Social Inclusion Workshop

Social Inclusion Workshop

• 0900 Hrs - 1800 Hrs
• Best Western Plus Levana, Lucknow

• Topic: Developing a conducive learning environment
• Topic: Role of teachers
• Topic: Developing model to assess performance of schools
• Topic: Need for effective implementation

The purpose of the Social Inclusion workshops was progressive inculcation of inclusive practices in schools to facilitate socio-economic integration within classrooms to ensure better learning experience for all thereby, ensuring effective implementation of section 12(1)(C) of the RTE Act. It is a reality that the success of this section is highly dependent on the inclusive pedagogical techniques used by the private schools for integration of children from the EWS/DG sections in their schools. However, as these schools might not be well equipped for the same, these workshops were conducted to help the schools toovercome the problems faced by them while practicing inclusive education in their respective schools.

While conducting workshops, it was observed that the principals, directors, managers or teachers representing their schools were initially reluctant to acceptthe pedagogical skills that the workshop aimed at delivering them. Workshop specifically aimed at engaging participants in a two-way process to help them navigate through their own thought processand come up with different innovative methods, techniques of teaching,and solutions of the problems which they faced while implementing the Act in their respective schools.

The participants constituted the key stakeholders- various Govt. officials,BAF’s members and participant schools’ representatives i.e. Principals, Managers, Directors and teachers. All the participants interacted with each other, discussing and deliberating upon the challenges, doubts & questions put forth by the different schools which had surfaced during the implementation process. Their interaction provided us with different dimensions of the problems as well as the innovative solutions of those problems. It is interesting to know that many solutions were provided by the schools themselves byparticipating in the workshops. The gradual shift from resistance to building solutions was quite notable.

Apart from discussing the challenges and doubts, the schools were trained to deal with parents and children during admission time. They were also provided training in various inclusive pedagogical techniques which were to be followed by teachers while teaching in the class room for effectively integrating the children belonging to EWS and DG categories. Inclusive practices and strategies for school principals and management were also discussed with them. The school representatives were also encouraged for post classroom monitoring and providing support to EWS children and their parents.

Finally deliberations were held on what more can be done to realise social inclusion in education which would ultimately result into a classless, equitable and multicultural society.