Australia’s Disability Discrimination Commissioner Rosemary Kayess says the Queensland government must honour its commitment to the development of a National Roadmap for Inclusive Education.
The call follows the Queensland government’s recent budget announcement of funding for six new segregated schools, known as ‘special schools’, for the state’s south east.
This is despite the sunshine state having joined other Australian governments to support the development of a National Roadmap for Inclusive Education.
Children and Young People with Disability Australia says the roadmap should include:
- Inclusion as a core part of teacher training
- Professional development for teachers to adapt the curriculum for diverse learners
- Tracking progress with better data
- Definitive rules for reasonable adjustments in schools
- A clear right for all students to be included in their local school and to learn together in the same classroom as their peers.
According to Kayess, the roadmap would bring about reform so that all students can experience an equitable and participatory school environment, with adequate support and expertise in mainstream schools rather than segregated schools.
Kayess has written to the Queensland Premier as well as the Queensland Education Minister to raise her concerns over the planned new segregated schools.
“The investment to build new segregated schools goes directly against the Queensland government’s commitment to inclusive education, the principles of the National Roadmap for Inclusive Education and a key recommendation of the recent Disability Royal Commission,” she said.
“It is deeply concerning that the Queensland government is blatantly ignoring all the evidence and expert advice in relation to the significant benefits of inclusive education for people with disability.
‘We know that inclusive education leads to better academic outcomes and reduced social exclusion as well as increased employment opportunities for people with disability. It also reduces rates of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation experienced by people with disability.”
She said the cost of the six new schools could be put towards making mainstream environments more inclusive.
“Rather than embracing a brighter future for all Queenslanders, the Queensland Government is locking the state into a failed ableist model of the past which penalises people with disability,” Kayess added.