Strategies for creating inclusive and effective schools: -Appropriate planning. -Inclusion is more than the placement of children with special needs in regular classrooms. -Teachers need to understand special educational needs. -Make special provision for the needs of all learners. 1. Developing a common philosophy and strategic plan. Namibia developed a philosophy to provide education for all citizens, based on the four major goals for education: Access Equity Quality Democracy Article 20 of the Namibian Constitution, all persons shall have the right to education. 2. Providing strong leadership An effective leader can create an effective school. Administrator/principal must know their responsibility. Set the tone of the school. Ensure that decisions are made. Characteristics of a good leader in relation to inclusion Dynamic, creative, flexible, proactive and democratic Believe that education system should include all leaners. Firm and unwavering in their belief. Create a culture of inclusiveness in all school- based stakeholders. The role of the administrator/principal Provide support for teachers. Find meaningful way to connect with all students. Develop a discipline approach consistent with inclusion principles. Help the school to maintain a supportive, caring community. 3. Promoting school and classroom cultures that welcome, appreciate and accommodate diversity. Percentage of learners with special needs is increasing in schools. Schools must value , respect, educate and socialize all learners. Develop caring culture. Attend to learners needs for acceptance, belonging and friendship. Teacher-learner and learner-learner social interaction is critically important. 4. Developing support networks Support network ensures that the philosophy and mission of the school is operationalized. A support team is a group of people who brain storm, exchange ideas, methods, techniques and activities to help learners. May consists of teachers, administrators, parents, paraprofessionals, psychologists, special educationists, therapists, learning and beahaviour experts 5.Using a deliberate process to ensure accountability. Proactive monitoring of leaners ensure successful inclusion. Key elements needed in order to deliver successful support for leaners: • Have a deliberate, ongoing planning process. • Support teams must meet on a regular basis, to monitor learner’s support in a proactive way to avert challenges. 6. Developing organized and ongoing technical assistance Need for regular comprehensive and innovative staff development opportunities. Need of task force to provide technical assistance to those involved in teaching learners with special educational needs. Do regular needs assessment. Resource people can serve as consultants and facilitators of staff development efforts. 7. Maintaining flexibility School must educate all learners-with diverse educational needs. Must respond to challenges post by diverse needs. Must be spontaneous and flexible and have courage to take risks. Avoid stagnation. Typical indicators of stagnation We have done it this way We are not ready for that We are doing all right without it We tried it once but it did not work It costs too much Is is time consuming That’s not our responsibility It won’t wok Flexibility…… Requires attitude change. Change in thinking style. Be creative thinkers, not reactive thinkers. Reactive thinkers: • Resistant to change. • “Can’t do” oriented. • Blinded by problems, do not see beyond the problem. • Limited to what worked in the past. Flexibility…… Creative thinkers: • Open to change. • “Can do” oriented. • Seek for opportunities in problematic situations. • Build on successes and strength. 8. Examining and adopting effective teaching approaches Mixed ability in classrooms “One-size-fits-all” approach to teaching does not work anymore. Learners have varying strengths, weaknesses, needs and learning styles. Know your learners well to be able to identify these varying abilities. Teachers can meet the unique needs of learners by: Help learners bypass their weaknesses as they access their area of strength. Modifying assignment and curricula for learners with special educational needs. Creating an environment that nurtures personal creativity and intellectual characteristics. 9. Celebrating success and learning from challenges Staff must be creative and innovative. Recognize the importance of knowledge, celebrating and building on success. Learn and grow with challenges. Develop a culture of self-reflection and continuous improvement. 10. Being knowledgeable about the change process, but not allowing it to paralyze you. People react to change differently. Change can be slow and time consuming. Schools can use the changing process to slowly phase in new practices.