Inclusive Education in the Middle East

Citation

Fiona S. Baker (2014), "Inclusive Education in the Middle East", Education, Business and Society: Contemporary Middle Eastern Issues, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 75-78. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBS-01-2014-0001

This short but comprehensive research-based book (132 pages) is on inclusive education in the Arabian Gulf and the Middle East. It will be of great interest to students, academics, teachers, and all other professionals in the field of comparative and inclusive education, as well as those with an interest in policies of education, in the dynamic and culturally distinguished Middle Eastern Arabian region. Its publication is timely, as the potential of adopting inclusive education to support learning for all, is an international phenomenon that has been finding its way into the Middle East and the Arabian region, yet little has been written about its status. Eman Gaad is Dean of the Faculty of Education at British University in Dubai ' s Institute of Education, and course leader for the university ' s doctoral and master ' s programme in special education. Over the past decade she has been directly involved in “inclusion” in the United Arab Emirates and she also has extensive knowledge and firsthand experience in the region. This, combined with her research, access to local researchers, and influential leaders in the region, creates a rare and authoritative text. With a focus on the more complex areas of related cultural practice and attitudes toward inclusive education in this dynamic and rapidly changing part of the world, Gaad assesses the current educational status of the Arabian Gulf and some Middle Eastern countries that have made attempts to adopt inclusive practice in education.

Gaad ' s overview of the current status of inclusion spans five chapters and carefully blends findings from research studies, the voices of well-known scholars in the region, an analysis of reports in the media, and reports from influential leaders in the countries themselves who were instrumental in the inclusion movement. The first chapter starts with an in-depth analysis of how the term “inclusion” is understood in the region where terminology used to describe individuals with special needs is misused or misunderstood, which leads to controversy. This, Gaad suggests, may be attributable to the diversity of nationalities and influences in the countries that are concerned, and therefore, the range of definitions. The inclusion debate is a long-standing and on-going one, but through Gaad ' s historical analysis, the reader understands there is a fundamental difference between what “inclusion” means and what is happening in the region.

A historical analysis is made of the countries, and a description is given of the way in which each country is approaching inclusion in its own current cultural and political practice. Gaad starts by questioning whether many participants and stakeholders in the Middle East, and particularly in the Gulf:

[…] who are working in the field of education have a clear definition and concept of what inclusion actually means, what it should entail and how it is to be applied (p. 9).

She provides examples of terminology used to describe individuals with special needs from the media which has been commonly misused and misconstrued. She even cites the use of the term “mongol” for children with Down ' s syndrome. Gaad gives the example of Egypt as the oldest system of special education in the region, where changes in international inclusion vocabulary were reflected in the titles of government ministries which then continued to operate without any fundamental changes. Indeed, as the author ' s analysis shows, the countries have all placed educational reform with special education as an important part, high on their list of priorities. Yet, the overall picture is that while there is a call for inclusion, the reality simply does not match up. Farooq ' s 2007 research in the UAE on autistic learners is just one example of a study which concludes that a place for a child with autism in regular public schools “is virtually non-existent” (p. 8).

Chapter 2 is dedicated to the historical perspectives on “the quest for inclusion”. It is not intended as a comparison of what is happening in each country but, rather, to present important findings for each. This is achieved by successfully blending research findings with the voices of respected local scholars and influential leaders who have forged the way to make inclusion happen. The advantages and disadvantages of an inclusion project in Saudi Arabia and its position on adoption and ratification of the 2004 UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities is discussed. Kuwait is highlighted as the first country to regulate and protect the rights of persons with disabilities in the Gulf area in 1996. However, what emerges is that the system was set up to follow a classic exclusion model of education with categorisation based on disability. There are 15 schools catering to the following categories and segregated according to disability. Despite the fact that this was the first true country to issue legislation related to disabilities, no development has occurred since the 1970s apart from changing some of the titles of the schools to more politically correct terminology. In the State of Qatar, the work of Sheikha Hessa Khalifa Al Thani for disability rights, during her three year term as a UN Special Rapporteur until 2008, is praised. The projects in Qatar are clearly outlined with their financial outlay. The first inclusion project in Qatar involved establishing special needs in regular schools (1986) and focuses on the investments in SPED and resourcing for it. Inclusion project: Take 2 – involved 80 students with physical and learning disabilities in two primary schools by providing services and resource rooms. There was also a learning centre established in 1996 which is part of Qatar ' s Science and Society Development Association. In Oman, special education provisions are offered in mainstream schools, which is a relatively new trend. Gaad analyzes Oman ' s inclusion experiences for children with hearing impairment.

In the Kingdom of Bahrain, there is a large inclusion agenda despite the size of the country which began in 2005, and has a much broader coverage and plan than the other countries. Services are offered as rehabilitation-based support and have only one aspect that focuses on inclusion programmes in the schools. Integration of learners with special needs and disabilities in regular schools is also seen as an activity related to Bahrain ' s commitment to the rights-based approach in health, education, and social justice. However, rehabilitation, not the education, and the centre-based approach not the school-based one, are still the current model of offered services.

As Gaad discusses the situation in Egypt, it is possible to sense her personal sentiment of a “slow moving inclusion process in times in which many Egyptians are struggling with their daily needs” (p. 43). Gaad ' s analysis suggests that, “Egypt lacks a successful inclusion model and age-old assumptions about ability, normalcy and human potential persist” (p. 43). She states that this is a country where “children with special needs attend special schools where they are pampered rather than taught to care for themselves with lifelong dependency” (p. 45) as a result. Egyptian laws disallow school-based inclusion of children with special needs in the classroom, and teachers are not equipped with the understanding they need to be helpful.

Tunisia is highlighted as the first country to ratify the UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities and commit to an inclusive policy. Principles of school inclusion programmes are based on international rights-based practices with progress and failing percentages considered as one of the indications of the programme success. The inclusive education programme in Palestine is written with sentiment, with the author concluding that, in Palestine, inclusive education is virtually not a priority, and disability issues in general are last on the list in one of the most notorious war zones on earth (p. 66).

This historical analysis is followed by a dedicated chapter on the UAE where the author is based. In this chapter, the author summarises the status of inclusion and then openly discusses the attitudinal barriers and challenges that exist in the milieu of a rapidly changing, hew country. Cultural attitudes are given full attention in this chapter and the author interweaves her own voice which enlivens the text, as in:

[…] the dreaded truth is that at the end of the day, learners with special needs are last on the list to be considered in the private sector which forms the biggest chunk of school places (p. 76).

She quite openly reveals that there is a gap in the rhetoric and reality as in:

[…] schools are meant to nurture morale and self-respect to all learners before delivering appropriate education. Unfortunately, this can be misleading as many private schools ignore the needs of learners with special needs, since most private schools are profit making (p. 76).

The repeated mantra throughout the book is one of policy directives which have been picked up internationally and then, most often, piloted in a project form that targets a specific area of disability and do not always satisfy the needs of “inclusion”. Gaad ' s important analysis uncovers the reasons which inhibit inclusion from happening in this region of the world. What emerge are the challenges inherent in the context, and it is a reminder that values, commitment and passion matter. Gaad states that while there may be a “will” there may not yet be a “way”. While there is a government vision and individual voices, there is a lack of collectivity and sustained impetus to warrant being described as “inclusion”. There is the issue of rhetoric versus practice, and in the final analysis, a charity-oriented approach to inclusion, rather than a human rights approach taken, which Gaad likens to “dreaming of a fantasy land” (p. 99).

Through this book, the author achieves her goal, albeit not a rosy picture of the status of inclusion in the GCC countries and Middle East, and sets some parameters for the way forward, which involves a fundamental change in attitudes. Overall, this book is an interesting, informative and insightful read, and is especially meaningful for those currently working for inclusion in the region.