCERT, New Delhi Acknowledgements The publication was prepared by the Department of Education of Groups with Special Needs (DEGSN), National Council of Educational Research and Training, and is the outcome of a collective effort involving teachers, parents, educational administrators, educational experts and a wide range of other contributors.
Support from important organizations such as universities, schools, Non Governmental Organizations and Education Departments of the Government that enabled this publication are acknowledged.

Names of the main contributors who supported this endeavour through workshops and pilot study are given in the end in Appendix -1.
I am especially grateful to Ms. Mansi Pandey, Junior Project Fellow in the Department, who supported development of this document not only through desk research but also by visiting various schools to pilot the Index.

It is because of her hard work that the Index includes some grass root practices as examples.

Anita Julka Professor, DEGSN Project Coordinator CONTENTS Foreword Preface Acknowledgements Why this Index?
The Background – Our Classrooms – Inclusive Education – Major Milestones – International Developments Schools for All – Educational Administrators – Teachers – Understanding Terms and Terminology The Index – Process of Development of Index – – Structure of this Index Some Frequently Asked Questions Indicators – Indicators for Educational Administrators – – Indicators for Creating a School for All Indicators for Teachers Appendix 1: List of Experts iii v vi 1 3 3 6 10 20 25 27 33 39 45 46 47 52 55 56 63 71 75 Why this Index?
We all know that Inclusive Schools provide the best environment for learning for all students.

For a school to be inclusive, attitude of everyone in the school including administrators, teachers, parents, community members, needs to be positive towards accepting individual differences and diverse learning needs of students in the classrooms.

The school community must support and address the individual needs of each child.
This index is a set of indicators to guide schools through the process of inclusive school development.

It has evolved out of acomprehensive review of policies, synthesis of researchrelated to inclusive education (given on the next page) and interactions with teachers, administrators, parents and students themselves.

It will serve as a resource for teachers, administrators, and others interested in improving the quality of teaching and learning in inclusive schools.
In this index, we help the stakeholders to develop a vision of inclusion and to ascertain where they presently stand in this journey toachieve inclusion.

The basic assumption underlying this index is that Inclusion is not a destination but an approach wherein we have to change ourselves in the best possible ways to welcome and accept diversity in children, and for improving their learning outcomes.
It will help in building a positive and supporting school environment to ensure active engagement of children through well chosen tasks and activities so that they realize their full potential.

Details of the index including the basic underlying assumptions, process of development and how to use it are given in Section 3.

The review of existing policies, research and practices given on the next page will serve as a reminder for continued improvement in schools from the perspective of inclusiveness.
By focusing on inclusive education, the ultimate goal of this document is to foster and nurture an enabling, child-friendly environment in classrooms.

1 The Background 2 Index for Inclusive Schools The Background India is a multicultural society made up of numerous regional and local cultures.

People’s religious beliefs, ways of life and their understanding of social relationships are quite distinct from one another.
All the groups have equal rights to co-exist and flourish, and the education system needs to respond to the cultural pluralism inherent in our society.

National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 Our Classrooms As an outcome of Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, composition of our classrooms has changed.

More and more students with varying levels of abilities are studying together and learning from each other.

Learners’ diversity is one of the main features that characterize our classrooms today.
We now have students in our classes who are so different from one another that we cannot and should not teach all of them in the same manner.

We need to develop practices so that all students have opportunities to be challenged and experience success.
Considering the diversity in classrooms, our commitment to democracy and the values of equality, justice, freedom, concern for others’ well-being, secularism, respect for human dignity and human rights (National Curriculum Framework, (NCF)1, 2005, Pg.10) defines the primary guiding principles for education and for our educational policies.
These principles have to be translated into inclusive practices for wider participation of all learners in education and for achieving sustainable inclusive education of high quality.

This means that schools need to plan their learning tasks and pedagogical practices in a way that all children are engaged equally in the education process.

There should be no fear of facing discrimination, exclusion, corporal punishment, abuse or teasing/bullying.
Also, the class environment should be such that every child feels happy and relaxed, and not tortured, bored, scared or alone.

To uphold the fundamental right to education afforded to all children, creating safe and inclusive environment for all learners is critical.

However, in reality, when we actually visit the classrooms in our neighborhood schools, what do we see?
We find that even though each child has the right to get admission in school, classroom practices in schools are not flexible, are dominated by rote memorization and preparation for tests and exams.

In class rooms, teachers present and deliver knowledge that is to be generally memorized directly from the text, or at times through different activities and tasks.

In such classrooms, evaluation is undertaken to find out what children can remember.

As a result, some children may 1 NCERT (2005).


National Curriculum Framework (NCF).

Retrieved from: http://www.ncert.nic.in/ rightside/links/pdf/framework/english/nf2005.pdf .

Pg.5 3 The Background be pushed out of the system because they are unable to fit in the existing system and the system is not changed for them in any way.

In order to give all learners access to quality education, a dramatic shift from exclusivity to inclusivity is required.
We need to take into account not only the cultural diversity but also diverse social and economic backgrounds and variations in physical, psychological and intellectual characteristics of children if all of them have to learn and achieve success in school (NCF, 2005).

It is especially important in the light of the ‘culture of silence’ (Friere, 1985)2 often seen in the education scenario where voices of some remain silent while those of others become dominant.

How does that happen?


Generally, Government pushes the agenda of inclusive education while the practices generally remain ineffective.

As a result, children, especially those with disabilities, face a number of barriers and are excluded from classroom practices.

The following extract from a conversation with a headmaster will make it clearer: “Inclusive education is a dictate from the top.
Some of these children cannot cope up with the syllabus being taught and therefore are unable to participate in the classroom process.

While we cannot wait for them to catch up we have to keep them in school even if they just sit quietly without understanding anything.

I feel they should be taught separately by a special educator.” The importance of dialogue: One, Other, Our ◘ To feel respected, ‘one’ needs to be heard.

◘ To respect the ‘other’, ‘one’ needs to listen.


◘ To establish a learning community with shared values and aims, ‘one’ needs to work with the ‘other’.

◘ To establish ‘our’ common aims, we need to work ‘together’ – − To openly share ‘our’ fears and insecurities, − To openly share ‘our’ values and attitudes, − To openly share ‘our’ strengths and weaknesses, 4 − To agree on communal goals and ways in which to achieve them, − To evaluate and revise our practices regularly.
Gibson, S. & Blandford, S. (2005) Managing special educational needs in mainstream primary and secondary schools (London, Sage).p.

31 2 Freire, P. (1985) The politics of education: Culture power and liberation (London, Macmillan).

Index for Inclusive Schools We must understand that by creating inclusive schools, we are also transforming our society into an inclusive society.
If some of our children remain silent, excluded and are not productively contributing to the development of our society, we need to be concerned.

To respond to diversity in classrooms, it is important to include and hear voices of all children.

A JOYFUL CLASSROOM While entering the classrooms of Semi rural and Rural Schools in Mumbai, one immediately notices the painted walls.
These walls have various subject content displayed attractively such as alphabets, numbers, maps of India and the World, and also images of various sports equipments, leaders etc.

These visual representations help students to understand the concept better and also stay engaged with what is being taught.

The classrooms also have separate space at the back where plenty of teaching-learning materials are kept, starting from flash cards on different topics to practice booklets, games etc.
These are accessible to all the students since they are kept inside the classrooms, unlike keeping in a store room and never get used.

These resources are also used by the students to self-learn and practice concepts in case the teacher is not available.

The students form a circular group in the classroom in the absence of the teacher and start using these materials to peer-tutor and self-learn.
The students can generally be found sitting in a circular group while doing various class activities and assignments.

Teachers prefer that Children with Special Needs sit in the front while a lesson is taught and also participate in group activities along with the rest of the class.

This helps in developing sensitivity and respect for all among the students.
5 The Background Inclusive Education Throughout the world including in India, policy of inclusion has become a significant part of all the initiatives taken by the Government.

Before we go any further, it is important to understand what inclusive education actually means.

Many people working in the field still consider inclusive education to be the same as integrated education that started in the 1970s.
In other words, for some people “inclusive education is including children with disabilities (CWD) in regular classrooms that have been designed for children without disabilities”.

As a movement, “inclusive education” has gained momentum since 1994 when the United Nations Salamanca Statement, signed by 92 member countries, came into existence (1994)3.
The Statement debated that, “Regular schools with this inclusive orientation are the most effective means of combating discriminatory attitudes, creating welcoming communities, building an inclusive society and achieving education for all.

Moreover, they provide an effective education to the majority of children and improve the efficiency and ultimately cost-effectiveness of the entire education system.” Since 1994, move towards creating inclusive schools has been a major initiative for many countries.
A number of definitions of inclusive education have been suggested over time.

Ainscow, Booth, and Dyson (2006a)4 have given the following six ways of conceptualizing inclusion across various countries: ◘ ◘ ◘ 3 4 InclusIon as concerned wIth dIsabIlIty and ‘specIal educatIonal needs’: This is seen as the most common approach.

As the authors highlight, seeing inclusion as concerned with disability and ‘special educational needs’ can act as a barrier to the development of a broader view of inclusion.
At the same time, the way categories are used to draw attention to the deficiencies of individuals, rather than addressing wider contextual factors, might create barriers to individuals’ participation.

InclusIon as a response to dIscIplInary exclusIons: Here, inclusion is associated with children with challenging behaviour who might be, therefore, excluded from school.

However, the authors again draw attention to the contextual factors that might lead to these exclusions.
InclusIon as about all groups vulnerable to exclusIon: Similar to the first perspective, this way of thinking focuses on certain categories of students such as travelers and ethnic minorities, who are seen as vulnerable to exclusion.

The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education.

1994.

UNESCO.

Retrieved from www.unesco.org/education/pdf/SALAMA_E.PDF Ainscow, M., T. Booth, and A. Dyson.

2006a.

Improving Schools, Developing Inclusion.


London: Routeledge 6 Index for Inclusive Schools ◘ ◘ ◘ InclusIon as the promotIon of school for all: This approach relates to what is called the comprehensive school in England, which refers to the development of a school for all, rather than allocating children in different types of schools based on their attainment.
InclusIon as ‘educatIon for all’: This refers to UNESCO’s Education for All agenda, with focus on increasing access to and participation within education internationally, by setting certain goals.

As the authors highlight, setting global targets can be challenging, since there are differences at the local level.
InclusIon as a prIncIpled approach to educatIon and socIety: Here, the articulation of inclusion, values such as equity, participation, community and respect for diversity, are seen as important in guiding overall policies and practices.
The recent Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPWD) Act, 2016 defines inclusive education as - “a system of education wherein students with and without disability learn together and the system of teaching and learning is suitably adapted to meet the learning needs of different types of students with disabilities.5” The Act places emphasis on adaptations and accommodations to be made in the teaching and learning processes/methods in an inclusive class so that the children with disabilities (CWD) enjoy their rights equally with others and live with dignity and self-worth.
Although, such an approach is made with an intention that CWD should not have to depend on specialized services alone, to benefit from educational resources, activities and practices that are otherwise available to all, inclusivity is actually maintained when all members of a group are able to participate in its activities, which means, provisions made are considerate of all members and not just those from specific groups or, with special abilities, disabilities, and/or needs.
Caution needs to be exercised in segregating some for special services as this may draw attention to the deficit in the labelled child and may segregates him/her from others.

It may also lead to low expectations from such children and most regular classroom teachers may feel that these children cannot be educated in their regular classrooms since they require special interventions and the teachers are not capable of handling them.
Thus, when we talk about differentiating curriculum and child centred pedagogy, we must understand that it is good for all children and not only for CWD.

5 The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, December 28.

Ministry of Law and Justice.

Pg from http://www.ncpedp.org/sites/all/themes/marinelli/documents/Rights%20of%20 3.

Retrieved Persons%20with%20Disabilities%20(RPWD)%20Act%202016.pdf 7 The Background So, how do we define inclusion in this Index?
If we look at the policy and legislative frameworks that have promoted inclusive education since more than a decade, we feel that most of the Government and Government aided schools should now be having an organizational and cultural climate in place to promote inclusion.

We have also introduced inclusive education in our teacher education programmes, both at in-service and pre-service levels.
But in reality, we find that implementation of inclusive education has been a slow process and many of our children still drop out of schools or are deprived of quality education.

If we truly believe that active participation of all students in all aspects of school life is important to retain them in school, then all of us have to make efforts in that direction.

The most important fundamental change we require in order to achieve this is a change in attitudes.
Hence, in this Index, we define InclusIon as an approach, an attItude or as a phIlosophy of educatIon, leadIng to an InclusIve socIety.

As mentioned earlier, values such as equity, justice, respect for diversity and human rights, concern for others’ well-being, participation and community, should form the guiding force behind all educational initiatives.
Similar approach has also been defined by different authors like Allan (2005)6 who refers to inclusion as “an ethical project, something that we do to ourselves, rather than something that we do to a discrete population of others”.

It means that when we change our attitudes in order to be more positive, welcome diversity and respect all, we create a culture in schools that is inclusive by nature.
Ainscow, Booth and Dyson (2006a)7 also suggest that “inclusion is concerned with all children and young people in schools; it is focused on presence, participation and achievement.” Inclusion in education happens only when we make attempts to include and retain all children in school through a programme that reaffirms the value of each child and enables all children to experience dignity and the confidence to learn.
An inclusive school environment, by implication, entails doing away with perceptions which are grounded in the notion that inferiority and inequality are inherent in gender, caste and physical and/or mental disabilities.

National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 8 Most government documents and scholarly publications in India have used the three different terms – segregation, integration and inclusion – to explain growth of the inclusive movement.
It is important for us here to understand the significant 6 7 Allan Julie.2005.Encounters with exclusion through disability arts.

Journal of Research in Special Education Needs.

Volume 5.

Number1 Ainscow, M., T. Booth, and A. Dyson.

2006a.

Improving Schools, Developing Inclusion.

London: Routeledge Index for Inclusive Schools differences between the three streams of education especially implemented for CWD (Pirrie, A.

& Head, G., 2007) so that we facilitate inclusion in the right spirit8.
Segregation Focusing on services; Integration Focusing on needs; Inclusion Focusing on rights; Establishing a medical model9 of disability; Perpetuating a medical model of disability; Positing a social model of disability;10 Categorization; Individual adaptation; Institutional adaptation; Providing special treatment; Providing equal treatment; Emphasizing the importance of a special setting; Categorizing difference; Atomizing the individual; Stress on inputs; Emphasizing benefits to the disabled person; Managing difference; Atomizing the system; Stress on process; Focus on curriculum delivery; Separate curriculum; Professional involvement; Professionals for inclusion; Providing Support for All; Emphasizing benefits to all pupils; Celebrating diversity; Unifying the system; Stress on outcomes; Focus on curriculum content; Professionals and parents in partnership; Parents for Inclusion; Providing educational opportunities for disabled pupils.
Improving educational opportunities for disabled pupils.

Focusing on school effectiveness and improvement.

We now understand that the movement that is based on human rights and social justice and one that can help in addressing inequality in society, is inclusive education.

While acknowledging the wider perspectives of inclusion, we must also understand that the most excluded group in our society is of persons with disabilities.
We must also acknowledge that disability is socially constructed and the biomedical condition can be made more relevant or less relevant, based on social attitudes or social situations.
The social arrangements ranging from condItIons that create Illnesses, InjurIes, and poor physIcal functIonIng such as malnutrition, health malpractices, accidents to cultural factors that not only have standards of 8 9 10 Anne Pirrie & George Head (2007) Martians in the playground: researching special educational needs, Oxford Review of Education, 33:1, 19-31, Pirrie Anne.

2007, Jan 29.
2007, Jan 29.

Medical Model emphasized that it is the individual who is the problem and it is their “impairment” that is the cause for a lot of negative associations attached with persons with disabilities.

Social model recognized that it is the lack of facilities in the surroundings and infrastructure which is the problem.

9 The Background defInIng normalcy but also consIder dIsabIlIty to be resultIng from past sIns, are some examples of social construction of disability.
Although there are other categories of vulnerable groups such as the socially disadvantaged, women and girls, linguistic and religious minorities etc., the concept of inclusive education is non categorical and aims at providing effective learning opportunities to every child, in particular tailored contexts.

In the present time, inclusion is seen as a general process rather than just the inclusion of CWD in education11.
Major Milestones INCLUSION Inclusion is not: ◘ focusing on an individual or a small group of pupils for whom the curriculum is adapted, different work is devised or support assistance provided; ◘ about how to assimilate individual pupils with identified special educational needs into existing forms of schooling.
Inclusion is: ◘ a process (rather than a state), by which a school attempts to respond to all pupils as individuals; ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ regards inclusion and exclusion as connected processes; schools developing more inclusive practices may need to consider both.
emphasizes the reconstructing of curricular provision in order to reach out to all pupils as individuals; emphasizes overall school effectiveness; is of relevance to all phases and types of schools, possibly including special schools, since within any educational provision teachers face groups of students with diverse needs and are required to respond to 10 this diversity.

(Lise Vislie, 2003)12 11 UNESCO 2008 Inclusive education: the way of the future.
Retrieved from: 12 (http://www.ibe.unesco.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Policy_Dialogue/48th_ICE/CONFINTED_48-3_ English.pdf) Lise Vislie (2003) From integration to inclusion: focusing global trends and changes in the western European societies, European Journal of Special Needs Education, 18:1.
Retrieved from https://www.uio.no/studier/emner/uv/isp/SNE4110/h06/undervisningsmateriale/Vislie%20 From%20education%202003-1.pdf Index for Inclusive Schools National Level Developments In order to understand how the practice of Inclusion was established in India and in the world, we need to understand the historical context in which these changes from segregation to inclusion are located.
Educational policy of India was defined and redefined in many ways during the British rule and also after gaining independence.

Some of the significant milestones for development that informally supported education for all are outlined here.

The first initiative was wood’s despatch (1854), named after Sir Charles Wood, that imposed upon the government the task of creating a properly articulated scheme of education from primary school to university.
One of the concerns expressed was how to achieve the objective of providing useful and practical knowledge to the great mass of people.
the IndIan educatIon commIssIon (1882-83), also known as the Hunter Commission, recommended - “Supply of normal schools, whether government or aided, be so localized as to provide for the local requirements of all primary schools whether government or aided, within a division under each Inspector.” the wardha scheme, more popularly known as the Zakhir Hussain Committee Report (1938), which was based on the educational philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, recommended free and compulsory education to be provided to all children for seven years on a nationwide scale, with the medium of instruction being their mother tongue.
This was later reflected in the educational plan formulated by the Central Advisory Board of Education, popularly known as the Sargent Report (1944).

It is this report that proposed a system of universal, compulsory and free education for all boys and girls between ages of six and fourteen years.
After this, education was given a significant place in the Constitution of India (1950) with Article 45 enjoining the State to endeavour to promote free, compulsory and universal education for all children until they complete the age of 14 years.

the natIonal commIttee on women’s educatIon (1957-59) chaired by Smt.
Durgabai Deshmukh made a special recommendation on education of women as a top priority, and suggested bold and determined efforts to close the existing gap between education of men and women in as short a time as possible.
the KotharI commIssIon (1964-66) undertook a comprehensive review of the entire educational system and recommended moving towards the goal of a common school system of public education - ◘ ◘ that will be open to all children irrespective of caste, creed, community, religion, economic or social status; where access to good education will depend, not on wealth or class, but on 11 The Background wood’s despatch hunter commIssIon ZaKhIr hussaIn commIttee natIonal commIttee on women’s educatIon KotharI commIssIon fIrst natIonal polIcy on educatIon 1854 1882 1938 1957- 59 1964- 66 1968 12 talent; ◘ ◘ ◘ that will maintain adequate standards in all schools and provide at least a reasonable proportion of quality institutions; in which no tuition fee will be charged; and, that would meet the needs of the average parent so that s/he would not ordinarily feel the need to send her/his children to expensive schools outside the system.
The commission further recommended “The present social segregation in schools should be eliminated by the adoption of the neighbourhood school concept at the lower primary stage under which all children in the neighbourhood will be required to attend the school in the locality.” the fIrst natIonal polIcy on educatIon (npe)13 in the year 1968 stressed equalisation of educational opportunities for promoting social cohesion and national integration.
It was especially concerned with the education of girls, and development of education among the backward classes and tribal people.
Also, the vision for education of CWD was articulated as - “Educational facilities for the physically and mentally handicapped children should be expanded and attempts should be made to develop integrated programmes enabling the handicapped children to study in regular schools.” the natIonal polIcy for chIldren (1974)14 also made recommendations for ensuring equality of opportunity.
The initial attempts of the NPE, 1968 to create better educational opportunities for all children were further strengthened by emphasis on a National System of Education in the NPE, 1986.

The new policy implied that up to a given level, all students, irrespective of caste, creed, location or sex, should have access to education of comparable quality.

It recommended education for equality and attending to the specific needs of those who had 13 Ministry of Human Resource Development.

1968.
1968.

National Policy on Education.

Retrieved from mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/document-reports/NPE-1968.pdf 14 Department of Social Welfare (1974).

Government of India.

Retrieved from: https://www.slideshare.

net/HAQCRCIndia/national-policy-for-children-1974 Index for Inclusive Schools been denied equality so far.

One of the major concerns of the Ramamurti Review Committee (1990) that was set up to review the NPE, 198615, was equity and social justice.
It repeated the idea of developing a common school system for securing equity and social justice in education, and proposed the transformation of existing government, local body and government-aided schools into genuine neighbourhood schools through quality improvement.
Although the idea of inclusive education is not openly expressed in ancient writings, thoughts emerging from ancient literature and from the philosophies of Tagore and Gandhi, all support the idea of an inclusive society wherein every individual is an important member of the society and education of individuals is a medium of creating a society that provided equal opportunities to all.
Based on the policy initiatives and with an objective to decentralise education, a national initiative called the dIstrIct prImary educatIon programme (dpep) was launched in 1993 to achieve universalisation of primary education (UPE).

The DPEPs were brought under a single programme called the sarva shIKsha abhIyan (ssa) in 2001-2002 in an attempt to universalise elementary education (UEE) through community-ownership of the school system.
It was a response to the demand for quality basic education all over the country and an opportunity for promoting social justice through basic education.

In fact, this programme was an umbrella programme that merged several existing programmes of the Government such as Operation Blackboard, Teacher Education, Non-Formal Education (Education Guarantee Schools, Alternative Schooling Facilities, Balika Shikshan Shivir, ‘Back to School’ camps etc.
), Mahila Samakhya, National Programme for Nutritional Support for Primary Education, State Specific Education Projects in Bihar, Rajasthan, UP and AP and, and the Lok Jumbish Project.

In addition, in the year 2005, the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) developed a comprehensIve actIon plan for including children and youth with disabilities in education and planned to implement it by making use of various initiatives taken by different departments in the Ministry.
Along the same 1974 1993 natIonal polIcy for chIldren dIstrIct prImary educatIon programme sarva shIKsha abhIyan 2001- 02 comprehensIve actIon plan rte rpwd act samagra shIKsha 2005 2009 2016 2018 13 15 Ministry of Human Resource Development.

1986.

National Policy on Education.


Retrieved from mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/npe.pdf The Background lines, the NCF (NCERT, 2005)16 stressed the commitment to inclusive education as stated below: “The ideal of common schooling advocated by the Kothari Commission four decades ago continues to be valid as it reflects the values enshrined in the Constitution.
Schools will succeed in inculcating these values only if they create an ethos in which every child feels happy and relaxed.

This ideal is even more relevant now because education has become a fundamental right, which implies that millions of first generation learners are being enrolled in schools.

To retain them, the system –including its private sector-must recognize that there are many children that no single norm of capacity, personality or aspiration can serve in the emerging scenario.
School administrators and teachers should realize that when boys and girls from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds and different levels of ability study together, the classroom ethos is enriched and becomes inspiring.
Inclusive Education is about embracing all.” - NCF, 2005 Further, to strengthen the inclusive education initiative, the rIght of chIldren to free and compulsory educatIon (rte) act, 200917 and rte amendment act, 2012, provide for free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years (till 18 years for CWD).
It states - “Every child of the age of six to fourteen years shall have a right to free and compulsory education in a neighbourhood school till completion of elementary education.” The National Policy for Children (2013)18 has identified four key priority areas for focused attention: survival, health and nutrition; education and development; protection and participation.
As children’s needs are multi-sectoral, interconnected and require collective action, the Policy calls for purposeful convergence and coordination across different sectors and levels of governance.

16 NCERT (2005), National Curriculum Framework.

New Delhi: National Council of Educational from: http://www.ncert.nic.in/rightside/links/pdf/ Research and Training.pg.

86.

Retrieved framework/english/nf2005.pdf 16 Ministry of Law and Justice.

2009.
2009.

The right of children to free and compulsory education Act, 2009.

Government of India.

Retrieved from mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/ rte.pdf Press Information Bureau, Government of India, Retrieved from: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/ PrintRelease.aspx?relid=118660 18 14 Index for Inclusive Schools The relevant provisions related to inclusive education in the rpwd act (2016) are given below: THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES ACT, 2016 CHAPTER I PRELIMINARY Section 2.
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— (m) “inclusive education” means a system of education wherein students with and without disability learn together, and the system of teaching and learning is suitably adapted to meet the learning needs of different types of students with disabilities; (r) “Person with benchmark disability” means a person with not less than forty per cent of a specified disability where specified disability has not been defined in measurable terms, and includes a person with disability where the specified disability has been defined in measurable terms, as certified by the certifying authority; “person with disability” means a person with long term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which, in interaction with barriers, hinders her/his full and effective participation in society equally with others; (s) “Universal design” means the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialised design, and applies to assistive devices including advanced technologies for particular group of persons with disabilities.
CHAPTER II RIGHTS AND ENTITLEMENTS Section 3.

(3) No person with disability shall be discriminated on the ground of disability, unless it is shown that the impugned act or omission is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

CHAPTER III EDUCATION Section 16.
The appropriate Government and the local authorities shall endeavour that all educational institutions funded or recognised by them provide inclusive education to children with disabilities and towards that end shall — (i) admit them without discrimination and provide education and opportunities for sports and recreation activities equally with others; (ii) make building, campus and various facilities accessible; (iii) provide reasonable accommodation according to the individual’s requirements; (iv) provide necessary support, individualised or otherwise, in environments that maximise academic and social development, consistent with the goal of full inclusion; 15 The Background (v) ensure that education to persons who are blind or deaf or both is imparted in the most appropriate languages, and modes and means of communication; (vi) detect specific learning disabilities in children at the earliest and take suitable pedagogical and other measures to overcome them; (vii) monitor participation, progress in terms of attainment levels and completion of education in respect of every student with disability; (viii) provide transportation facilities to children with disabilities and also the attendants of children with disabilities having high support needs.
Section 17.
The appropriate Government and local authorities shall take the following measures for the purpose of Section 16, namely:— a) to conduct survey of school going children in every five years for identifying children with disabilities, ascertaining their special needs and the extent to which these are being met: provided that the first survey shall be conducted within a period of two years from the date of commencement of this Act; b) to establish adequate number of teacher training institutions; c) to train and employ teachers, including teachers with disability who are qualified in sign language and Braille, and also teachers who are trained in teaching children with intellectual disability; d) to train professionals and staff to support inclusive education at all levels of school education; e) to establish adequate number of resource centres to support educational institutions at all levels of school education; f) to promote the use of appropriate augmentative and alternative modes including means and formats of communication, Braille and sign language to supplement the use of one’s own speech to fulfill the daily communication needs of persons with speech, communication or language disabilities and enable them to participate and contribute to their community and society; g) to provide books, other learning materials and appropriate assistive devices to students with benchmark disabilities, free of cost up to the age of eighteen years; h) to provide scholarships in appropriate cases to students with benchmark disability; 16 Index for Inclusive Schools i) to make suitable modifications in the curriculum and examination system to meet the needs of students with disabilities such as extra time for completion of examination paper, facility of scribe or amanuensis, exemption from second and third language courses; j) to promote research to improve learning; and, k) any other measures, as may be required.
Section 18.

The appropriate Government and local authorities shall take measures to promote, protect and ensure participation of persons with disabilities in adult education and continuing education programmes, equally with others.
CHAPTER VI SPECIAL PROVISIONS FOR PERSONS WITH BENCHMARK DISABIILITES (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, every child with benchmark disability, between the ages of six to eighteen years, shall have the right to free education in a neighbourhood school, or in a special school, of his/her choice.
(2) The appropriate Government and local authorities shall ensure that every child with benchmark disability has access to free education in an appropriate environment till s/he attains the age of eighteen years.

Source: Ministry of Law and Justice.

2016.

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.

Government of India.


Retrieved from www.disabilityaffairs.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/ RPWD%20ACT%202016.pdf Finally, the SSA and the RMSA19, the two major programmes of the Government of India dealing with education for all, have been merged under a comprehensive scheme called the samagra shIKsha (Ministry of Human Resource Development, 2018).
The major guiding principles of Samagra Shiksha (SS)20, an Integrated Scheme for School Education, Framework of Implementation are21 – 17 19 Rashtriya Madhyamic Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) that incorporated in the year 2013, the scheme Inclusive Education for disabled at secondary school (IEDSS) launched in 2009 by Government of India.

20 Ministry of Human Resource Development (2018) Samagra Shiksha.
Retrieved from: http://samagra.mhrd.gov.in/docs/Framework_IISE%20_F.pdf The details of the target groups, objectives and other details are available from the website.
21 The Background GUIDING PRINCIPLES Access Moral compulsion Centrality of teacher Samagra Shiksha Gender concern Holistic view of education Equity SAMAGRA SHIKSHA ABHIYAN: FRAMEWORK FOR IMPLEMENTATION 4: Inclusion of Children with Special Needs in Education The Integrated Scheme on School Education aims to look at education of all children, including Children with Special Needs (CwSN), in a continuum from pre nursery to Class XII.
The scheme will cover all children with special needs with one or more disabilities as mentioned in the schedule of disabilities of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016 studying in Government, Government-aided and local body schools.

The Scheme will include assistance for two kinds of components: Student oriented components: 18 (i) Identification and assessment of children with disabilities; (ii) Provision of aids and appliances, medical services, diagnostic services etc.
; (iii) Access to and development of teaching learning material as per requirement etc.

; (iv) Provision of facilities like transport/escort facilities, hostel facilities, scholarship, assistive devices, support staff (readers, amanuensis) etc.

; (v) Provision of large print text book, Braille books and uniform allowances; Index for Inclusive Schools (vi) Stipend for girl students @ Rs.
200 per month for 10 months to encourage their participation in the school system; (vii) The use of ICT to increase access to a vast amount of information not otherwise available; (viii) Awareness and motivation camps.

Resource support: For providing resource support to CwSN, the existing human resources appointed under SSA and RMSA will be rationalized and the remaining vacancies to be filled through fresh appointment as per the norms provided at Annexure III.
All educators should be registered with Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI).

These educators should mandatorily be available for all CwSN including children with high support needs.

The educators may be posted at the block or cluster level or as per the requirement and can operate in an itinerant mode, covering a group of schools where children with special needs are enrolled.
KEY AREAS OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION Education of teachers and other stakeholders C u a c c r r i c s s e c c l A a i c o S N S W o C t Key Areas e s u l s a r 19 g s y n e r g y w it h s p e cia l s c h u il d i n o l s o B R e s D e v e a el r c o p h & m e n t The Background While the Right to Education Act promised special focus on admissions and retention of CWD, the situation has not seen major improvements.
An NCERT study found that disabled children in schools across states still face serious infrastructure and pedagogy handicaps.

These challenges include absence of ramps and disabled friendly toilets as well as special teaching materials and sensitized teachers.

It must be ensured that schools have at least one section of each class accessible under Universal Design Guidelines.

Additionally, a module on sensitization should be made mandatory in teacher training courses.

Source: NITI Aayog.

2017.


Three Year Action Agenda 2017-18 to 2019-20.

Government of India.

Retrieved from niti.gov.in/ writereaddata/files/coop/IndiaActionPlan.pdf Social attitudes… may be the greatest barrier to participation and Equality….

– World Programme of Action, 1982 20 International Developments Internationally, inclusion and its strategies originated from several key international declarations which also impacted the education scene in India.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) endowed everybody in the world with the right to education.

Under Article 26(1), it was stated: “Everyone has the right to education.

Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages.

Elementary education shall be compulsory.” In Article 28 (Right to Education)22 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), it was stated that: “All children have the right to a primary education, which should be free.
Wealthy countries should help poorer countries achieve this right.

Discipline in schools should respect children’s dignity.

For children to benefit from education, schools must be run in an orderly way – without the use of violence.

Any form of school discipline should take into account the child’s human dignity.

Therefore, governments must ensure that school administrators review their discipline policies and eliminate any discipline practices involving physical or mental violence, abuse or neglect.
The Convention places a high value on education.

Young people should be encouraged to reach the highest level of education of which they are capable.” The above proclamation included CWD through Article 23 of the Convention.

The UN Standard Rules (1993) moved from the medical model of disability towards the social model of disability in its Rule 6 on education and stated23: 22 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (1989).
Retrieved from: https://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf 23 UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (1993).
Retrieved from: https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/standard-rules-on-the- equalization-of-opportunities-for-persons-with-disabilities.html Index for Inclusive Schools “Education for persons with disabilities should form an integral part of national educational planning, curriculum development and school organization.” The 1990, Jomtien World Declaration on Education for All (EFA)24 followed by the Dakar World Education Forum: 2000, were the most in-depth evaluations of basic education ever undertaken on a global scale.
India was a signatory to both these important international developments that considered inclusive education to be one of the key strategies for enabling all children to experience dignity and the confidence to learn and achieve success in school.

The Jomtien World Declaration included the Article III on Universalizing access and promoting equity.
Following this, the Dakar Framework for Action25 specified the following goal for achievement of Education for All: “Ensuring that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life-skills programmes;” Stemming from the messages of the Jomtien World Declaration on Education for All (1990), the Salamanca Statement and Framework of Action was adopted by the World Conference on Special Needs Education, in Salamanca, Spain in 1994.
It was attended by representatives of 92 government and 25 international organisations.

The major approach reiterated in the Conference was inclusive education.

Following this, the Millennium Declaration26 was adopted by 189 nations and signed by 147 heads of States and governments in September 2000.

The targets to be achieved were the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Goal 2 of the MDGs was related to achieving universal primary education.
The Millennium Development Goals Report 201527 indicated that primary school net enrolment rate in the developing regions has reached an estimated 91 per cent in 2015, up from 83 per cent in 2000.

Later, the Biwako Millenium Framework for Action (2002)28 outlined issues, action plans and strategies towards achieving an inclusive, 24 World Declaration on Education for All, Jomtien, Thailand (1990).
Retrieved from: https://bice.org/app/uploads/2014/10/unesco_world_declaration_on_education_for_all_jomtien_ thailand.pdf.

The Dakar Framework for Action (2000).

Retrieved from: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001211/121147e.pdf 25 21 26 UN Millennium Declaration ( 2000) Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/millennium/declaration/ares552e.htm 27 UN The Millennium Development Goals Report (2015).
Retrieved from: 28 http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2015_MDG_Report/pdf/MDG%202015%20rev%20(July%20 1).pdf Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (2002).

Towards achieving an inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based society for persons with disabilities in Asia and Pacific.

Retrieved from: http://undocs.org/E/ESCAP/APDDP/4/REV.1 The Background barrier-free and rights-based society for persons with disabilities.
To achieve this goal, one of the priority areas specified was early intervention and education.

Finally, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities29, ratified in 2007 by India, ensures under Article 24 that CWD are not excluded from free and compulsory primary education or from secondary education, on the basis of disability.
As we see, the philosophy of inclusion and its conceptualization went through a number of changes internationally, although in India it was still considered from the perspective of inclusion of CWD in regular education.

Some of the key international declarations that also impacted the scene in India are given below.
The Sustainable Development Goals Goal SDG 4.1 “By 2030, ensure that all boys and girls complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.” SDG 4.5 “By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations.” Source: Sustainable Development Goals.
Goal 4: Quality Education.

Retrieved from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/education/ Overall, the national and international declarations, resolutions, policies have regularly given emphasis to including all children in education.

In spite of this, all over the world, many children, especially those belonging to the vulnerable sections of society, are tragically still deprived of their basic right to education.

22 29 Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Optional Protocol.
Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/disabilities/documents/convention/convoptprot-e.pdf Index for Inclusive Schools DECLARATIONS 2015 | Education 2030: Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action Inclusion and equity in and through education is the cornerstone of a transformative education agenda, and we therefore commit to addressing all forms of exclusion and marginalization, disparities and inequalities in access, participation and learning outcomes.30 2014 | Global Education for All The Muscat Agreement ◘ We affirm that the post-2015 education agenda should be − rights-based and reflect a perspective based on equity and inclusion, must support free and compulsory basic education; should expand the vision of access for all to reflect relevant learning outcomes through the provision of quality education at all levels, from early childhood to higher education, in safe and healthy environments; should take a holistic and lifelong learning approach.32 − − 2003 | Diversity, Inclusion and Equity (OECD) Education Policy Analysis Equity And Inclusion: Meeting the educational needs of students is part of the development of equitable provision in an inclusive society where individual rights are recognized and protected.34 2015 | Transforming our World.
2030 | Agenda for Sustainable Development Goal 4 aims to - “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.31” 2009 | Policy Guidelines on Inclusion in Education UNESCO Inclusive education is a process of strengthening the capacity of the education system to reach out to all learners and can thus be understood as a key strategy to achieve EFA.
As an overall principle, it should guide all education policies and practices, starting from the fact that education is a basic human right and the foundation for a more just and equal society.

33 23 30 31 32 33 Education 2030.

Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action for the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 4.

2015.

Pg 7 Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002456/245656e.pdf Transforming our World.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

2015.

United Nations.


Pg 17.

Retrieved from http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E Global Education for All Meeting.

The Muscat Agreement.

2014.

UNESCO.

Pg 2.

Retrieved from unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002281/228122E.pdf Policy Guidelines on Inclusion in Education.

2009.

UNESCO.

Pg 8.

Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0017/001778/177849e.pdf 34 Diversity, Inclusion and Equity.

Insights from Special Needs Provision.

2003.

Education Policy Analysis.


OECD.

Pg 11.

Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/education/school/26527517.pdf The Background NOTES 24 Index for Inclusive Schools Schools for All Ensuring equity and inclusion at all levels of school education The Right to Education (RTE) Act (2009), which makes elementary education a fundamental rIght of every chIld, is of great significance to government as well as private schools.
Our schools and classrooms need to reflect this social, constitutional and legal right of every child to be included in the educational processes and practices; our classrooms need to be ready to include students from different backgrounds, with differing needs and abilities35 (Julka, 2014).
The Samagra Shiksha Programme, as mentioned in the earlier section, is designed for school education extending from Pre-school to Class 12, with the broader goal of improving school effectiveness measured in terms of equal opportunities for schooling and equitable learning outcomes.

The NCF, 2005 clearly identified values and principles that shift our thinking towards an education system that is child centered, and values and celebrates diversity.
School administrators and teachers should realise that when boys and girls from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, and with different levels of ability, study together, the classroom ethos (culture) is enriched and becomes more interesting and inspiring.

For establishing schools for all, policy makers, administrators and school headmasters/principals across the country need to collaborate with community members, parents and teachers on how to achieve an inclusive learning environment.
Teachers also need to work together to reduce existing barriers to participation and learning so that each and every student in the school is welcomed, has a sense of belonging, and is a successful learner.

Who puts the policy of inclusive education into practice?

We know that shifting our schools from present practices to more inclusive practices requires the collective efforts of several key stakeholders.
Educational administrators, policy makers and teachers are the main motivational forces who play a unique role in helping students and parents to think and act more inclusively.

To be successful in bringing changes in school and classroom practices, they need to assemble the necessary resources and people.

EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATORS Who are Educational Administrators?
In this document, under these terms we consider all Headmasters/Principals, Cluster/ Block/ District/ State level Coordinators of Samagra Shiksha, members of School Management Committees (SMCs), other State level Officers involved in planning and managing inclusive education, and policy makers.

We know that Educational Administrators are the best people to organize and administer schools for diverse students.

Although all the important education documents such as the NPE 1986, 35 Julka, A.

(2014).
(2014).

Including Children with Special Needs: Primary Stage: NCERT, New Delhi.

27 Schools For All NCF 2005, RTE 2009 and the recent RPWD Act 2016, talk about Equality and Justice, and administrators realize the values that need to be practiced, reality on the ground is quite different.

Acceptance of the ideal of equality is not observed in the realities of control and stratification that exist at ground level.

What is the Critical Role of Educational Administrators in Creating Inclusive Schools?
Schools are now the focus of an increasing number of programmes aimed at enhancing quality of education and spreading awareness about societal concerns such as the environment, health, safety, cleanliness and so on.

Educational administrators play an important role in promoting and sustaining change in schools.

They can guide all members of the school community so that school practices are compatible with the philosophy of inclusion.
They help in creating school environments where all students are welcome, respected, are learning and participating.

They need to provide both academic and non-academic leadership to schools; however, their academic role is yet to be adequately realized in the country.

Understanding their leadership role for inclusion would help parents, teachers and community members to collaborate better with not only the school but also with the administrators in particular.
Their role also includes identifying supports for addressing diverse needs in schools, articulating, training and supervision, organizing physical resources, mapping of school participation and allocating financial resources.

At present, they are seen largely as the administrative authority within the school, though they lack the necessary control to exercise this authority, or even to ensure regular school functioning.
Often, they are equipped with neither the capacity nor the authority to exercise choices and judgment relating to the school curriculum36.

28 Source: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/qualities-of-great-school-leader-elena-aguilar Index for Inclusive Schools headmasters, Unfortunately, educational administrators, especially often overwhelmed by the numerous programmes they are called upon to conduct and participate in.

As a result, they lack time for bringing in desired changes in the schools.
are For developing effective education for diverse learners, the administrators need to assume a number of leadership tasks.

Some such tasks are: Differences hold great opportunities for learning.

Differences offer a free, abundant and renewable resource.

I would like to see our compulsion for eliminating differences replaced by an equally compelling focus on making use of these differences to improve schools.

Source: Barth, R. (1990).

A personal vision of a good school.


Phi Delta Kappan, Pg71, 512-521.

Understanding the Philosophy of Inclusion and Setting a Vision In the existing school environment, there would be a broad spectrum of learning needs that have to be met by providing appropriate responses.

Inclusive education is not simply a change of terminology from integrated education.

It is a movement, a process that addresses and responds to the diverse needs of learners.
It involves changes and modifications in content, approaches, structures and strategies, with a common vision, which covers all children of the appropriate age range, and a conviction that it is the responsibility of the regular system to educate all children (UNESCO, 1994)37.

29 36 NCERT (2005), National Curriculum Framework.

New Delhi: National Council of Educational Research and Training.
Pg 105 Schools For All Parents of maximum students are daily wage workers so they do not have any time to come to school and are not concerned about their child’s learning.

The school and its teachers are the only hope for these students’ learning progress Hence, it becomes important that all those who are responsible for implementing inclusive education, and even students who receive it, understand individual differences and the resulting culture within classrooms.
Administrators need to build their vision around such inclusive culture.

It is significant that decisions made and initiatives undertaken should reflect the school’s commitment to inclusion.

No decision, structure or practice should exclude some children and be relevant for the majority group (so called normal children).
There may be instances where knowledge emerging from values, attitudes, opinions and/or ideas of the dominant social group lead to the exclusion of some who may be perceived as outsiders and not belonging to the school.

Administrators and teachers should strive together to support each other in achieving the vision of enhancing inclusion.

For this to happen, both administrators and teachers themselves need to have a sound belief that all children can learn together in the classrooms.
– Principal of a School INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN A RURAL SCHOOL OF BHOPAL “A child is never 0; so I encourage all the teachers to never mark a child 0, instead help them understand where they went wrong and give minimum marks for encouragement.”- Headmaster in a Bhopal School Primary School Teachers of a rural district in Bhopal are a perfect example of how effective and inclusive teaching practices can be adopted even with limited resources.
A school with just three rooms and one courtyard, it caters to the educational needs of almost every primary age student in their Ward.

Teachers are highly enthusiastic and motivated to include all children in the classrooms.

The Headmaster, along with the other teachers, regularly visits the Ward to conduct survey on out of school children and encourage parents to send them to school.
The school has enrolled students with disabilities and despite having no professional training in special education, the regular teachers use various methods to include them in the classroom and in education.

They encourage practices such as peer learning/tutoring, and allot seats in the front to students with learning difficulties.
As expressed by one teacher - “Children with special needs learn a lot when made to sit with other children as they try to imitate them and also get encouraged to participate in various activities like dancing, singing etc.”- 37 UNESCO (1994) The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education.

Salamanca, Spain.
Salamanca, Spain.

Retrieved from: http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/SALAMA_E.PDF 30 Index for Inclusive Schools If a child has learning difficulty and is not able to excel academically, they encourage the child to develop creative talents such as singing, dancing, painting and acting etc., and also grade them on such activities.

Since they do not have projectors or big LCDs, they use mobile phones to explain stories and concepts to the students.
The Headmaster also mentioned how she believes in the idea that no kid is ZERO, each child has his/her own potential and they should be marked on the basis of individual progress, and not in comparison with others.

Planning The importance of school-level planning was emphasized by the Kothari Commission (1964) when it pointed to the need for each school to prepare an ‘institutional plan’ and evolve a ‘development programme spread over a period of time’.
The SMC is a local body comprising of guardians/ parents, teachers and headmasters.

Its constitution is based on the belief that if local bodies are empowered, much improvement could be seen in the schools, both in academic and non-academic areas.

The RTE Act stipulates that SMCs should: ◘ Monitor the working of school (Mid Day Meal provision, toilet facilities, teacher attendance, etc.
); ◘ ◘ Monitor the utilisation of grants received from the appropriate government, local authority or any other source; Prepare and recommend the annual and 3-year School Development Plan (SDP), which addresses infrastructure, academic achievement etc.

These plans should collectively feed into creating an Annual Work Plan (AWP) for every district, and subsequently every state.

Source: Policy Brief: School Management Committees: Successes, Challenges and Opportunities (2014).
Retrieved from: http://www.centralsquarefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Report-Policy-Brief- School-Management-Committees.pdf Planning at the school level involves a number of parameters such as physical resources of the school, strategies to address and remove physical barriers, identifying the inputs and academic support needed to respond to diverse needs of students, mapping of school participation(non-enrolled children, attendance patterns, CWD etc.
), identification of human resources, financial allocations permitting greater flexibility regarding schemes and norms, and greater transparency and accountability of budget allocations and expenditure.

There may however be other challenges that could vary from school to school and from one context to another.

31 Schools For All We, as school principals, do not have any hold/authority over designing the curriculum individually, so cannot modify it completely to suit each student.
There should be a limit for CWD to be adjusted with regular students in the class.

– A Principal According to NCF, 2005 there is a need to prepare the system to engage in more extensive and genuine planning from below or from the grassroots.

Only then can ‘autonomy (independence)’ and ‘choices’ of school functionaries including teachers, as well as responsibility of the school towards the needs of children, become meaningful.
A broad framework for planning upwards, beginning with schools, identifying focus areas and later consolidating the components at the cluster and block levels,can create a genuinely decentralized district level plan.

Setting targets, planning for and being responsible for them, would then become feasible at all the levels.
“Since the number of regular teachers is very less, in times when even one of us takes leave, we have to gather all children in the ground and teach them together.” – Teacher 32 Index for Inclusive Schools TEACHERS Teachers are the core human resource for implementation of inclusive education.

They need to be equipped with a set of pedagogical practices to help them to include all children in the teaching and learning processes.
Their knowledge, competencies and attitudes are positively correlated with students’ learning outcomes.

They select different teaching approaches to teach learners with diverse needs, and their selection of a particular teaching strategy is determined by the learning material they use, learners in the class, and their own ability to manage the process.

Promoting inclusion of all in the teaching learning process may require the teacher to analyze strategies to best promote inclusion.
For example, collaborative teaching is seen as an important prerequisite for inclusion to take place (Boyle et al., 201238; Loreman, Deppeler and Harvey, 200539; Walsh, 201240).

How can Teachers develop Knowledge and Skills?

Changing values and attitudes is difficult since it challenges long held beliefs and stereotypes.
Such change is most successful when led by highly insightful leaders, in this case the school principals, who are able to nurture and challenge, while maintaining connections with the teachers and community members.

In the absence of adequate training, it is unrealistic and unfair to expect that a teacher would creatively and productively teach all students with diverse needs in the classroom.
Pre- service and In-service training is important, not only for professional growth of the teachers, but it also plays a significant role in bringing about changes in school related practices.

Is Collaboration Necessary?

Collaboration in terms of teaming with families, students, members of local bodies, health workers, NGOs, special teachers and other community members is necessary for successful inclusion.

The NCF, 2005 highlights role of the community in influencing the curricular process in schools.
It says: “Parents and community members could come into the school as resource persons to share their knowledge and experiences in relation to the particular topic being studied.” Parents also have in-depth knowledge of their child’s personality, strengths and needs, and can contribute to a great extent to their inclusion in education.

As primary stakeholders, parents should be included throughout the planning and implementation of various policies and practices.
The knowledge they can bring to the planning 38 39 Boyle, C., Topping, K., Jindal-Snape, D. & Norwich, B.

(2012).

The importance of peer- support for teaching staff when including children with special educational needs.

School Psychology International, 33(2):167–184.

Loreman, T., Deppeler, J.

& Harvey, D. (2005).

Inclusive education: A practical guide to supporting diversity in the classroom.

London: Routledge Falmer 40 Walsh, J.M.

(2012).


Co-teaching as a school system strategy for continuous improvement.

Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 56(1):29– 33 Schools For All 34 table is invaluable, and their concerns and suggestions for their child need to be appreciated.

It is important that communication with parents be open and honest, and the cultural patterns and beliefs of the family be respected.
In order to make the school environment supportive of children, and to strengthen the relationship of the schools with parents and the local community, there are institutional structures such as parent-teachers associations, local level committees like village education committees and the SMCs, etc.

Community involvement can help in maintaining school infrastructure and facilities.
There are examples of local contributions from community members for building school boundary walls, toilets, arranging proper water supply and so on.

However, community participation must not result in economic burdening of poor families.

‘Schools for all’ does not mean that every teacher has the expertise to meet the educational needs of every student.
Since teachers in the school have varied experiences and skills, they also must be given opportunities to interact with each other to develop new skills and to solve various problems that they may face.

This is an essential condition for any inclusive school.
Index for Inclusive Schools “We try to collaborate with NGOs, private organizations who help the school in gaining access to resources like computer lab instruments and equipments, books for the library, assistive devices like wheelchairs, walkers etc.

and also LCDs for digital classrooms.

We also collaborate with government hospitals that provide free health check-ups and set up medical camps for students in schools.
This reduces the burden on parents of medical costs which they cannot afford.” District IED Coordinator “We collaborate with each other as teachers; instead of giving two assignments for separate subjects (Math and Science), we prepare homework that combines both the subjects and reduces the burden on students”.

– Teachers in a School in Chandigarh A Government School situated in a city in North India admits children from diverse backgrounds, including children with special needs.
The primary school teachers of the school appeared to be dedicated and hard working.

Two primary teachers of this school have worked out an innovative collaborative strategy to reduce the burden on children.

One of them teaches Maths and the other teaches Environmental Sciences.

They meet every day after school hours briefly and collaborate on ways to combine their subject matter in order to make a single homework for both subjects.
They explain that it helps children in connecting and relating topics and subjects, to have better understanding, and also reduces not just the teacher’s workload but also the stress that students undergo when they are overloaded with homework.

They also believe that it helps the student in refining critical and innovative thinking skills, and learn subjects holistically.

The teachers also give team work activities as part of holiday projects to develop leadership skills among students.
They also gave examples of using concrete experiences for understanding Maths for example, through movement of the door, the Math teacher explains the topic of angles and degrees.

35 Schools For All How can Positive Attitudes make a difference?

In our classrooms, sometimes there may be children considered to be inferior to others, especially when they belong to a particular caste group, gender or have a disability.
Teachers may not have high expectations from them or may even discourage their participation in academic tasks or other activities in the class.

They may repeatedly make them perform menial tasks in the classroom such as cleaning/ sweeping floor, filling water etc.

Teachers and headmasters themselves have to serve as role models for children in the class.

They need to be firmly convinced about the benefits of including children from diverse backgrounds and abilities in the classroom.
Though inclusive education is mandated through legislative frameworks, it can never succeed till this happens.

They influence the child’s view of the world and also his/her reactions to it.

If the teachers and headmasters celebrate and value diversity, children in their classes will also do so.

In some cultures like ours, CWD are considered to be paying for their sins they committed in the last birth.
They may be considered as carriers of bad luck and Caution against use of Labels : DO NOT LABEL 36 Although labels may be necessary as a first step in availing services, in the long run, these convey an impression that these children are somewhat different from others (not like us).

Labels may also lead to stigmatization and isolation, both socially and educationally.

Teachers, headmasters and parents of other children may start noticing the difference between such a child and his/her peers.
This may result in low expectations and low self esteem for the child.

Index for Inclusive Schools pushed out of school due to beliefs, and the negligence of teachers and headmasters.

Negative attitude of school teachers and headmasters is also reflected in the language they may sometimes use to address such children.

Even if teachers are caring and want to have CWD in the class, they may still not believe that these children have the capacity to learn and achieve.
They may feel that special schools are the best places for such children.

It is also true that in many schools, teachers and the headmasters do not consider some children to be belonging to their school and do not feel obliged to teach them.

They make children belonging to a particular group to sit together and this results in excluding them from the teaching learning process.
“Whenever a student is absent for more than 3 days, we contact the parents and also ask around in the neighborhood, and if there is no response within 7 days, then we inform the principal to take appropriate action”.

– Teacher (an example of positive attitude) “I do not have time to pay individual time to a child in my class who has attention problems.

He learns slowly and can never match up with other children, what high expectations can I even have from him?
He won’t be able to learn like other normal children!”– Teacher (An Example of Negative Attitude) 37 Schools For All What is the Significance of Curriculum?

While we begin to comprehend and incorporate some of the understandings needed for inclusive education, it is important to realize the significance of curriculum in classroom practices.

Creating an inclusive culture in the classroom will involve attending to the curriculum that includes the components of a course of study.
These consist of the syllabus, textbooks and the needed teaching learning materials, teaching strategies/processes, and assessment and evaluation processes.

In discussing LOW COST TEACHING LEARNING MATERIAL “I take my students out of the classroom to teach concepts in Maths for example, while teaching addition and subtraction I take the students out to a Kirana shop and make them act as shopkeepers and interact with real-time customers.
This helps them in learning the concept better by applying in real life.”– Teacher in Jhansi School One of the Primary School Teachers of Jhansi Government School elaborated on the importance of using local and natural resources as low cost and easy Teaching-Learning Material.

He narrated how he utilizes resources available in the surrounding to teach concepts in Maths.
38 For example, he takes the children out of the classroom and asks them to collect a particular number of twigs or stones, and makes them learn counting through the process.

Another interesting activity he innovated to make children learn subtraction and addition was to take them to a local Kirana shop and ask them to act as shopkeepers and deal with real-time customers, and take charge of transaction of money.

He elaborated how this helped children to apply concepts learnt in classroom into real life.
He said that in order to engage the children, he himself first learnt how to be creative and innovative, which is important because he believed that teaching is also a learning process for the teacher.

Index for Inclusive Schools efforts in curricular development and reform, NCF 2005 points to the significance of making curriculum “an inclusive and meaningful experience for children”.

It states that “this requires a fundamental change in how we think of learners and the process of learning” (p. 13).
Attending to the curriculum to define classroom culture and approach to the teaching-learning processes is thus significant for fostering inclusivity in the work with students.

Why is Supporting Inclusion important?

For creating schools for all, supporting material, equipment, services and human resources are essential.
From seating arrangements, curricular adaptations and modifications, teaching learning materials to specialized equipment such as computers and software, standing board, Braillers, Taylor frames, augmentative communication devices, modified key boards etc., are all important.

In addition, children may need peer support, support of special teachers who may come daily for one to one support or periodically for group support.
Services such as speech-language therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, orientation and mobility instruction, counseling and health checkups etc.

need to be provisioned for those who may require them.

“Clerical work should be reduced from our schedule as it eats up on teaching time, and also does not allow us to interact with students and give them individual attention.

The responsibility of cluster level and school level meetings and surveys should not fall on the teachers”.
- Teachers Understanding Terms and Terminology Several terms and phrases related to inclusive education create confusion and even misunderstanding in the minds of teachers.

This section clarifies some terms you are likely to come across in your work of creating inclusive classrooms and even while using the index.

Action Research It is the research conducted by teachers to reflect and improve upon their own actions.

It may be taken up to solve an immediate problem a teacher is facing.
It generally ends up in making teachers more effective and contributes to development of the students.

39 Adaptation Adaptation refers to adjusting assessments, material, curriculum or classroom environment, to accommodate a student’s needs so he / she can participate in, and achieve the teaching learning goals.
Schools For All Some examples include: ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ use of audio tapes, electronic texts where available, having peer/classmate to assist with class activities, or simply re-organizing seating of a child who may be unable to be attentive, easily distracted, or distracting others in the classroom; alternatives to written assignments to demonstrate knowledge and understanding (e.g., through oral presentations, drawing or other artistic presentations); extended time to complete assignments or tests; computer software which provides text to speech/speech to text capabilities, when available; provide for multiple experiences with materials to allow for different learning styles or needs, also to help reinforce learning (for example, learning how plants grow in multiple ways -through class textbooks, through hands-on experience by growing one in the class, preparing observation record of its growth, and through group or whole class discussion about the on-going learning).
40 Assessment This involves gathering information to understand student-performance and/or classroom functioning, and is thus an interactive process.

Assessments are formative and diagnostic in nature; that is, they provide information about students’ areas of strength and help recognize the teaching-learning aspects that require attention or improvement.

Index for Inclusive Schools Bullying Children may be aggressive and abusive towards some children, especially the vulnerable ones like CWD.
Bullying may involve teasing, physically threatening or even deliberately excluding a particular child from a group.

This behavior may be repeated, leaving lasting effects on the child being bullied.

The child who is the victim may even drop out of school or may feel depressed.

Child-Centered Pedagogy Child-centered pedagogy means giving primacy to children’s experiences, their voices, and their active participation.
This kind of pedagogy requires us to plan the learning in keeping with children’s psychological development and interests (NCF 200541).

Learning programmes therefore must respond to physical, cultural and social preferences within the wide diversity of characteristics and needs.

Cooperative Learning Our classes are generally crowded, with high teacher-pupil ratios.

Classes can be structured around small groups in such a manner that each student’s success in the group is dependent on the group’s success.
Having students sit together and talk to each other while each one is doing individual assignments is not cooperative learning.

41 41 National Council of Education Research and Training.

2005.

National Curriculum Framework.

Pg 13.


Retrieved from: www.ncert.nic.in/rightside/links/pdf/framework/english/nf2005.pdf Schools For All Differentiated Curriculum Classroom is a place where students with different physical, cultural and social preferences study together and exhibit a wide diversity of characteristics and needs.

Differentiation of curriculum means planning and providing learning experiences that meet the diverse learning needs of all students in the class.
This involves using teaching strategies that are flexible and diverse that not only support students in understanding but also challenge their potential.

Four major aspects of a differentiated curriculum are the content, teaching strategies, learning environment and assessment.

Evaluation This involves making a value judgment on a performance by grading/marking.

Evaluation is summative in nature.


Integration Referring to education of students with disabilities, integration means providing education to CWD in regular classrooms.

In integrating a CWD in the regular classroom, focus is on having the child adapt/adjust to the regular classroom, and not on adjusting the classroom for meeting the special needs of the child.

Labeling Many a time, students may be labeled in class as slow learners, lazy, deaf and dumb etc.
While many policy requirements make labeling, especially based on categories of disabilities, a necessity for funding and for identifying the learning needs of such students to design teaching-learning and assessment strategies, it may do more harm than good for the student.

Labeling not only shapes teachers’ expectations, but labels also indicate that the problem is with the student and not with the teaching learning process.
It is also true that diagnosis based on different evaluation instruments may be faulty since different states use different criteria to identify and in diagnosis.

Learning Outcomes Learning outcomes have been developed class-wise for all subjects to help stakeholders make efforts in the right direction to ensure quality education.
Learning outcomes are process-based which provide check-points that are measurable in qualitative or quantitative manner, to assess the progress of a child as per the expected holistic learning for overall development of a child42.

Modifications Modifications involve making changes to learning goals, teaching processes, assignments and/or assessments, to accommodate a student’s learning needs.

42 NCERT (2017) Learning Outcomes at the Elementary Stage.
Retrieved from: http://mhrd.gov.in/sites/ upload_files/mhrd/files/Learning_outcomes.pdf 42 Index for Inclusive Schools For example: ◘ changing the assignment to accommodate a student’s learning needs: allowing use of letter-cards to spell words as a modification to saying the spelling aloud; allow the student with intellectual impairment to utilize concrete and/or more hands-on experiences, changing the conceptual difficulty level for certain students.
Peer Tutoring A strategy through which students learn with and from each other is called Peer Tutoring.

It is a form of cooperative learning in which the tutor and the student who is being tutored work through assignments and gain a broader and deeper understanding of the concept/material.

Generally, the student who is tutoring can be from the same class or from a higher class.
Portfolios This is the collection of student’s academic and other work that can reveal his / her learning and also can be used as an effective assessment tool.

It can document a learner’s progress through ongoing assessment.

Some teachers may develop portfolios as a short-term project and others can develop more comprehensive portfolios over a full school year.

Scaffolding It is a teaching technique first used by the psychologist Jerome Bruner in the 1960s.
In this method, support is given to the student during the learning process to help him/her achieve the learning goals.

An attempt is made by the teacher to gradually step back and provide support only when needed.

This leads to better and deeper understanding in the students.

Stereotypes, Prejudice, Discrimination Stereotypes are oversimplified generalizations or loose statements about groups of people which may be positive or negative.
Generally, these are negative and do not take individual differences into account.

For example, it is considered by many that disability may be linked with sins in the past or Karma.

Prejudice is considered to be beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and attitudes that a person may hold about a particular group.

These beliefs are just preconceptions and not based on actual experience.

An example of this would be prejudices that a majority group may hold against any minority group.
43 Schools For All Discrimination means taking actions against a group of people.

You may discriminate with or without prejudice.

For example, certain castes are believed to be untouchable and inferior to others and may be given the task of cleaning classrooms etc.

Universal Design of Learning Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a way of thinking or a framework for teaching and learning in inclusive classrooms having children with individual learning differences.
It gives equal opportunities to all students to succeed.

It is based on principles that provide flexible and multiple/diverse means to students to access material, information, knowledge and skills etc.

engage with it and show what they know.

This way all students get equal access to curriculum.

For example, a student may learn better through verbal inputs and another, through visual.
If a teacher uses multiple ways of presenting information using multisensory experiences, all children will be able to acquire knowledge and skills in inclusive classrooms.
CLASSROOM PRACTICES “We also encourage students who are shy to write their opinions or answers on a piece of paper anonymously so that they do not hesitate in saying what is in their mind.” – Teachers Many primary teachers of Chandigarh Government Schools mentioned during the process of data collection for the Index on Inclusive Schools how they discourage students to carry money to classrooms and even tell the parents to stop sending their child with money to the school as it can lead to a feeling of inferiority among other students.
The teachers here try to create an environment of equality in the classroom where one’s economic or social background does not matter.

The teachers also explained how they provide support to students who are shy to speak their mind or answer a question in the classroom.

One of the teachers mentioned how she asks them to write their feelings or answers on a piece of paper anonymously.
This helps in encouraging the child who is shy to express his/her feelings without being scared or intimidated, and in a way also builds confidence in oneself.

They believe that slowly the child starts gaining confidence and eventually participates in classroom discussions.

44 Index for Inclusive Schools The Index Why this Index?
“Rather than being a marginal theme on how some learners can be integrated in mainstream education, inclusive education is an approach that looks into how to transform education systems in order to respond to the diversity of learners.
It aims to enable both teachers and learners to feel comfortable with diversity, and to see it as a challenge and enrichment in the learning environment, rather than a problem.” (UNESCO, 2003, Overcoming Exclusion through Inclusive Approaches in Education: A Challenge & A Vision, Conceptual Paper).

Retrieved from: http://unesco.org.pk/education/icfe/resources/res42.pdfp.
pg.7) This index provides a framework that is based upon an engagement of dialogue between students, families, schools, education administrators, teachers and other related professionals.

It will not only help in understanding the inclusion process through various examples but also highlight what needs to be done and how to do it.
The underlying assumptions of the index are: ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ ◘ It is based on a collection of good ideas generated through research and a series of intense deliberations by eminent scholars, teachers, teacher educators, parents, representatives of NGOs, and several other stakeholders at various levels.

It can be used by policy makers, educational administrators, teachers, teacher educators, parents, and all those who want to contribute in making the present education system more inclusive.
The main focus of the index is on development of learning centres/schools to be more inclusive, especially at the primary level.

It is concerned with including and retaining all children in school.

It elaborates strategies for stakeholders such as educational administrators, teachers and teacher educators, and policy makers.

It is a framework for reflection and not evaluation.

It is a framework that can be adapted and is not prescriptive.
It highlights examples of good practices and does not set ground rules.
Process of Development of Index Following were the steps involved in creating the Index: 46 Index for Inclusive Schools ESTABLISHING INDICATORS FEEDBACK AND REVIEW DESK RESEARCH FINALIZING THE INDICATORS IDENTIFICATION OF STAKEHOLDERS SELECTING DOMAINS FOR THE INDEX Structure of this Index Inclusion is not something new to the Indian context, but it is very much in line with the common school agenda highlighted in the earlier commissions and policies, and recently in the RPWD Act, 2016.
The main issue is to identify existing gaps and address them through quality educational initiatives.

The Index seeks to provide guidelines not only for developing inclusive schools but also to add value by being a self-reflection tool to help schools continue to be more inclusive in their approach.

The Index can also be used as a tool for research in inclusive education.
The Index will help in the implementation of inclusive education which is yet to be implemented successfully in our country in spite of all the good intentions and policy initiatives.

Since the context of our classrooms would always remain dynamic, the Index will always remain dynamic and evolving.

It will be based on the belief that there is always scope for transforming, and every child can progress.

The present document is organized in four maIn sectIons.
The first section is the general IntroductIon that introduces the reader to the concept of inclusion and traces the history of this movement through both Indian and international 47 The Index reforms in the policy of education.

It also briefly throws light on the conceptual frameworks underlying this Index.
Realizing that effective leadership is critical for developing effective inclusive schools, the second section offers suggestIons for educatIonal admInIstrators and will help not only in planning for inclusive education but also in putting all inclusive policies into practice.

This section will also highlight the framework for teachers and teacher educators to implement inclusive pedagogy in the classrooms and also create an environment wherein equity and participation are the guiding principles.
After reading this section, teachers can develop new strategies to improve quality of their teaching.

The third section will not only state the structure and the process of development of the Index but will also indicate who all can use it.

It will also discuss how the index can be used to rate oneself on various indicators and develop a score for him/her or for the school.

Finally, fourth section of the Index creates IndIcators for developIng schools for all.
The indicators would help in overcoming various barriers faced while we create inclusive schools.

The section also suggests organizational changes and ways to develop a school where all teachers and students can flourish and learn.

Each of these sections has reflects the philosophy of inclusion in that specific area.

Under each section, there are broad domains which capture the essential areas that play a crucial role in building inclusive values and the environment of a school.

Who can use this Index?


All stakeholders mentioned above including, administrators, teachers, parents and community members, can use this index to develop themselves and to make schools more and more inclusive.
The Index will not only help in creating an inclusive teaching learning environment in schools but also aid in “extending the scope of ordinary schools so that they can include a greater diversity of children” (Clark et al.,1995)43 “developing a way of dealing with difference” (Forest and Pearpoint, 1992)44.
Specifically, it can be used by the stakeholders mentioned in the diagram on the facing page, amongst others: Although we strongly recommend that different sections of the Index namely, Indicators for teachers, Indicators for educational administrators and Indicators for creating schools for all, should be read and reflected upon by all the stakeholders mentioned above, specific sections in the Index may help specific 43 44 Clark et.al.
(1995), In the Routledge Falmer Reader, in Inclusive Education by Keith Topping, Sheelagh Maloney.

Routledge, 2005 Forest, M & J Pearpoint (1992), “Families, friends, and circles”, in J. Nisbet (ed.

), Natural Supports in School, at Work, and in the Community for People with Severe Disabilities (pp.

65–86).

48 Index for Inclusive Schools COMMUNITY GOVERNMENT AND NON- GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS TEACHERS STAKEHOLDERS IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION PARENTS ADMINISTRATORS STUDENTS groups of people more than others.
For this reason, we suggest that teachers and teacher educators would benefit maximum from indicators for teachers, the school headmasters and principals may find indicators for educational administrators more useful than other sections.

The section on schools for all would help in guiding the coordinators of inclusive education at the State, District and Block levels, along with others who want to understand how to create inclusive schools.
How to use this Index Anyone using the index can rate oneself on these indicators and develop a score for him/her or for the school.

Some of these indicators may overlap and some people using the index may like to go through three areas or concentrate on one area only.
For example, 49 The Index An indicator under the section Educational Administrators reads as: Educational administrators encourage mobilising of resources from the community if there is a need; This can be rated on a scale of 3 2 1 Rating of ‘3’ means that the administrator places himself/herself at an exemplary level of ImplementatIon or development.
Rating of ‘2’ would mean that the administrator rates himself/herself at partIal level of ImplementatIon or development and can Improve hImself/herself In thIs area and finally, Rating of ‘1’ would mean lIttle or no development and lot of work needs to be initiated.

The administrator can calculate the total score and the score achieved by him/her.

Indicators in the Index enable stakeholders to identify opportunities for improvement of inclusive schools through planning and development.
What changed my life?

I always considered a child with disability as the responsibility of a special educator.

But an incident that occurred in my teaching career not only changed my thinking, but also my life.

There were six children admitted into my class, out of which one called Pankaj was profoundly hard of hearing.

One day, while I was teaching, Pankaj kept coming to my desk again and again and wanted to communicate something.
I told him to sit down and not disturb the class but he didn’t stop or probably didn’t understand.

My patience gave way and I slapped him tightly in front of the whole class.

Next day, when I spotted his mother who had come to drop him, I enquired as to what was he trying to tell me.

She responded that it was Pankaj’s birthday and he wanted to invite me to his birthday party.

This incident shook me.

I started questioning and doubting my capability as a teacher.
I tried to rectify my mistake by celebrating Pankaj’s birthday in class which made him very happy.

I also noticed that the children were easily able to communicate with him through signs and he was responding.

This encouraged me to learn sign language and speech therapy for which I worked very hard day and night and even after school hours.

I even went door-door in order to teach children with disabilities facing difficulties in the classroom.
50 Index for Inclusive Schools After three years of constant hard work and practice, today Pankaj can study and communicate easily with others.

He is doing well academically and also in extra-curricular activities.

I believe that if every teacher decides to teach “ALL” children she can do it.

There are ways in which inclusive education can be practiced in classrooms.
Most important is understanding and loving children , and feeling for them, creating TLMs, trying to train oneself in sign language, communicating with parents, making extra efforts after school hours etc.

- Mohammad Intzar, Teacher Government High School, Indira Colony, Manimajra, Chandigarh 51 The Index Some Frequently Asked Questions 1. how many chIldren wIth dIsabIlItIes can be Included In one regular class havIng more than 30 other chIldren?
There is no limit to the number of children that can be included.

In fact, it is the right of all to study in the neighbourhood school.

More children in the class means more support for a CWD.

2. wIth no detentIon polIcy, many chIldren wIth Intellectual dIsabIlIty were Included tIll class vIII.

how can they go ahead and study In class Ix?

Even if the child is not able to achieve academically in higher classes, s/he can participate in many tasks and also be helped by his/her classmates in this process.
The child needs to be involved and may require modifications in curriculum.

A transition plan needs to be developed so that this child can be taught some skills and gain some additional information before s/he leaves school.

This will be much more beneficial than the child sitting at home.

3. wIth very few specIal teachers to support regular teachers, how can InclusIon be a realIty?
Since the number of special teachers is never adequate, it is important for regular teachers to be trained for meeting the needs of all children in the class.

If the teacher welcomes everyone in the class and creates an inclusive culture intentionally, it can help most of the children to learn and achieve.

4. why do we need InclusIve educatIon?

Inclusive Education is good for all children.


Being out of school denies some children the opportunities to make friends, to learn how to read and write, and to learn the skills that are required for future employment.

Inclusive education has a positive effect on both CWD and others.

Also, by creating a culture of acceptance, it can reduce discrimination in the society.

5. why not send chIldren wIth dIsabIlItIes to specIal schools?
Many children with disabilities are still out of school and do not go anywhere to study.

Since a regular school is in the neighbourhood, it will help them to study with the other children in their neighbourhood and be a part of the community.

In this way, families will not break and a culture of welcoming diversities would be created in these schools.

6.

Is mobIlIZIng specIal schools as resource centres a good strategy for movIng towards an InclusIve system?
In the light of not having adequate number of support teachers, it is beneficial to mobilize special schools for resource support.

There is a need to exercise 52 Index for Inclusive Schools caution if we do this because sometimes special teachers who teach in special schools have no belief in inclusion or a commitment to it.

It is important to train these teachers in inclusive practices and this centre should not be used to teach a group of children segregated from others.
These centres should be used to develop and maintain the teaching learning materials, and have human resources that support regular education teachers to increase the participation of all children in the learning process.

7.

Is InclusIve educatIon more expensIve than specIal educatIon?
Inclusive education is not more expensive because instead of providing separate resources and provisions out of the regular system to educate groups of students with particular needs, it is better to strengthen already existing schools.

In countries where there is lack of human and other resources, transferring the resources currently supporting special schools for promoting inclusion in regular schools helps to strengthen the system for all students.
This also helps in creating an inclusive society where all students are welcomed and accepted.

8. what Is not InclusIve educatIon?

Just placing the children together in one class is not inclusive education.

There may be some children requiring special support and not providing them such support may affect their participation in the learning tasks.

Also, having low expectations from some children and not making efforts to improve their learning outcomes is not inclusion.
Finally, a special class for some students in a regular school is also not inclusion and neither is home based education.

9. what Is InclusIve pedagogy?

Inclusive pedagogy is a child centred approach that takes into consideration differences in the background, learning styles, and physical and cognitive abilities of all the learners in the class.

It is a way of teaching through which learning needs of all students are met, and learning outcomes are improved for all and not for a select few.
10. what Is the role of parents In InclusIve educatIon?

One of the several factors that make inclusion successful is the involvement of parents.

Parents are the first teachers of the child and continue to support the child and his/her learning throughout life.

They can influence the system by getting together and making pressure associations.

This way, their impact is multiplied manifold.


As part of SMCs, they can influence a number of factors from building an accessible playground to making provisions for assistive devices for their children.

They can also be a part of voluntary organizations to improve the implementation of inclusive education.
53 The Index NOTES 54 Index for Inclusive Schools INDICATORS 55 The Background IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 S.No POLICY & PRACTICES Educational Administrators Provide leadership, guidance and vision, consistent with inclusive philosophy1; Establish processes to respect equal opportunities, equal rights, equal treatment to all students without discriminating against any student; Understand, value and respect diversity, and create a safe, accepting, collaborative learning environment in the school; Encourage parents to send their children to the school regularly; Admit all children in the school irrespective of abilities, languages, dialects, caste and religion; Provide opportunities to all for sports and recreation (enjoyment) activities including dancing, painting, music etc.
; Remove barriers created by admission procedures (screening, identification, disability certificates, age certificate, parents’ interviews etc.

); Reflect commitment to gender equality and acceptance of gender differences (transgender); Promote use of positive person-first2 language without using labels3 for some students (such as deaf child, dumb, normal, abnormal, andha etc.)
in the classrooms; Value and encourage nurturing of all aspects of personality (such as building team spirit, confidence, self respect); Ensure that students’, family and community perspectives (thinking) are at the heart of the school; 56 1 2 3 The meaning of inclusive philosophy is defined in the Introduction section of the document.

Person first means recognizing the child first and then mentioning the disability.

For instance, instead of talking about autistic child, one can say child with autism.
Defined in the Introduction section.

Index for Inclusive Schools IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 Make sure that school buildings including toilets.
playgrounds, water facility, classrooms, ramps, hostels, transportation and various other facilities are accessible to all children; Crate flexible learning environments by adapting and modifying curriculum according to the individual child’s learning requirements; Identify learning difficulties in children at the earliest and take suitable pedagogical and other measures to overcome them; Monitor participation, attainment of learning outcomes and completion of education with respect to all students; Develop and ensure a system to timely address the discriminatory4 practices in the school; Continuously review school policies, plans and procedures in the light of various developments in the field of education for school improvement; Experiment with the policies of the school to improve teaching and learning of students; Work together with the staff to establish and address priority areas and for solving problems for improving inclusion in their schools; Organize regular meetings with community stakeholders—panchayati raj institutions, school management committees and parents- for making decisions regarding the school and overcoming challenges; Conduct awareness campaigns and sensitisation programmes to ensure that the rights of all children are protected; Provide opportunities and create forums such as bal sabhas, suggestion box etc.
for encouraging the voices of children; Initiate capacity building programmes for parents, members of the community and other stakeholders, on care giving and support for children who require it; 4 Discrimination is explained in the Introduction section.
57 Indicators IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 Take decisions that are generally based on evidence and are participatory; Ensure that all teachers have access to curriculum related materials and the necessary training to make learning possible for all in the classrooms; Make certain that teachers are engaged in teaching and only child related activities & not wasting time on activities such as census and administrative work, election duty etc.
; Promote development of parents’ associations and involve them in planning programmes for better learning of children; Collaborate with multiple sources (District, State and School Management Committee (SMC), local bodies) for appropriately planning and using the budget to maximise learning outcomes for diverse population of children; Encourage creative and realistic scheduling of time and technological resources to meet learning needs of all students; Ensure adequate and appropriate/modified furniture and classroom management/organization for all students; Have written transition procedures and activities to smoothen the process of shifting of students from class to class and school to school, and to post-secondary school years; Enable smooth transition of students from class to class, school to school and to higher classes; Ensure ideal ratio of students and teachers to achieve learning outcomes for all students; Conduct regular surveys of school going children, to determine the extent to which their learning needs are being met; Provide stable, consistent and reliable patterns of activity for all students and avoid sudden changes; 5 Described in the Introduction section.
58 Index for Inclusive Schools IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Are guided by action research5 conducted by the school staff within their school to generate new ideas; Issue transfer certificate as per the need of the child without causing delays; Make provision for special training for children admitted in age appropriate classes, if required; Ensure timely specification of curriculum, syllabus (course of study) and availability of textbooks in accessible formats such as Braille, digital talking books, enlarged text, electronic publications, for better communication opportunities for all etc.
; Admit 25 percent students belonging to weaker and disadvantaged groups in the special category schools and provide free education6; Take care that all children are continuously and meaningfully involved in the educational process; Make sure that all students stay in school during school hours and not leave early or come late or leave in-between school hours; Encourage participation of all students in all activities, both in and outside school (dancing, art classes, outdoor camps and adventure activities); Invite community members to the school/classroom to share knowledge, experience and talents; Recognize and reduce barriers that arise through differences between school and home culture; STAFF DEVELOPMENT Educational Administrators Encourage professional growth of teachers, (at the time of entry and in-service), by supporting the development of their knowledge, skills and attitudes regarding inclusion/diversity; Organize training programmes for staff in the use of technology to support learning; 6 For schools in special category (Kendriya Vidalaya, Navodaya Vidalaya , Sainik Schools etc., schools that are government aided and unaided) 59 Indicators IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 Continuously monitor the effect of teachers’ professional development on students’ learning growth; Promote collaborative cultures amongst teachers to work interdependently for the larger interest of children; Encourage regular teachers to take the primary responsibility of all children; Draw upon differences in culture and background of teachers in curriculum development and teaching; Encourage teachers to develop innovative practices and new teaching-learning materials, as required for inclusive classrooms, and invite experts to train them ; Encourage the use of child centred pedagogy7 for children; Ensure that Special Teachers are also full fledged members of the school and work as co-teachers, team teachers, small group facilitators or one to one support teachers; Organize sensitization programmes to make school staff accepting and empathetic (ability to understand and share the feelings of another) towards special needs of some children; RESOURCES Educational Administrators Ensure resource support towards preventing and addressing difficulties in learning; Support the use of ICT (Information and Communication Technology), assistive technology (such as screen readers, voice to text software, daisy books) in universal design to support the inclusion of all students in the classroom; Ensure availability of sufficient number of books in the school library in accessible formats for all children; Make available teaching-learning and supplementary material in different languages and accessible formats in the school; 7 A phrase used in NCF, 2005.Explained in section on Introduction.
60 Index for Inclusive Schools IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 Encourages development of special skills such as Braille, orientation and mobility skills and sign language, as an important part of the school programme; Make provisions for specialist staff such as speech therapist, occupational therapist, physiotherapist and special educator, for meeting the special needs of children; Provide attendants for children having high support needs; Facilitate provisions of scholarships and sponsorship to children for pursuing their interests and talents; Provide necessary support through human resources and teaching learning materials that maximize academic and social development of children; COLLABORATION Educational Administrators Encourage development of partnerships with special schools, (Non Governmental Organizations) NGOs and governmental organisations to promote participation of all children in school; Take advantage of the wide-reaching effect of the media to promote positive attitudes towards individual differences and to discourage all sorts of stereotypes/ prejudices/discrimination; Take account of the range of family needs such as family’s preferences for meeting time and transportation; Permit parents to sit with the child or in the school, if required; Consult organisations of people with disabilities concerning the design and implementation of school programmes; Mobilize resources from the community, if there is a need; Ensure that all teachers in the classrooms share roles and responsibilities, and there are no obvious distinctions (such as between regular and special teachers); 61 Indicators IndIcators for educatIonal admInIstrators 3 2 1 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 Collaborate with health, social welfare and other departments for providing medical facilities, guiding and counseling, and other services ; SAFETY & HEALTH Educational Administrators Take notice of incidents of abuse, violence, mental harassment, exploitation, and provide support; Take steps to rescue, protect and rehabilitate students who have been subjected to such incidents; Create awareness and make information available among students, teachers, other school staff and community members regarding safety, health and various forms of physical, verbal and emotional abuse and ways of reporting them; Ensure that no one voluntarily injures, damages or interferes with the use of any bodily part or any supporting device of a child with disability; Make certain that no child intentionally insults, teases or humiliates any other child including children with disability; Ensure that there is no practice of physical punishment and harsh discipline; Make sure that children undergo regular health checkups and are referred for further examination if required.
62 Index for Inclusive Schools IndIcators for creatIng a school for all IndIcators for creatIng a school for all 3 2 1 S.No.

1 PHILOSOPHY The School Policy Is based on philosophy of inclusive education that is communicated to the parents & community, and specified in State guidelines; Values , respects, accommodates and celebrates students’ diversity in terms of language, religion, gender abilities etc.
; Gives special attention to interacting with parents on how to support their child’s learning; Strictly discourages any kind of discrimination and violence against/amongst the students; Emphasizes a programme or policy to support children from socially disadvantaged and economically weaker families; Includes encouraging and welcoming messages to all parents in the neighbourhood to send their children to the school; Ensures development of connections with early intervention programmes (such as Aangan Wadis, pre- schools etc.)
for identifying special needs of children; Creates opportunities for sharing good ideas/models, innovative practices about students’ learning amongst teachers across classrooms, and in council meetings at block and cluster level resource centres; Encourages regular reviews of policies and practices with the changing learning needs of children; Ensures adequate and appropriate sport and recreational opportunities for diverse needs of children; Supports identification of out-of-school children, to bring them to school; Values acquisition of social skills along with academic skills; Makes sure that one parent each of all CWSN and children belonging to the socially disadvantaged groups is a members of the School Management Committee (SMC); 63 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all Makes use of data for improving school planning and management, including classroom and staff management; Values the participation of all parents in school decisions, irrespective of their background, religion or socio- economic status; Has the provision of equal opportunities for all students to gain access to curriculum; Ensures admission to all the children in the neighbourhood without following any strict admission procedures; Recommends reducing class size, especially of classes where CWSN are placed; Ensures that the privacy and dignity of children getting financial and other type of assistance are respected and shared only if necessary; Encourages maintenance of records, including records of absentees, drop-outs, and portfolios of each student; Demonstrates a clearly defined and steady time table/ schedule and calendar of activities for students and teachers; Promotes taking feedback from students and teachers for improving functioning of the school; COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Local Community views the school positively and happily sends its children to the school; There is equal representation and participation of different communities in school activities; Measures are taken to motivate parents and communities to get involved in school activities; Collaboration with Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and other relevant organisations is encouraged for developing the school vision and for mobilizing resource support; Supportive environment is created for all children by providing a forum for constituting family support groups, parent-teacher associations and local level committees; 26 27 64 Index for Inclusive Schools 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all Partnership with local bodies such as Panchayati Raj Institutions, SMCs and communities, is developed by sharing the resources available in the school for instance, space for local events; Speech therapists, occupational therapists, primary health workers, social workers, physiotherapists, counsellors, special educators, etc.
are involved, whenever required; Parents and families are provided with necessary information in simple and clear language; Systems to provide counselling to the parents have been developed; CURRICULUM The National or State Curriculum Framework (NCF) is aligned with academic expectations and needs of all children in the school; Important links and support to students for transition to higher education, vocational education (prepares people to work in various jobs such as a trade, a craft, or as a technician) etc.
is provided; Curriculum is flexible, culturally and socially accommodating, to reflect the diversity of students and of their local circumstances; Development of social skills ( for healthy and positive interactions) is included as a component in the curriculum; Restructuring of curriculum and its implementation is carried out for including all children in education; Uses total communication approach which involves various modes of communication such as using signs, oral, auditory, written and visual and tactile aids, for children who require it; Development of independent living and personal management skills is emphasized; TEACHING & LEARNING Teachers in School Make maximum use of their time to enhance students’ learning outcomes matching each student’s potential; 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 65 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all Create child friendly teaching learning processes and environment; Are trained to address special needs (difficulty in reading, writing, understanding, speaking etc.
), if required; Take support from local language speakers to facilitate communication in the mother tongue; Are confident to take decisions, especially when planning for children in difficult circumstances1; Have knowledge and skills to teach all children in a single class, who differ from each other in many ways; Transact curriculum in a variety of ways such as individual, pairs, small groups and whole class; Differentiate the curriculum as per individual needs of the students by developing alternative goals or strategies, if required; Do not engage in extra administrative or other work at the cost of giving special attention to children who require it; Have proper class level subject related knowledge and keep upgrading this knowledge regularly; Provide textbooks and general reading material in accessible formats; Are regularly present in the school and attendance rate is high; Sensitize all students on various kinds of biases existing in society, and on human rights; Teach all children self advocacy skills like how to be assertive and effectively communicate with others; Encourage all students by praising them when they do good work; Actively engage all students in the classroom in doing different things and by adapting activities; assessment Is an integral and ongoing part of the learning process; 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 1 Children who have blood disorders/mentally ill or are frequently absent due to some other health conditions 66 Index for Inclusive Schools 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all Factors in all the abilities and not just memory/ability to recall; Is based upon daily interactions of teachers with students and not on one assessment event; Enhances learning of the student and is not used as a tool to identify weaknesses; Tools are inclusive by design and no special efforts are needed to make separate tools; Is also based upon student’s self-evaluation and reflection of own performance; Leads to meaningful and continuous feedback to strengthen learning; Does not
 represent all abilities through one single cumulative grade; Does not segregate activities into curricular and co- curricular; Is ongoing and formative, and not a one-time event; Is flexible in terms of formats of questions (multiple choice, objective type) and answers ( flash cards, real objects, word cards, picture of real objects acting, drama, role play); Is conducted in whole groups, learner groups (smaller groups) and individually, as required; Is carried out in steps by breaking down the content for children who may prefer this; Builds in flexibility in terms of time to respond, correcting earlier responses and sufficient practice time; Feedback is based upon ongoing portfolios of students and teachers’ observational booklets; resource support Information and Communication Technology (ICT) devices, educational aids are available for children and the teachers are trained in the use of these; School has sufficient teachers to teach all subjects; 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 67 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all There is adequate facility of resource persons, and frequency of support in the school such as speech therapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists etc; There is staff for maintaining daily requirements of the students such as Ayahas/caretaker and MTS (Peon); School encourages visits of volunteers such as parents, NGOs, retired teachers, other community members etc., to provide support to students; School takes measures to provide adequate transport facilities to CWSN; The school has sufficient number of textbooks and other supplementary materials in accessible formats; Counseling and Guidance Services are available in the school; All Students Understand what is being taught in the classroom; Continue to progress to higher classes and do not drop out of school; Avoid any kind of prejudiced name calling; Are sensitive to concerns of their peers and support one another and those in need;
 Participate in all school activities - academic, sports, games, etc; Know whom to contact if they experience problems and difficulties in the school; Frequently interact with each other, including CWSN; PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT School Building Is safe and fully accessible to all children including CWSN and has appropriate electrical and water supply; Has doors with handles fixed at adequate levels and not too high; Has toilets with proper doors, taking care of privacy, especially for girls and children who need help in toileting; 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 68 Index for Inclusive Schools 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all Has separate toilets for boys and girls, built at a distance from each other and an adapted toilet for CWSN; Has toilets with constant running water and sanitation facilities; Has ramps and railings for children who may have difficulty in moving; Has a library equipped with good storage space and books in accessible formats and ICT; Has a resource room or separate room for additional teaching if required; Has a playground with adequate equipment for outdoor games and physical activities for all including CWSN; Has a provision for indoor games such as carrom, chess etc; The classroom Setting allows children to move freely or sit with a friend when required; Is of adequate size for proper seating arrangements and group work; Blackboards are fixed at a proper height to be accessible to all children including those who want to come near to read it; Has adequate light and extra light when necessary, and proper color contrast; Has minimum noise levels for avoiding distraction; Is equipped with adequate space for keeping books in Braille/ Large Print/Print and assistive devices that help CWSN to perform various tasks; Has provision for ground floor classrooms for children with mobility needs and flexible and adjustable furniture; SAFETY & HEALTH Safety School is considered by parents to be a safe place for their children;
 Communications channels between teachers and students are open enough for students to share their feelings and inform about any abuse; 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 69 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for creatIng a school for all School has sufficient number of fire extinguishers and is clearly marked and audio enabled for emergency exits; There are proper security arrangements for supervising students in school; School circulates information for transportation safety to students and staff; Emergency numbers are displayed prominently in accessible formats; School clearly specifies procedures for reporting emergencies to the government and the relevant education authorities; School makes efforts to collaborate with the government and other relevant offices to develop speed breakers, signals(with alarms) for crossing, and removes obstacles /barriers on way to school like ditches, bad roads; School has a clear disaster management plan including the identification of potential risks and an evacuation plan; There is a policy for special protection against any violence, physical, psychological and sexual abuse; health School takes measures to ensure health and hygiene including in kitchen, hostel, dining room and toilets; First aid facility is available in the school and is regularly maintained; Students and staff have access to clean drinking water and hygienic food; School addresses personal needs of adolescent girls; School organizes regular health check-ups for students; There is a proper system of waste management in the school.
104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 70 Index for Inclusive Schools 3 2 1 IndIcators for teachers IndIcators for teachers PHILOSOPHY AND ATTITUDE Teachers Understand the meaning of inclusive education and how it is different from special education; Value the presence of all children in their classrooms as a matter of right and give equal opportunities to them to participate; Give special support in addressing early gaps, and attention to children who require it so that they can successfully participate in the learning experiences along with other children; Encourage positive interactions amongst students and do not support any kind of bias or prejudice in the class; Understand that learning in the classroom emerges out of meaningful personal experiences, interests and background of the child; Reflect on what they have learnt while teaching in the class and modify approaches, if necessary; Recognises the important role that s/he plays in a child’s learning, success or failure; Do not use labels such as blind, deaf, normal, and abnormal, and other discriminatory labels while addressing some children in the class; Make efforts to bring out of school children to school by coordinating with the parents; Value and respect not only academic skills but also all other ideas and skills that students bring to a class; Assign responsibilities like cleaning classrooms and bringing water if necessary, turn by turn, to all children and not only to children belonging to a specific caste or class; Have good rapport with students and are available/ approachable to all the students and not to a specific few only; Have high academic and behavioural expectations from all students and this is reflected in their teaching practices; Believe that children with disability or from low income groups are in no way inferior to other children; S No.
71 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for teachers Create welcoming classroom environment where all children feel they belong and are not a burden; Demonstrate good practices in the class for children to model, especially with respect to Children with Special Needs (CWSN), children belonging to socially disadvantaged groups and girl child; Avoid passing negative remarks on students and also take care that students are not teased or bullied, especially the vulnerable ones; Consider each child in the class as an opportunity to learn; Understand specific problems related to security, safety, abuse and privacy faced by children, especially girls; Develop and apply guidance and counselling skills to support all students in the class, whenever required; Are sensitive to health concerns of all students(especially students having chronic health problems); COLLABORATION Teachers Engage in open discussions with each other and with the children to plan innovative approaches to individualize learning; Communicate regularly with parents to learn more about the child and also to share his/her progress and other relevant information; Guide parents regarding activities to be taken up at home and encourage them to participate in decisions regarding their children; Do not share personal information of the child as given by the parents unless required; Use a wide range of community support services and resources to enhance learning outcomes of children; Encourage children to play and learn together and share responsibilities; Collaborate with special educators for developing better teaching learning materials and processes to ensure learning of all students; 26 27 28 72 Index for Inclusive Schools 3 2 1 IndIcators for teachers Invite Community Members (such as retired teachers, panchayati raj institutions, School Management Committee members, parents and local NGOs) into the school to share their knowledge and experiences in relation to both academic and non academic areas;
 Use parents and peers to support students to facilitate learning outcomes; TEACHING AND LEARNING Teachers Effectively use teaching strategies and activities, to ensure that various learning approaches and learning styles are addressed; Work towards raising the self-respect of students by focusing on their strengths rather than weaknesses; Encourage students to actively engage in the learning process by freely expressing their views, ideas and opinions; Make provision of giving rest breaks for children who may need them; Promote active discussion among students as a part of classroom processes; Make an effort to know and understand diverse experiences and problems faced by students; Are concerned with and make efforts to discourage and overcome social and gender biases; Make what is being taught in the class relevant to the everyday lives of children and their families; Continuously upgrade levels of content knowledge necessary to challenge and motivate students to higher levels of learning; Make attempts to engage in school-based action research, to improve school practices; Organise physical environment of the classroom to accommodate CWSN such as appropriate seating arrangements, adequate lighting, noise control, physical access and furniture, blackboard height etc.
; Give equal importance to sports and physical education for all children and adapt/change the rules, if necessary, for CWSN; 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 73 Indicators 3 2 1 IndIcators for teachers Set high but different expectations as per the potential of the students by developing alternative assessments; Regularly analyze and offer feedback to students on academic performance and take decisions regarding curriculum and teaching practices based on this ; Make effort to give extra time to teach a child when he or she comes back to school after being absent for some time; Adapt teaching methods to suit the learning needs and learning styles of all children by including a range of activities; Give self learning tasks to students that are linked with the class work and help in extending the students’ knowledge and skills; Collaborate with teachers to combine homework assignments for separate subjects to reduce the burden on students; Provide additional support to CWSN to complete tasks such as extra time, peer support, visual, auditory, kinesthetiic (physical activity) and tactual (touch) inputs etc; Use different teaching methods to meet the diverse needs of students such as collaborative teaching, group work, pairs , individual and whole class etc; Engage peer learning by involving students having more knowledge in a particular area to tutor others, if required; Provide opportunities to children of different ages to support each other; Give students opportunity to learn and demonstrate learning in a variety of ways such as using digital media, drawings, poetry, sculpture, pictorial presentations and forms of art etc.
; Provide scaffolding to help students achieve both common and individual goals; Create opportunities for students to experience success in learning to the best of their potential; Integrate multiple subjects while teaching to give a complete perspective; Praise and motivate students for better learning and behavioural outcomes; Use language that is simple, local, and sentences that are short and clear.

43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 74 Index for Inclusive Schools 1.

2.

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Appendix 1: List of Experts Ajay Kumar Rai Bihar Shiksha Pariyojna Parishad, Shiksha Bhawan, Rajendra Nagar, Saidpur, Bihar 800004 Mob: 9852524093 Ajay Kumar Singh State IED Coordinator, Inclusive Education Branch, Directorate of Education, Behind Lady Shri Ram College, Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi 110024 Ajay Nathujj Kakade State IED Coordinator, Maharashtra Prathamik Shikshan Parishad, Jawahar Bal Bhawan, Netaji Subhash Marg, Charni Road (West), Mumbai 400004 Mob: 9892568854 Aloka Guha Former Chairperson, National Trust N/85, E-Block, Flat 24, New Alipur, Kolkata 700053 Mob: 9748071224 Anjum Fatima State IED Coordinator , SPO (SSA), Uttrakhand Mob: 8279553918 Dr. Brahmananda Reddy 6.
State IED Coordinator, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan KBC, Boys High School Premises Opp.

Rythu Bazar, Patamata High School Road, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh 75 Appendix 1: List of Experts 7.

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B. Ramulu State IED Coordinator, Samagra Shiksha Telangana, Beside Telephone Bhavan, Bus Stop, Saifabad, Hyderabad, Telangana 500004 B. Umesh Kumar North East Regional Institute of Education, NCERT, Umaim Ri Bhoi District, Shillong, Meghalaya 793103 Mob: 8259050333 umesh.ncert@yahoo.com Devendra Singh Charan Deputy Director, (IED) Rajasthan School Education Council, 3rd Floor, 5 Block, Dr. Radhakrishnan Shiksha Sankul, Jawahar Lal Nehru Marg, Jaipur, Rajasthan 302017 Mob: 9460091251 Dharminder Singh Gill Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Authority Punjab, SCO 104 106, II and III Floor, Sector 34A, Chandigarh, Punjab 160017 Mob: 9888887666 Eswariah B State in-charge A.P and Telengana, India Education Collective, Madhavi 12-238/A, Adarsh Nagar, Opp.
to IDPL Colony, Balanagar, Hyderabad 500037 76 Mob: 9492657296 12.

Hitender Joshi State IED Coordinator, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan State Office, Behind Old MLA Canteen, Sector 17, Gandhinagar, Gujaratr 382017 Mob: 9898267389 13.

Jayshree Dewanwai Office of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Gujarat.

Index for Inclusive Schools 14.

Lalhmansaihi Sailo State IED Coordinator, Mizoram SSA Mission, Education Directorate Building Top Floor, Zarkant, Aizwal, Mizoram 796001 Mob: 0389 2346161 15.

Malathi.
Malathi.

M State Project Office, Samagra Shiksha, Tamil Nadu.

Mob: 9784992733 iedssatn@gmail.com 16.

Meirilang Kharbyngar State IED Coordinator, Shillong Mob: 8794739506 17.

Mohammad Intzar Government High School, Indira Colony, Manimajra, Chandigarh 160101 Mob: 9467910768 18.

Ngairangbam Brajachand Singh State IED Coordinator, Samagra Shiksha, State Authority, Babupara, Imphal West, Manipur 795001 19.
Nidhi Goyal Education Department, Samagra Shiksha, Additional Deluxe Building, 3rd Floor, Sector 9, Chandigarh 160017 Mob: 9646139942 20.

Nisheeth Verma Chiff Inclusive Education Consultant, TSG, MHRD, Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi.

Mob: 9560970505 21.

Pradeep Malviya State IED Coordinator, SSA, Rajiv Gandhi Shiksha Mission, Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Pusthak Bhawan, ‘B’ Wing, Area Hills, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462011 Mob: 9993177892 77 Appendix 1: List of Experts 22.

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Prem Narayan Pradhan State IED Coordinator, Tashilling Secretariat, Ground Floor, Room No.105, Human Resource Development Department, HRDD, Gangtok, East Sikkim 737103 Mob: 9434117677 P. Saravanan State IED Coordinator, Samagra Shiksha, State Project Office 5th Floor B Block, Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Centenary Educational Complex, Anna Nagar, Puducherry 605005 Mob: 9442892109 Rajesh Kumar Principal GMSSS MHC, Manimajra, Chandigarh.
Mob: 07589369244 Rajneesh Sharma Haryana Education Department, Shiksha Sadan 3rd Floor, Sector 5, Panchkula, Haryana 134113 Mob: 9814445556 Ravinder Jangral Directorate of Samagra Shiksha, Malik Market, Narwal Channi Rama, Jammu & Kashmir 180015 Mob: 9419121164 27.
Ritesh Kumar Khare Demonstration Multipurpose School, Shyamla Hills, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462013 Mob: 9098366034 Shikha Sharma State IED Coordinator, Samagra Shiksha, DPEP Bhawan, Lal Pani, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh 171001 Mob: 09418020010 Shooja S.Y.

State Programme Officer (SPO), SSA Bhawan, Nandavanam, Palayam, Thiruvanathapuram, Kerala 695033 Mob: 8547858595 78 28.

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Smriti Swarup Professor and Director (Retired), Centre of Special Education, SNDT University, B-1202, Mahindra Eminente, SV Road, Goregaon(W), Mumbai 400104 Mob: 982128559168 Sneh Bansal Principal, Chandigarh College of Education, Mob: 09216413120, 09181925200 Sohila Kaur Bakshi Consultant (IE), TSG, MHRD Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi Phone: 011 23765607 Sudesh Mukhopadhaya Former Chairperson, RCI, New Delhi T-12 Flat, 702 Valley View Estate, Faridabad Road, Gurgaon 122001 Mob: 9899406827 Sujata Bhan Professor and Head, Department of Special Education, SNDT Women’s University, 1, Nathibai Thackersey Road, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400020 Mob: 9820167470 bhansujata@gmail.com Sukanta Goswami State IED Coordinator , Bikash Bhawan 2nd floor, Salt Lake Kolkata, West Bengal 700091 Phone: 033 23581822 Sushama Sharma Professor of Special Education, Department of Education, Kurukshetra University, Haryana Mob: 89503274482 79 Appendix 1: List of Experts 37.
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Tali Jamir State IED Coordinator, SMA SSA Office attached DEO office building, Near NBCC Convention Hall, Kohima, Nagaland 797001 Mob: 9436604822 spd.nagaland@yahoo.com Usha S Chaujer Education Inclusive (Independent) Gurugram 9818102920 usha.chaujer@yahoo.com Vandana Saxena Associate Professor, CIE, Department of Education University of Delhi 33, Chhatra Marg, Delhi 110007 Phone: 011 27667509 Varsha Gathoo Head Department of Education, Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for Speech & Hearing Disability (Divyangjan), KC Marg, Bandra (W) Reclamation, Mumbai: 400050 Mob: 9869020437 Veera Gupta Associate Professor, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration, 17-B, Shri Aurobindo Marg, NCERT Campus, New Delhi 110016 Mob: 9868280240 Yogendra Pandey Associate Professor Faculty of Education BHU, Kamachha, Varanasi, (U.P) 0221010 Mob: 9415751467 80 Index for Inclusive Schools Index for Inclusive Schools Your classroom will reflect the spirit of inclusivity when your students witness your efforts to be inclusive of all and begin internalizing it themselves.
This is demonstrated in your approach to the students, your child-friendly, disabilities friendly and inclusive language, teaching practices and classroom organization.

When all the students feel included, it will reflect in their own ap- proach to each other, making your work at creating inclusivity easier.

Hopefully, this handbook will help you towards creating such a classroom, where all in the classroom feel that they are equal participants to what you, the teacher, have to teach them.