Exploring context for implementation of inclusive education for children with developmental disabilities in mainstream primary schools in Ethiopia.

Publisher: Public Library of Science Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101285081 Publication Model: eCollection Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1932-6203 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 19326203 NLM ISO Abbreviation: PLoS One Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: San Francisco, CA : Public Library of Science

Developmental Disabilities*/therapy ; Schools*; Humans ; Ethiopia ; Child ; Female ; Male ; Mainstreaming, Education ; Education, Special ; Stakeholder Participation

A large gap in provision of services for children with developmental disabilities (DD) has been identified in Ethiopia, especially in the education system. Including children with disabilities in mainstream schools is encouraged by policies, but progress in this direction has been limited. This study aimed to explore stakeholders' perspectives on contextual factors relevant for inclusive education for children with DD in mainstream schools in Ethiopia, with a focus on Adis Ababa. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 39 local stakeholders, comprising caregivers of children with DD, school teachers and principals/managers, non-governmental organisation representatives, government officials, clinicians and academics/consultants. We used template analysis to code the data and map them onto domains of the Context and Setting dimensions of the Context and Implementation of Complex Interventions framework. Stakeholders discussed frameworks in the Legal and Ethical context endorsing the right of all children to education. However, they reported multiple reasons why children with DD in Ethiopia have limited access to education, either in special or mainstream schools. First, individual features, such as gender and support needs, discussed in the Epidemiological context, may affect the likelihood of a child with DD to be accepted in school. Transportation challenges are a key barrier in the Geographical context. Socio-economic and Socio-cultural contexts present barriers at the levels of the nation, school and family, mostly related to limited services and material and financial resources and limited awareness of DD. Stakeholders believe the currently limited but growing commitment in the Political context can support progress towards the removal of these barriers. Our findings can form the basis for development of an implementation plan that addresses such barriers and capitalises on existing facilitators.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
(Copyright: © 2024 Genovesi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Glob Ment Health (Camb). 2016 Jul 1;3:e21. (PMID: 28596889)
Autism. 2020 Jan;24(1):51-63. (PMID: 31094208)
Autism. 2024 Jan;28(1):95-106. (PMID: 37194191)
Dev Med Child Neurol. 2020 Apr;62(4):454-462. (PMID: 31762018)
Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2018;88(3):316-327. (PMID: 28816489)
Qual Res Psychol. 2015 Apr 3;12(2):202-222. (PMID: 27499705)
Autism. 2022 Oct;26(7):1606-1625. (PMID: 35635316)
BMC Health Serv Res. 2016 Apr 27;16:152. (PMID: 27117326)
J Am Psychiatr Nurses Assoc. 2017 Sep/Oct;23(5):344-345. (PMID: 28859523)
Implement Sci. 2017 Feb 15;12(1):21. (PMID: 28202031)
Lancet Glob Health. 2018 Oct;6(10):e1100-e1121. (PMID: 30172774)
BMC Health Serv Res. 2023 Dec 15;23(1):1420. (PMID: 38102602)
Autism. 2023 Feb;27(2):539-551. (PMID: 35757938)

United Kingdom WT_ Wellcome Trust

Date Created: 20240809 Date Completed: 20240809 Latest Revision: 20240830

20240830

PMC11315310

10.1371/journal.pone.0307576

39121044