Christopher Johnstone

TThe Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Student Support Services Divison (SSSD) of the Ministry seek to develop a Seamless Education System that provides inclusive education for all students of the nation. To assist the MOE and the SSSD in these efforts, Miske Witt and Associates conducted research on inclusive education in Trinidad and Tobago from January 2007 to January 2008. This Final Report provides a summary of the data analysis and offers recommendations for strategies to support activities that will enable the MOE to succeed in its inclusive education efforts.

The recommendations are based on a comprehensive analysis of data collected for this report and are presented according to the six major components of the study:

1. Assessment and early intervention

2. System transformation: Development of model schools

3. Profession development and curriculum differentiation

4. Monitoring and evaluation

5. Socialisation and outreach and

6. Cost effectiveness analysis and facilities upgrades

Outcomes of the study related to these components include: (1) a demographic profile of student needs; (2) recommendations and a plan of action for systemic change; (3) training plans for pre-service and in-service special and general education personnel; (4) recommendations and a plan of action to build capacity and to provide an effective monitoring and evaluation system; (5) development of a social communication and outreach plan; (6) recommended funding strategies and a plan of action for upgrading schools. For each component, phased steps that the executing unit or ministry will need to take to implement the recommendations are provided over a ten-year period.

Throughout this study, strategies for inclusive education (IE) encompass all students with special education needs (SEN). Specifically, these students include ?dropouts, students with learning or other disabilities, students who are gifted and talented, students infected or affected with HIV, students with social, emotional, or behavioural difficulties, and ESL students (English for speakers of other languages).? (Ministry of Education Student Support Services Division. Understanding Inclusive Education in Trinidad and Tobago. December 27, 2007.)

To carry out this study, Miske Witt and Associates trained and collaborated with several teams of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) education professionals to achieve the goal of building local capacity, enhancing sustainability, and ensuring collaboration of key stakeholders. Headed by Miske Witt researchers, these teams collected data from 42 school site-visits in primary and secondary schools across all seven districts of Trinidad and also Tobago. In addition, Miske Witt developed, disseminated, collected and analysed data from a national survey disseminated to 460 primary schools, 150 secondary schools, and 29 special schools. Miske Witt researchers also conducted numerous interviews with heads of agencies, community members, and staff of several ministries.