Dear All, Please see information below on the up-coming SAALED Conferences. Inclusive education can and does work if education policy is implemented properly and teachers are adequately equipped. An education system that promotes the full participation and inclusion of ALL children maximizes every child’s personal development and enable him/her to fully engage in an inclusive society. There are many kinds of barriers to learning and many forms of learning difficulties and disabilities. No single solution is appropriate for all children. In striving to create inclusion of all learners, policymakers, researchers and educators are charged with the responsibility to identify barriers and dismantle exclusion. Many teachers are inadequately equipped to support the intervention needs of children with learning difficulties and disabilities. SAALED (The Southern African Association of Learning and Educational Differences), in association with the UNESCO chair in teacher education for diversity and development atthe Wits School of Education will host 3 conferences aimed at making education inclusive. The conferences will address exclusionary pressures and practices in education and equip educators and therapists to meet diverse learning needs. Southern African Association for Learning & FORMAT: Regional Ministerial Conference: 3 – 4 July Sponsored by OSISA Representatives from Ministries of Education from the SADC will offer input into a draft strategy for Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities and sign a communiqué for a regional strategy for Inclusive Education. A networking dinner will be hosted for ministerial representatives, researchers, academics and school leaders. Research Symposium: 1 – 3 July Academics, researchers and policymakers from at least ten countries world-wide will be hosted by the Wits School of Education to engage with research that considers identifying and addressing exclusionary pressures, policies and practices in education; the resources and reorganization of schools required to address educational exclusion; teacher education for social justice, inclusion and diversity and research-based institutional and classroom strategies to make education inclusive. Key Note Speaker Professor Linda Graham is a Principal Research Fellow at the Queensland University of Technology and her attendance at this conference is facilitated by a grant from the National Research Foundation. Her keynote address is titled “Don’t mention the (inclusion) war! Policy-oriented research as intellectual activism”. Professional Development Conference and Workshops: 4 – 6 July Teachers, therapists, parents, school leaders as well as department of education officials will participate in plenary sessions and in 30 different workshops offering practical strategies to implement inclusive education. Key Note Speakers Loretta Giorcelli is a specialist consultant, who works with governments, parent groups, universities and schools, across the globe. Giorcelli is an international expert who has presented at many SAALED conferences who has trained in some Southern African countries. She will be training in Swaziland and as well as in Namibia, on behalf of SAALED, in July. Kiki Messiou, a senior lecturer at the University of Southampton, has conducted extensive research indicates that marginalization can be experienced by any learner in school, regardless if they fall in any particular category (like that of special educational needs, ethnic minorities etc.), or not. Richard Rieser is a disabled person, teacher, consultant writer and UK representative at the United Nations and European Disability Forum. He works to fi nd innovative solutions that will effectively and genuinely provide Education for All in the face of global poverty and constrained government funding. He is currently working on a Teacher Training project, with UNICEF. Other local and international speakers include; Stephanie Gottwald; Sindiswa Stofi le; Thabisile Levin; Fran Browne; Sharon Moonsamy; Zelda & Chaeli Mycroft. VENUE The Research Symposium and the Professional Development Conference will take place at the Wits School of Education, Johannesburg. PARTICIPATION Participation is open to educators, researchers, parents, therapists and all who have an interest in inclusive education as well as the education of learners with special educational needs. Please see inclusionconference2013.org for more details and for the online registration forms. EXHIBITION An extensive exhibition featuring publishers, suppliers of educational equipment, organisations and training institutions offering specialist programmes and non-profit organisations will open during the conferences. For more information please contact [email protected] SAALED – The Southern African Association for Learning and Educational Differences – works to empower learners with special educational needs to realize their full potential through information, advocacy, advice and services. SAALED changes education barriers into opportunities for diverse learners by serving the needs of individuals involved in the management of learners facing educational challenges.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Jun 2013 20:32:15 +0000
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