Promoting disability-inclusive education globally
Mike Lake MP for Leduc-Wetaskiwin constituency in Alberta, Canada, has been working to understand the barriers to disability-inclusive education to advocate and promote improvements globally for all children.
This case study from the Hon. Mike Lake MP in Canada is part of a campaign profiling parliamentary action on education as part of World Parliament Day, held every year on 30th June.
This year, we are hosting an online event to hear from members of parliament taking action to ensure more children are in school and receiving a quality education.
Mr. Lake is an MP representing Leduc-Wetaskiwin constituency in the House of Commons. He tabled a motion to launch a parliamentary inquiry into international disability-inclusive education to improve education quality.
A report was published by the Parliamentary Subcommittee on International Human Rights in April 2024, outlining 14 recommendations for the Canadian government to consider when funding and supporting international education programmes.
One in 10, or nearly 240 million, children are living with a disability globally, and at least 50 percent of all young people with disabilities living in low- and middle-income countries are out of school. In some contexts, the figure is closer to 90 percent.
Traditional school systems and programmes are not always adapted to the diverse needs of children with disabilities, making it harder for them to access school and learn.
Even when children with disabilities are in school, evidence shows that they are up to three times more likely to be bullied than their peers. Making sure all children can access safe, quality education is their right, yet disability-inclusive education is often underfunded and under resourced.
Mike Lake MP for Leduc-Wetaskiwin constituency in Alberta, Canada, has been working to understand the barriers to disability-inclusive education to advocate and promote improvements globally for all children.
On 27th September, 2023, Mr. Lake put forward Motion M-78 in the Canadian House of Commons, which was unanimously approved.
The motion called for a focus on disability-inclusive education which led to the Subcommittee on International Human Rights conducting a thorough study on global disability-inclusive education.
It cited Canada’s commitment to Article 24 on inclusive education in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as commitments to other frameworks such as the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The parliamentary subcommittee inquiry resulted in the publication of a report in April 2024, Including Every Child, Benefitting All: International Disability-Inclusive Education.
The report outlines recent data and statistics, some best practices in disability-inclusive education, as well as barriers and pathways to improvements. It also includes 14 recommendations for the government of Canada to address when funding and supporting education programmes and policies internationally.
It found that some of the main barriers to disability-inclusive education are stigma, attitude and costs amongst others, and recommended that all education programming include approaches to combatting stigma against people with disabilities, particularly girls and women.
Throughout the study and cited in the report are the overarching benefits of inclusive education for all children, not only those with disabilities.
"If we can reach a girl with an intellectual disability in rural Africa, we can reach every girl along the way,” shared Mr. Lake, “If we can reach a little boy in a refugee camp or a war zone, who is six years old with a disability, if we can wire our hearts and our systems to reach out, find that boy and make sure that boy is included in the education systems that we set up, we are going to reach everybody along the way as we are doing that."
Addressing access and the quality of education for the most marginalised supports all other children too. It opens up education systems to be more considerate of the needs of all children, who learn at different paces and in different ways.
It can also help peers to improve their ability to work and engage with different types of people, which equips them for life in the wider world where they will engage with people who think differently.
The motion by Mr. Lake and resulting inquiry and report represent a critical step towards supporting disability-inclusive education. The recommendations and insights can drive meaningful, systemic change worldwide to promote more disability-inclusive education, and ensure no child is left behind.
