inclusive education in the asia-pacific region

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This article was downloaded by: [Aston University] On: 29 August 2014, At: 02:15 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK International Journal of Inclusive Education Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tied20 Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region Levan Lim a & Thana Thaver a a Early Childhood and Special Needs Academic Group, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Published online: 24 Jul 2012. To cite this article: Levan Lim & Thana Thaver (2014) Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 18:10, 975-978, DOI: 10.1080/13603116.2012.696773 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2012.696773 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms- and-conditions

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Page 1: Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region

This article was downloaded by: [Aston University]On: 29 August 2014, At: 02:15Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

International Journal of InclusiveEducationPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tied20

Inclusive education in the Asia-PacificregionLevan Lima & Thana Thavera

a Early Childhood and Special Needs Academic Group, NationalInstitute of Education, Nanyang Technological University,SingaporePublished online: 24 Jul 2012.

To cite this article: Levan Lim & Thana Thaver (2014) Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region,International Journal of Inclusive Education, 18:10, 975-978, DOI: 10.1080/13603116.2012.696773

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2012.696773

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the“Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as tothe accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Contentshould not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever orhowsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arisingout of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Page 2: Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region

INTRODUCTION

Inclusive education in the Asia-Pacific region

Levan Lim∗ and Thana Thaver

Early Childhood and Special Needs Academic Group, National Institute of Education,Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

The rhetoric and practice of inclusive education has gained worldwide prominence overthe past few decades. As advocates of inclusion, wherever we may be from around theworld, our experiences have more than likely made us realise that the road towardsinclusive education and inclusive societies is fraught with many challenges becauseit is ultimately communities and societies themselves that need to change in orderfor all, especially the more vulnerable members, to be welcomed and included.

The challenges associated with promoting and implementing inclusion acrossdifferent countries around the world are complex and context-dependent, whichwarrant local considerations and solutions that are particular and indigenous to theuniqueness of each country, their systems of governance and education, their culturesand sociopolitical climates. As much as it is important for different countries, especiallythose which have explicitly embraced inclusive education, to share with the inter-national audience their own unique historical developments of inclusive education, itis also important to bring a critical analysis or perspective of developments related toinclusive education in order to understand its interpretation and translation into prac-tice. Such criticality is essential to upholding the integrity of our efforts to improvethe lives of individuals with disabilities.

This special issue of the International Journal of Inclusive Education bringstogether a selection of articles on inclusive education from various countries in theAsia-Pacific, namely Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, South Korea, HongKong, Singapore and Australia. This special issue is timely for two main reasons.The first refers to the international readership and outreach of the journal itself. Asthe leading international journal in inclusive education, the majority of its articles arefrom the West, which, by default, can dilute its international representation. Thesecond reason for this issue’s timeliness corresponds to the dramatic growth of theAsia-Pacific to become the most dynamic and fastest-growing economic region cur-rently in the world. For all the bountiful media attention and reports on its growingprosperity, flourishing economies and vigorous social change, relatively little (exceptfor Australia) is known about the historical development and state of inclusive edu-cation of countries in this region in the international literature.

The first article on inclusive education in South Korea provides an overview of his-torical developments that have contributed towards its current implementation andpractice of inclusive education. In addition, it provides some evidence upon whichthe author, Yong-Wook Kim, leverage to raise critical issues and challenges thataffect the successful implementation of inclusive education. What is clearly apparent

# 2012 Taylor & Francis

∗Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]

International Journal of Inclusive Education, 2014Vol. 18, No. 10, 975–978, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2012.696773

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in the South Korean educational context are the limitations exerted upon inclusiveeducation through the dominance of an excessively competitive school culture thatperhaps mirrors and is reinforced by the broader social context of South Koreansociety.

The second article on Malaysia charts the evolutionary development of specialneeds education towards its current state of inclusive education and, more impor-tantly, provides a critique of its interpretation which the authors, Zalizan M. Jelasand Manisah Mohd Ali, argue as rationalising exclusion. Their analysis reveals thateven though inclusive education has been implemented at the policy level in Malaysiafor more than a decade, the lack of clarity in its interpretation and translation intopractice has resulted in exclusionary processes and practices against students withdisabilities.

Like Zalizan and Manisah’s article, Kim Fong Poon-McBrayer’s article on HongKong’s evolution from integration to inclusion also charts the evolution of inclusiveeducation through an analysis of key developmental phases, namely, integration, inte-gration in transition to inclusion and inclusion. Issues related to policies and practicesare used to illustrate each of these developmental phases and the reasons behind them.The perspective of this author is that Hong Kong has entered into its current stage ofinclusion because of public pressure for the improvement of practices rather thanpolicy directions, and concludes with recommendations for sustaining effective prac-tices for inclusion.

The fourth article by Sermsap Vorapanya on inclusive education in Thailand pro-vides a historical overview of special education in Thailand and the emergence ofinclusive education after legislation was passed in 2008 to mandate its implementation.The author refers to findings of a particular research study conducted with schoolleaders from ‘inclusive schools’ to identify challenges and issues faced in implementinginclusive education. Issues which surfaced from the interviews with these schoolleaders include cultural perceptions of disability, concerns with current policies andthe financing of inclusion and the availability and use of resources.

The role of teacher education in promoting inclusive education is expounded inthe fifth article by Koay Teng Leong from Brunei Darussalam. Brunei Darussalamadopted inclusive education soon after the Salamanca Statement and Framework forAction on Special Needs Education (UNESCO 1994), and has since been engagingin a series of educational reforms to support the implementation of inclusion withinthe regular education system. This author describes how teacher education in BruneiDarussalam has evolved over the past decade to support and promote inclusive edu-cation in this country.

Unlike the rest of the countries featured in this special issue which have explicitlyadopted and embraced inclusive education as an official educational policy or agenda,Singapore’s efforts to achieve its vision of an inclusive society has been clearly evidentsince 2005 through the increasing amount of supports and resources injected into itsmainstream education system to better accommodate more students with specialneeds. Teacher education occupies a very significant position in promoting inclusiveclassroom practices and inclusive attitudes on the part of teachers, especially since gen-erations of Singaporean teachers have grown up and been taught in a separate educationsystem apart from their peers with disabilities. The article by Thana Thaver and LevanLim introduces recent support schemes within teacher education to enhance thecapacity of mainstream schools in Singapore to include students with special needs,and presents findings from a study examining the attitudes of mainstream pre-service

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teachers towards disability and inclusive education and discusses implications for pre-service teacher training in special needs in Singapore.

As part of the Asia-Pacific region, Australia’s efforts at economic, social and cul-tural integration with its northern neighbours offer many opportunities for promotingbilateral understanding, learning and development. This special issue’s last countryreport article by Roger Stancliffe departs from the previous articles in that it focuseson the prospects of inclusion in the adult years for Australians with a disability. Thisauthor discusses the inclusion of adults with disability in Australian society by exam-ining legislation, issues and outcomes that have affected their lives. This article’s focuson adults complements the previous articles on inclusion at the school level and, in jux-taposition, is a needful reminder of the other countries to carefully consider inclusion inthe adult life of persons with disabilities and what outcomes in their adulthood that theywould like to achieve. In particular, the lessons learnt from Australia’s past in segregat-ing adults with disabilities from the mainstream society can serve as poignant remindersof the significance of aligning desirable outcomes with appropriate practices that extendbackwards into the school years.

The universality of inclusive education lies in how it resonates so befittingly withthe hunger and pursuit of humankind for a more peaceful, just, equitable and inclusiveglobal society. The universal appeal of inclusive education to many countries aroundthe globe, each with their own unique set of concerns and problems, requires little jus-tification. That being said, it can be revitalisingly insightful to listen to the testimoniesand perspectives of inclusion advocates from different countries on why they believeinclusive education is important to their country. The next paper does just this. It show-cases a collection of perspectives from four various countries (i.e. New Zealand, HongKong, Malaysia and Thailand) within the Asia-Pacific region on the significance ofinclusive education to improving their respective societies. In essence, their inclusionwithin this paper of this special issue represents ‘glocalised’ adoptions and interpret-ations of the universal and globalised phenomenon of inclusive education.

As important as it is to note, the developments and changes in inclusion in terms ofpolicies, practices, supports, resources and the concomitant issues which may arise as aresult of their implementation, the quality of inclusion as experienced by the same indi-viduals that such efforts are purported to support, needs to remain central to theinclusion discourse. The quality of inclusion, as perceived and experienced by individ-uals, is strongly subjective as its associated meanings are constructed by and filteredthrough their own unique lens and perspectives. This next article, by Kenneth Poonand his team from Singapore, reflects this premise through its qualitative investigationof school-related perspectives of four adolescents with high functioning autism spec-trum disorders from within the highly pressurised and competitive Singaporean main-stream education system. Besides highlighting the significance of honouring the voicesof individuals with disabilities through the phenomenological approach, this study con-tributes to the very limited existing body of research (from Western countries) on per-spectives of students with high functioning autism spectrum disorders on their schoolexperiences from an Asian perspective and context.

The final article of this special issue is from Trevor Parmenter whose extensiveteaching and research experiences in various Asian countries have privileged himwith valuable perspectives of and insights into the place of persons with disabilitiesin Asia. He shares, from his professed position as a Westerner from the Asia-Pacificregion (i.e. Australia) his commentary on global, economic, social and culturaltrends and how these forces can shape human societies and influence the prospects

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of inclusion for persons with disabilities in Asia. Trevor’s commentary article aptlyreminds us to carefully observe the signs of our times in the surrounding global,regional and local trends, and events in order to discern the underlying ethos theyusher into our societies and lives.

Notes on contributorsLevan Lim is an Associate Professor and Head of the Early Childhood and Special NeedsAcademic Group at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University,Singapore.

Thana Thaver is a Senior Lecturer in the Early Childhood and Special Needs Education Aca-demic Group at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University,Singapore.

ReferenceUNESCO. 1994. The Salamanca statement and framework on special needs education. Paris:

UNESCO.

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