FN-kommittén med oberoende experter som övervakar implementationen av FN:s Konvention om rättigheter för personer med funktionsnedsättning förtydligar vad Artikel 24 kräver av de stater som har ratificerat konventionen, däribland Sverige.
Kommittén säger att trots framgångar så återstår många utmaningar. Många miljoner personer med funktionsnedsättning förvägras rätten till utbildning helt, och ännu många fler erbjuds bara segregerad utbildning.
Inkluderande utbildning är centralt för att uppnå utbildning av hög kvalitet för alla elever, inklusive dem med funktionsnedsättning, och för utvecklingen av inkluderande, fredliga och rättvisa samhällen.
Stater som har ratificerat Konventionen är skyldiga att så snabbt och effektivt som möjligt förverkliga Artikel 24. Detta är inte förenligt med att vidmakthålla två system för utbildning: ett allmänt och ett segregerat utbildningssystem, enligt Kommittén.
NORMATIVE CONTENT OF ARTICLE 24
According to article 24, paragraph 1, States parties must ensure the realization of the right of persons with disabilities to education through an inclusive education system at all levels, including pre-schools, primary, secondary and tertiary education, vocational training and lifelong learning, extracurricular and social activities, and for all students, including persons with disabilities, without discrimination and on equal terms with others.
The right to inclusive education encompasses a transformation in culture, policy and practice in all formal and informal educational environments to accommodate the differing requirements and identities of individual students, together with a commitment to remove the barriers that impede that possibility. It involves strengthening the capacity of the education system to reach out to all learners. It focuses on the full and effective participation, accessibility, attendance and achievement of all students, especially those who, for different reasons, are excluded or at risk of being marginalized. Inclusion involves access to and progress in high-quality formal and informal education without discrimination. It seeks to enable communities, systems and structures to combat discrimination, including harmful stereotypes, recognize diversity, promote participation and overcome barriers to learning and participation for all by focusing on well-being and success of students with disabilities. It requires an in-depth transformation of education systems in legislation, policy, and the mechanisms for financing, administration, design, delivery and monitoring of education.
The Committee highlights the importance of recognizing the differences between exclusion, segregation, integration and inclusion. Exclusion occurs when students are directly or indirectly prevented from or denied access to education in any form. Segregation occurs when the education of students with disabilities is provided in separate environments designed or used to respond to a particular or various impairments, in isolation from students without disabilities. Integration is a process of placing persons with disabilities in existing mainstream educational institutions, as long as the former can adjust to the standardized requirements of such institutions. Inclusion involves a process of systemic reform embodying changes and modifications in content, teaching methods, approaches, structures and strategies in education to overcome barriers with a vision serving to provide all students of the relevant age range with an equitable and participatory learning experience and environment that best corresponds to their requirements and preferences. Placing students with disabilities within mainstream classes without accompanying structural changes to, for example, organization, curriculum and teaching and learning strategies, does not constitute inclusion. Furthermore, integration does not automatically guarantee the transition from segregation to inclusion.