ABSTRACT

Title : THE STATE OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN THE PHILIPPINES: POLICY AND LEGISLATIVE IMPLICATIONS

Researcher : BERNARDO, REX ADIVOSO

Type of Document: Unpublished Dissertation

School: BICOL UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL

The main objective of this study is to evaluate and recommend policies for the effective implementation of Inclusive Education in the education system in the Philippines. It specifically gathered data on the existing policies and current inclusive education practices based on the nature of integration, curriculum and instruction, facilities, teacher training, administration, orientation of school officials, faculty, students and parents, community support, linkages, peer
Experiential cases of successful persons with disabilities in educational mainstreaming; and 5. Survey questionnaire for the country’s leaders of persons with disabilities.

Results of the study revealed the following findings:

The current disability-inclusive practices in the Philippine higher education system are not enough to support a truly inclusive education in the educational system. There are present policies that support disability-inclusive practices but the challenges are daunting like the lack of data, the needed resources and available infrastructure, the seeming lack of priority of its implementation and the biggest hurdle which is the negative societal attitude that hinders any attempt for its institutionalization.

However there are “best practice” models that can be cited wherein inclusive education has become a reality for the Filipino child with a disability. Several cases of pioneering programs on inclusion by the private schools have successfully adopted an inclusive framework by designing their own programs, modifying their curricula, adopting alternative grading schemes, utilizing effective teaching strategies and instructional materials to ensure holistic learning outcomes for ALL.

The current disability-inclusive policies need a lot of catching up to be at par with international models of educational inclusion. For a start, the new