Formation and development of inclusive education in Ukraine

Abstract

The article deals with the formation and development of inclusive education in Ukraine on the basis of its legal regulation. The state measures aimed at providing education for people with special educational needs are revealed.

The historic milestone in introducing inclusive education was the ratification by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on December 16, 2009 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. States Parties undertook to create an educational environment for persons with disabilities that would provide them with equal educational opportunities and access to it without discrimination, taking into account the individual needs of such persons, providing them with support for the facilitation of education.

During 2010-2015, the central executive authorities resolved important issues regarding the organization and operation of inclusive classes. They concerned the introduction of the post of assistant teacher, his teaching load, salary, the activities of practical psychologists and social educators, the organization of transportation of students with disabilities to school, the architectural accessibility of educational institutions, and much more.

An important step for the legal regulation of inclusive education was the adoption on September 5, 2017 of the Law of Ukraine "On Education", which legally consolidated the basic concepts in the field of inclusive education.

With a view to the development of inclusive education, the authorities now have to resolve a number of issues: to ensure that purchases for subventions are modified and adapted for schoolchildren with special educational needs; to develop a mechanism for the transfer of special equipment purchased for the correctional development of a child during the change of the educational institution; to increase the pay for assistant teachers who teach a child with special educational needs; to introduce in the inclusive class the post of child assistant (tutor) with a decent wage; to provide transportation of children with special educational needs to educational institutions, inclusive-resource centers; to carry out educational policy on inclusive education among the population, etc.