Globally, children with disabilities are among the most likely to be excluded from education. In Indonesia, around 30 per cent of children with disabilities are out of education and many of those who are in school are underserved.
Despite progress in developing inclusive education policies, there is still a way to go in implementing inclusive education. However, the World Bank, through the Inclusive Education Initiative (IEI) Trust Fund, is supporting the Government of Indonesia through an online pilot program to better diagnose the learning needs of students with disabilities in rural areas and identify gaps in serving these students. The positive response to this pilot program suggests there is an opportunity to expand the program to the 139,000 students with disabilities attending inclusive schools in Indonesia.
The exam was conducted by Foundation Wahana Inkursif Indonesia and was conducted in Lebak, Cilacap, Bondowoso, Ponorogo and Bima regencies from October 2021 to November 2022. It was launched in response to the request of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (MoECRT) to evaluate students with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The assessment tool was used in collaboration with experts from the fields of education, psychology and health, as well as teachers and parents. This multidisciplinary approach aimed to provide a more holistic assessment. An online platform was used to encourage the participation of all stakeholders.
As a result, over 100 students with learning disabilities received a thorough diagnosis of their learning needs for the first time. Teachers were supported in assessing their reading and mathematics skills, and in collecting health and psychological data for evaluation by educators (mentors), psychologists and medical professionals. Teachers also worked with medical professionals to record students’ progress, and learned from mentors how to use Indonesian language and mathematics modules to teach students with disabilities, as well as how to create an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) for each student.
The pilot program has had a lasting impact on students’ learning progress and has been praised by parents, teachers and education authorities. Ms. Niah, a mother of an autistic student, said she has seen great progress in her son’s learning.
“Thanks to this program, my child with special needs is getting the education he deserves, just like other students,” she said. “He’s making great progress. When he first started school, he had difficulty learning because of his autism, but this program has made a difference. I hope that all other teachers in the country receive this kind of training so that students with special needs can receive the right support in their studies.”
Teachers were grateful for the guidance the program provided.
“I’m so grateful because before we had the assessment, I just taught my students with disabilities based on what I knew,” says Aisha, a fourth-grade teacher. “Now we have a clearer program. They started with word strings and continued until they were able to read. The assessment and IEP development have helped in the learning process for my students.”
The evaluation carried out in the pilot also contributes to the Ministry of Education’s education data management. In many cases, the help of experts is needed to establish an accurate diagnosis of students with disabilities. Thanks to the pilot, the quality of the data in the Indonesian Education Database (Dapodik) will continue to improve, helping to allocate the necessary resources to students in need.