1. Legislation

2. Integration V inclusion.
According to Fredrickson and Cline (2002) “integration involves the school in a process of assimilation where the onus is on the assimilating individual (whether a pupil with SEN or a pupil with a different cultural and linguistic background) to make changes so that they can ‘fit in’

3. UNESCO (2007) believes that “inclusive education provides the best solution for a schools system which can meet the needs of all learners. Inclusive education cannot be developed in isolation from overall school development. Inclusive education cannot be seen as a specific issue, but must be regarded as an approach to the development of the entire school system”.

4. The last two decades have witnessed important legislative changes seeking to tackle discrimination towards disabled people. There is a lot that can be done to change negative attitudes, including:

5. • Better education of teachers, early professionals, SNAs and parents.
• Ensuring there are more opportunities for disabled people and people who aren’t disabled to have positive interactions
• Encouraging more positive portrayals of disability and disabled people in the media.
• Developing positive attitudes in children about equality
• Maintaining the inclusive strategies that we have now and building on these

6. Era of Neglect
During the first half of the twentieth century there was little or no progress in the development of educational provision for people with general learning disabilities, then called mental handicap. (Swan A Chance to Learn 2000) describes this as the era of neglect.

7. Special needs provision in Ireland has evolved since the founding of the state in 1922 but until the early 1990s practically all education and care of children was carried out by the religious orders in Ireland.
The government therefore had little need for policies or legislation surrounding education and care

8. Ireland established its education system in 1831 while under English rule.
This made it mandatory for children between the ages of six and fourteen to attend school. for at least 150 days of each year.
The belief at the time was that children with special needs had medical conditions instead of having learning difficulties.

9. Institutional care
Training

10. Era of the special school
In 1947, local educational authorities were required to determine learning difficulties in children. Special schools were then set up by the Education Act 1947 to accommodate pupils with learning difficulties.
In 1959 the First inspectorate for special education was established.
Throughout the 1960s, 1970s and up to the mid-1980s, considerable numbers of new special schools were established to cater for children with physical, mental and sensory impairments.

11. The Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Mental Handicap (1965) made many recommendations that influenced the development of educational provision for students with general learning disabilities.
It used the term “mental handicap”
Since the commission’s report was published, separate special schools and special classes were provided for students functioning at these three levels of intellectual ability.

12. Since the commission’s report was published, separate special schools and special classes were provided for students functioning at the levels of intellectual ability.

13. After the introduction of the 1971 primary curriculum, most special schools and classes provided a modified curriculum for their students.
In the nineteen seventies the Department of Education developed Curriculum Guidelines for Schools for the Moderately Handicapped.
One important principle of these guidelines was that children have needs as ‘children’, that have to be satisfied at school as well as their needs as future adults.
A short set of guidelines for post-primary schools “designated as centres making special provision for mildly mentally handicapped pupils” was also issued to schools in the early eighties

14. The Visiting Teacher Service, initially established in the 1970s was the first support service available to children with special needs who were not attending special schools.
In the mid-1980s there was a worldwide lobby for the integration of children with special needs into mainstream schools.
This lobby began to influence Irish educational policy and a number of classes for children with special needs began to be established within mainstream schools for children with mild learning disabilities or physical disabilities.
Special education became part of teacher training courses in the state’s teacher training colleges

15. Since 1986, specific educational provision has been made for students with severe and profound general learning disability.
Special classes for these students have been established in schools or through the assignment of teachers to Child Education and Development Centres (CEDs).
This development has its origins in a pilot scheme launched in a limited number of schools and institutions in 1986.

16. Since then there has been a rapid spread of special classes for students with severe and profound general learning disabilities throughout the country, and a number of special schools that accommodate such students have also been established. (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (1999)

17. Since the late 1980s The Department of Education and Science has vigorously pursued a policy of integrating pupils with special needs in mainstream schools.
In 1990 Ireland signed an EU Council of Ministers’ Charter which obliged Departments of Education to actively promote the concept of Inclusion in schools.
This action was in response to the many calls from parents’ groups and others concerned with seeking appropriate Educational placement for all children with special needs.

18. Since the late 1980s The Department of Education and Science has vigorously pursued a policy of integrating pupils with special needs in mainstream schools.
In 1990 Ireland signed an EU Council of Ministers’ Charter which obliged Departments of Education to actively promote the concept of Inclusion in schools.
This action was in response to the many calls from parents’ groups and others concerned with seeking appropriate Educational placement for all children with special needs.

19. SERC
Special education policy development within Ireland during the 1990s was principally informed by government-sponsored initiatives (usually based on collaboration with the education partners) in both general and special education;
this combined with very effective parental litigation campaigning for appropriate education for their disabled children made significant advancements in policy.
In 1991, the government commissioned a comprehensive review of all special needs provision in Ireland from preschool through to secondary.
On foot of this review, the Report of the Special Education Review Committee (SERC) was published in 1993 (DES 1993).

20. This report was important for a number of reasons.
It provided a definition of special needs that included those with severe and profound difficulties through to those who were exceptionally able and it included both physical and mental disabilities.
It recognised the desire of the majority of parents of children with special needs that they be educated in mainstream schools.
It recommended that there be a school psychological service linked to the existing school health service.

21. The school psychological service should deal with issues of assessment and assist with planning.
Integration was to be the most desirable option, with as little segregation as possible for all children, not just those at the milder end of the spectrum.
It found that segregated special education inhibits the realisation of one of the main goals of education for children with special needs
– that of equipping them with the necessary skills to live, socialise and work in their own communities.

22. It identified that teacher training was inadequate in the area of special needs provision and that there was a lack of contact between special education and mainstream systems.
It recommended the establishment of a continuum of educational provision to meet various levels of special educational need.
Depending on individual need, children could have:
• Full-time placement in a mainstream school with additional support
• Part-time or full-time placement in a special class or school
• Full-time placement in a residential special school
• Part-time placement in a Child Education and Development Centre or special school

23. These included:
• Schools for students with mild general learning disability
• Schools for students with moderate general learning disability
• Schools for students with severe and profound general learning disability
• Schools for students with emotional and behavioural disturbance
• Schools for students with severe emotional and behavioural disturbance
• Schools for students with physical disability

24. • Hospital schools
• Schools for students with hearing impairment
• Schools for students of Traveller families
• Schools for students with multiple disabilities
• Schools for students with visual impairment
• Schools for students with reading disability
• Schools for students with autism
• Schools for young offenders and disadvantaged students

25. The right to education is recognised under Article 42 of the Constitution.
However, in 1993 The SERC Committee reported:
“Ireland has a conspicuous lack of legislation governing much of education but particularly covering educational provision for students with special needs”.
The Irish people, in 1937, adopted the Constitution of Ireland.
It promised free primary education to future generations.
Since the 1990s, the courts have found on numerous occasions that that promise was not fulfilled.
Litigation in the sphere of education emerged as an important agent for change in special education

26. For the first time the ‘constitutional right’ to education was explicitly interpreted as covering educational needs of children with severe disabilities.
The O’Donoghue and Sinnott case judgements (1993 & 2000), became the basis for a series of challenges to the State.
These rulings dealt with the ‘State’s failure’ to make adequate provision for their children with special educational needs.
Since then, parents have sought the protection of the courts to give practical effect to a constitutional right to an education for their children with special educational needs and forced the Government to give legislative effect to this right.

27. O Donoghue Ruling
A constitutional right was at issue which had been repeatedly contested by the Respondents.
O'Hanlon J was not satisfied that the matter was adequately addressed by the Respondents funding a place for the Applicant.
It was not for them to choose when to allow the exercise of a constitutional right which they were obliged to allow;
"that which is already due in justice may not be offered as a gift charity"

28. In 1996 The Strategy for Equality Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities highlighted the
lack of co-operation between special and mainstream schools,
the lack of support services, transport, resources and equipment
and the lack of flexibility within the mainstream curriculum for people with special needs.

29. The White Paper
In 1999, the government published ‘Ready to Learn’ (DES)
The White Paper reiterated the SERC report’s findings when it stated
‘all students, regardless of their personal circumstances, have a right of access to and participation in the education system, according to their potential and ability’.
This report highlighted the importance of early intervention for children with special needs and called upon the government to improve this sector’s provision by:

30. Summary of White Paper on Education (1995)
Key Commitments:
The development of the Early Start pre-school programme in disdvantaged areas
The revision of the Primary School Curriculum to include more precisely stated learing objectives, sensitive and systematic assessment of student' potential and needs, literacy and numeracy, the arts, Irish, science, European awareness programmes, and the promotion of health and well-being
The needs of children with disabilities will receive special attention, ranging from mainstream provision to special provision
The full participation of all traveller children of primary school-going age in primary education

31. Increasing support for preschools already enrolling children with special needs
• Increasing resources with visiting teacher supports
• Extending the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) to the early years sector
• Giving parents access to early childhood education experts
• Improving the training and skill of early childhood educators
• Increasing the level of provision for preschool children with special needs
• Increasing support for preschools already enrolling children with special needs

32. Developments in general education also influenced the direction of special education policy and provision.
A stated objective of the Education Act (1998) is “to give practical effect to the constitutional rights of children, including children who have a disability”.
Over the years, special education and general education, while connected, had developed separately and appeared to run along parallel lines.
Special education had little presence in general education decision making and policy development, and as a result often appeared to be fragmented and lacking coordination.
However there has been a very considerable movement towards the development of inclusive practices and coordination of services in Irish education over the last 25 years

33. The Primary School Curriculum (1999) now states that;
‘All children have a right of access to the highest-quality education appropriate to their needs.
This includes children whose disabilities or circumstances inhibit their effective participation in the education that is normally provided for children of their age.
It is important that a range of educational provision is available that is flexible enough to cater for the special needs of individual children at the various stages of their development’

34. NEPS
The National Council for Special Education was set up in December 2003.
It has overall responsibility for special needs provision in Irish schools, assessing school applications for SNAs and co-ordinating services throughout the country.
Ireland has reached the stage where fewer than 1 per cent of students now attend special schools.
In the vast majority of cases mainstream schools are the first choice for parents of children with special educational needs.
There have been numerous reports and recommendations that have shaped the changes seen today below is a list of significant reports and policy initiatives.

35. The Acts
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989 ratified in 1992)
The Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997
Citizens Information Act 2007 Buildings Regulations Act ( )
Freedom of Information Act 1998 (amended, 2003 and 2016)
The Education Act 1998
Data Protection Act 1988 (amended in 2003)
The Employment Equality Acts 1998–2015

36. National Disability Authority Act 1999
The Childcare Act 2001
The Teaching Council Act 2001
The Education (Welfare) Act 2000
The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004
The Disability Act 2005
The Equal Status Act –2012
Equality Commission Act 2014

37. . European policy In addition to the National legislation, there has been a range of international human rights legislation and agreements which supports inclusive education, reasonable accommodation and a right to inclusive services, for those with disabilities or special needs.

38. Decade of Disabled Person 1981 to 1992 1981 to 1992 was the UN "Decade of Disabled Persons".
In 1987, a global meeting of experts to review progress recommended that the UN General Assembly should draft an international convention on the elimination of discrimination against persons with disabilities.
It was the first human rights treaty of the 21st century, to protect and enhance the rights and opportunities of the world's estimated 650 million disabled people

39. Countries that sign up to the convention will be required to adopt national laws, and remove old ones, so that persons with disabilities would have:
• Equal rights to education, employment, and cultural life
• The right to own and inherit property
• Not be discriminated against in marriage, children, etc
• Not be unwilling subjects in medical experiments

40. The Salamanca Statement 1994
representatives of 92 governments and 25 international organisations formed the World Conference on Special Needs Education, held in Salamanca, Spain.
They agreed a dynamic new Statement on the education of all disabled children, which called for inclusion to be the norm.
In addition, the conference adopted a new Framework for Action, the guiding principle of which is that ordinary schools should accommodate all children, regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other conditions.

41. All educational policies, says the framework, should stipulate that disabled children attend the neighbourhood school 'that would be attended if the child did not have a disability.'
In addition, the Conference adopted a new Framework for Action, the guiding principle of which is that ordinary schools should accommodate all children, regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other need.

42. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (1992)
The Convention spells out the basic human rights to which children everywhere are entitled.
These are
the right to survival;
the right to the development of their full physical and mental potential;
the right to protection from influences that are harmful to their development;
and the right to participation in family, cultural and social life.

43. Articles Relating to Additional Needs
• Article 2: Non-discrimination •
Article 3: Best interests of the child •
Article 4: Implementation of rights •
Article 5: Parental guidance and the child’s evolving capacities
• Article 6: Survival and development

44. Article 12: The child’s opinion
• Article 16: Protection of privacy •
Article 17: Access to appropriate information
• Article 23: Children with a disability
Article 24: Health and health services
• Article 27: Standard of living
• Article 28: Education
• Article 29: Aims of education •
Article 31: Leisure, recreation and cultural activities

45. The Barcelona Declaration (1995)
The Barcelona Declaration (1995) resulted from the European Congress "The City and the Disabled";
it was a commitment at local government level to promote inclusion of people with disabilities in Europe.
In signing, local authorities and municipalities agreed to develop a plan of action for implementation, including consulting people with disabilities and their advocates

46. it is necessary to consider the differences between citizens as a part of the diversity of which society is made up designing services and structures so that they can be used by everyone, and making unnecessary, in most cases, the existence of specific elements for disabled persons. The Declaration was signed by over 400 authorities between 1995 and 2004, 101 of which were Irish local authorities.

47. European Commission's eEurope initiative 1999
to develop Information and Communication Technology (ICT) that promoted social inclusion.
Adopting a Universal Design Approach, a series of action plans have steered the member states towards the three key objectives:

48. Bringing every citizen, home and school, every business and administration, online and into the digital age
. • Creating a digitally literate Europe, supported by an entrepreneurial culture ready to finance and develop new ideas.
• Ensuring that the whole process is socially inclusive, builds consumer trust and strengthens social cohesion.

49. CRPD United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2006
This Convention recognises that every person must be empowered to participate in society and to live life to his or her fullest potential.
This universal, legally binding standard ensures that the rights of persons with disabilities are guaranteed.
Ireland has signed and ratified the
Convention. But without the optional protocol

50. Areas of the convention:
Equality and non-discrimination;
Women and children with disabilities
Awareness raising
accessibility Access to justice, liberty and security
Equal recognition before the law
Freedom from exploitation, abuse and cruel treatment

51. Freedom of movement
Living independently
community involvement
Personal mobility
Freedom of expression and opinion,
access to information

52. Respect for privacy
Respect for home and family Education
health, rehabilitation, work and employment
Social protection
Participation in public, political, social and cultural life

53. The council of Europe Disability Action Plan 2006-2015
the principles of Universal Design are vital to the implementation of the listed actions.
Specifically, member states are recommended to implement Universal Design principles into new developments in the following areas: ICT, transport, the built Environment and product research.
Member States are also urged to establish centres that promote the concept of Universal Design.