​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Impacts of a lack of inclusion in education on students and their families

This chapter examines the various ways in which a lack of inclusion creates barriers and challenges in accessing education for children and young people with disability; and the effects on them and their families, as well as the broader community. It also outlines the profound and lasting impacts these barriers and challenges can have on their lives, their families' lives, and society as a whole.

Effects on children and young people

A lack of inclusion in education creates significant barriers that impact various aspects of a child's life. Inquiry participants spoke about reduced access to education, poor educational outcomes, behaviour changes, school refusal, and mental distress as negative consequences of these barriers. Many stakeholders highlighted the interconnectedness of these effects, often mentioning the ripple effect on employment, and long-term life, social and economic outcomes.^{[footnote 1.]}​

​ Access to education

A major theme that emerged during this inquiry is the importance of access to education. Many inquiry participants emphasised access to education as a basic right for all children. ^[footnote2.] However, the committee heard multiple examples of this right not being fulfilled. For instance, when asked about the implications of children not being supported, a psychologist who responded to the online questionnaire commented: 'The child would not maintain access to ed​ucation which is a fundamental right of all children'. ^[footnote3.]

Ms Carey Evelyn Pearson, Acting Solicitor, Newcastle, Legal Aid NSW, spoke about the absence of adjustments in schools preventing students from accessing education. Ms Pearson noted that the 'inconsistency in terms of the school's willingness to implement … low-level reasonable adjustments' presents a 'pretty huge barrier' and 'significant anxiety' for young people who have not been at school for years. She added:

The children and young people are often acutely aware of the pressure on their families and most often are saying to us, 'We want to get back to school. We want to be at school. But these are the reasons why we really can't'.^[footnote4.]

On a similar note, Ms Sarah Langston, Policy Co-Lead, Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association, pointed out the cycle of inaccessibility perpetuated by the education system's insufficient efforts to accommodate neurodivergent needs:

… what we see is there is really significant problem with families withdrawing children from the public education system. That is a problem on many levels, the biggest and most systemic of which is it furthers the cycle of inaccessibility … when disabled people experience access barriers, they very often end up withdrawing from that system, which means they're not in the system. Therefore, the system says, 'We don't have any disabled people in our system, so we don't need to provide for them'. ^{[footnote5.]​}

Learning outcomes

Many inquiry participants identified learning outcomes as another area of concern stemming from educational barriers and challenges. As one parent remarked in the online questionnaire to this inquiry: 'They will fall through the cracks and become a burden on society. Unable to read or do simple maths. No future prospects'. ^{[footnote 6.]}​

The implementation of restrictive practices, such as seclusion or physical restraints can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and a sense of powerlessness among those subjected to them … These practices not only infringe upon an individual's autonomy but can also result in long-lasting psychological trauma.^{[footnote 33.]}

Another common sentiment expressed by inquiry participants was that navigating the education system is already challenging for young people with disability. Having to repeatedly justify or prove a disability just to receive adjustments adds an extra burden, severely impacting their mental health. Professor Iona Novak, Chair of Cerebral Palsy Alliance, saw this process as 'insulting' and 'disrespectful' to people with lifelong disabilities,^{[footnote 34.]}

The HSC is stressful enough for any person going through the HSC and, on top of that, my HSC year was filled with getting doctors' reports, different allied health professional reports and things like that … it was incredibly stressful … I think one doctor's report from a specialist that's been seeing you for the last 18 years … should be enough. I don't believe that you should have to go and get hundreds of doctors' reports and spend hours in therapy appointments or proving otherwise.^{[footnote 35.]}

In a university context, the challenge of navigating inflexible course structures, as identified by Ms Mairead Foley, National Disability Officer, National Union of Students, can be particularly stressful for people with disability. Ms Foley pointed out that degrees such as social work or nursing often require completion of a full-time placement, which students with disability may find difficult getting through without support or flexible arrangements. She contended that: 'Forcing them to do a five-day week, nine to five, where there is no flexibility – you're asking someone to put themselves in physical and mental stress. Ultimately that will cause dropouts'.^{[footnote 36.]}

Ms Shirley Liu, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Deaf Australia commented on mental wellbeing from the perspective of the deaf community.^{[footnote 37.]} She stated that language deprivation due to a lack of bilingual opportunities in mainstream schools prevents deaf students from feeling safe and from learning on par with their peers:

Those that come from a hearing family, when they leave high school, we see that they have limited opportunities with their life and employment. They struggle to find work. They also start disconnecting with their family. They start experiencing mental health issues, and it can impact the rest of their life. Compared to someone who has been nurtured within a deaf school, evidence shows that they thrive after education, and the key difference is language, having access to the Deaf community, having deaf role models, having other members of the community around you where you can learn and take in the culture and the experience.^{[footnote 38.]}

Students in out of home care

Children in out of home care (OOHC) face 'significant educational disadvantages'.^{[footnote 39.]}

Some members of this committee visited Passfield Park School, which has students with a diagnosis of autism or an intellectual disability, or both. The school also provides extra support to vulnerable students, who are sometimes in OOHC, which includes meals and safe spaces to rest or sleep during school hours.^{[footnote 40.]}

Legal Aid NSW referred to several studies that show that, in comparison to their non-care peers, children in OOHC:

• are more likely to experience mental health conditions and disabilities^{[footnote 41.]}
• ​ have significantly poorer educational outcomes^{[footnote 42.]}
• are four times more prone to primary school suspensions.^{[footnote 43.]}

Educational disengagement is a major concern for children and young people in residential OOHC.^{[footnote 44.]​}​​ The Official Community Visitor (OCV) scheme under NSW Ageing and Disability Commission raised issues about 'young people not being supported or encouraged to participate in appropriate educational or vocational activities'.^{[footnote 45.]}

• mental health complications
• negative experiences at school
• inability to function at school
• refusal to attend.^{[footnote 46.]}

Not accessing education has further impacts on young people in OOHC, including those who:

• are illiterate
• have not been accepted into their desired school
• find it difficult to socialise with peers
• have health issues
• are allegedly engaged in cr​iminal behaviour. ^{[footnote 47.]}​

Mr Brett Smith, Executive Officer of Operations, AllambiCare described how his organisation has started offering 'Learning without Walls' to those children in out of home care who are not ready for a structured school system. The goal is to help them return to a structured school setting, however, they find that distance education for these students helps build a pathway which otherwise does not exist.^{[footnote 48.]}

In addition, Dr Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery at Western Sydney University stated in her submission that children in OOHC often suffer trauma due to significant maltreatment. This trauma can result in difficulties in stress management, emotional and social development, and forming a relationship. As a result, they are prone to bullying, ostracism, and are more likely to exhibit disruptive behaviours.^{[footnote 49.]}

Dr Gribble stressed the importance of children in OOHC healing from trauma to prevent long-term negative impacts such as mental illness, violence, and poor parenting, which impose significant social and economic burdens. She suggested that home schooling, as provided by their foster or kinship carer, could be a suitable alternative to schooling, as it offers a flexible, individualised approach that can meet the diverse needs of children in OOHC. However, she also highlighted that home schooling is often not accessible for these children,

It is my opinion that those who hold parental responsibility for children in OOHC rarely provide consent for them to be home educated due to: a poor understanding of home education, a lack of support for case workers and managers on home education and a focus on risk and reluctance to try the unusual or to trust foster and kinship carers.^{[footnote 50.]}

Students' interaction with the criminal justice system

The committee received evidence highlighting the disproportionate representation of young people with disability in youth justice and adult prisons.^{[footnote 51.]}

Stakeholders informed the committee of the strong correlation between disengagement with education, particularly due to exclusionary discipline,^{[footnote 52.]}

This trend was also observed among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with disability, who, as Mr Damian Griffis, Chief Executive Officer, First Peoples Disability Network pointed out, often face a similar trajectory from school suspension to juvenile detention and adult prison.^{[footnote 56.]}

Following on from this, Legal Aid NSW highlighted the high prevalence of children with undiagnosed disabilities being criminalised. Often, a diagnosis is only made when Legal Aid NSW funds a medical report for court proceeding. Without a diagnosis, children miss out on necessary adjustment and support services, leading to continued disengagement and punitive responses to disability-related behaviour.^{[footnote 57.]}

The NSW Police Force provided a submission on the Youth Action Meetings initiative. The YAMS initiative uses a 'coordinated service'^{[footnote 58.]} approach for young people at risk of '(re)offending or (re)victimisation, to lessen their contact with the criminal justice system and improve their safety, welfare and wellbeing'.^{[footnote 59.]}

Data about young people who have been referred to, or identified for YAMS from November 2023 to May 2024 found the following:

• 25 per cent had a known disability
• 71 per cent of those with a disability and in a regional location were also known to have disengagement from education or training, absenteeism, poor attendance or truancy
• 69 per cent of those with disability in a regional location were also identified to have poor education or skills training fit, adjustment and transition challenges.^{[footnote 60.]}

The following case study, taken directly from Legal Aid NSW, demonstrates the school-to-prison pipeline that arises from exclusionary discipline, leading to educational disengagement, and eventually, contact with the criminal justice system.

Impact on families

Parents and caregivers of children with disability often described experiencing high stress related to parenting, increased levels of depression and anxiety, reduced relationship satisfaction, and greater reliance on dysfunctional parenting practices.^{[footnote 62.]}​Indeed, families are not immune to the implications discussed above. Like their child with disability and their siblings, they too, are impacted by the various barriers and challenges in the education system.

For example, Ms Charlotte Sangster, Muscular Dystrophy NSW, emphasised the considerable effort parents invest in collaborating with schools just to achieve necessary adjustments for their children, stating 'working with the schools has become almost a second job' for many parents.^{[footnote 63.]} Other inquiry participants mentioned having to resort to homeschooling, or quitting their jobs to care for their children, which often led to financial strain and increased mental stress on the family.^{[footnote 64.]} The following quotes from parents and carers provide a glimpse into the various ways families are impacted:

• 'As a single mum I will have to fund more private speech sessions than I already [am] and pay out of pocket for an OT …'
• 'I now have to home school [my] child, at the same time that I have to care for my terminally ill mother and my mentally ill daughter'.
• 'I am currently moving my youngest to another school. If this doesn't work she will have to homeschool. I know this is more than I can cope with and will be a massive mental strain on me. I will have to stop working. Our children are our lives and I advocate for them at every turn. They have every therapy and specialist I can provide but I shouldn't have to sacrifice my life, my sanity, my mental & emotional health because school will not or cannot support them'.^{[footnote 65.]}​
  
  

Impact of homeschooling on families 

The committee heard multiple accounts of parents resorting to homeschooling, not by preference but because schools are failing to meet their child's needs, described further below. Ms Janelle Barnes, President, Home Education Association, reported to the committee a 37 per cent increase in the number of students being home-educated in New South Wales compared to 2023.^{[footnote 66.]} As previously described, home schooling as a last resort can have a profound impact on families. It often requires parents to sacrifice their own jobs to teach their children. This frequently translated into a financial burden on the family.^{[footnote 67.]}

For example, during a hearing, Ms Sarah Langston, Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association commented on the effect home schooling has had on her colleague's ability to work, remarking, 'Emily is a very skilled child protection worker so she was a very valuable addition to our community but can no longer work now because of having to homeschool'.^{[footnote 68.]} Ms Emily McCann herself, Board Member, Executive Committee, Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association, also spoke about feeling like she had no choice but to home school her children and the resulting financial impact it created. She told the committee:

My child is now eight, but from kindergarten he was getting suspensions, and we've ended up in a second school. We've chosen—I say 'chosen', but I don't really feel like it is a choice—to homeschool. It feels like the only safe option for my son. Homeschooling in itself is a great thing that a lot of families choose to do, and that's wonderful, but when you've got multiple children with extra needs, I would like to make that as a choice rather something that I feel like is my only alternative. It impacts on whether I can earn money and have a job outside of parenting as well. It isn't good for intergenerational vulnerability, when it comes to poverty, to not even know when you might be able to go back to a schooling system.^{[footnote 69.]}

A similar view was shared by Ms Janelle Barnes, Home Education Association who expressed concerns about reduced family income being a barrier to accessing mental health services:

When families choose to home-educate, that usually means that one of the parents becomes the educator and they're living off one income. Therefore, accessing private mental health services is an expense that is often difficult for them to achieve.^{[footnote 70.]}

Impact of suspension and expulsion on families 

Adding to this financial burden is the practice of suspension and expulsion by schools as a disciplinary means in response to a students' behaviour.

Under the Department of Education's Suspension and Expulsion of School Students – Procedure, parents are responsible for the care and safety of the child or young person during their suspension.^{[footnote 71.]}

The Australian Association of Special Education cited data published by the NSW Department of Education on suspension of students in government schools, which showed that students with disability are over-represented. In semester 1 of 2022, students with disability contributed to 50 per cent of suspensions, while only making up 18 per cent of enrolments.^{[footnote 72.]}

According to Ms Meredith Hagger, Youth Law Australia, the exclusionary system is 'in many respects reactive, and puts a significant burden on students with disability and their parents and carers'.^{[footnote 73.]} She recounted an example of a mother who experienced substantial disruptions to her usual work schedule due to her son's suspension, which in turn, caused financial stress for the family:

… we had a primary school student with disability who'd been consistently suspended from a New South Wales school. The mother told me that she'd had to take so much time off work to pick her child and to keep him home while he was suspended that she almost couldn't pay her rent, so the use of exclusionary discipline can have serious impact on the families as well.<^{[footnote 74.]}

Family Advocacy held a similar view highlighting in their submission how a 'heavy onus is placed on the parent to … advocate for their child on a regular basis which is all encompassing and time consuming'.^{[footnote 75.]} It is common for parents to sacrifice job opportunities, reduce their working hours, or even lose their job entirely because they have to take time off to advocate for their child.^{[footnote 76.]}

Emotional toll

In additional to financial burden, stakeholders also pointed out the emotional impact caused by barriers such as inadequate support, unwelcoming school environments, and the use of restrictive practices.

For instance, The Australian Association of Psychologists Incorporated indicated that 'the psychological strain on parents and families is significant as they grapple with the emotional toll of witnessing their child's struggles and the frustration of navigating a system that falls short of meeting their child's requirements'.^{[footnote 77.]} Not only is the wellbeing of the children compromised, but so is the parents', potentially leading to long-term effects on mental health.^{[footnote 78.]}

Impact on siblings

This inquiry heard about the impact that inadequate levels of support for children and young people with disability can have on siblings.^{[footnote 79.]}  Siblings Australia told the committee that 'siblings experience myriad issues with education directly related to being siblings'. This included:

• being unable to participate in extracurricular activities
• finding it hard to have time to study at home
• being interrupted during class
• having disrupted sleep from their brother or sister's night-time activities
• their needs being neglected due to family focusing on their brother or sister's needs.^{[footnote 80.]}

As a result of these challenges, siblings, in comparison with their peers:

• experience higher rates of school absenteeism
• have fewer opportunities for social engagement
• are more likely to experience mental health issues.^{[footnote 81.]}

Some parents prefer to send all their children to the same school in hope of them all receiving the same opportunities. However, in some instances, teachers lack adequate skills to handle disabilities in the classroom, leading to reliance on siblings to help manage challenging behaviour. ^{[footnote 82.]}

A 2008 report also found that siblings have a significantly increased risk of suffering from mental health conditions. Siblings may experience significant stress, confusion and emotions like grief, guilt and anger. They may also feel pressured to be perfect and not add additional stress for their parents, leading them to suppress their struggles and rarely seek help. Such behaviour increases the risk of mental and physical issues for siblings.^{[footnote 83.]} If left unaddressed, these challenges can result in a heightened risk of long-term mental health issues and pose great costs to government and communities.^{[footnote 84.]}

When asked about support or programs for siblings caring for a person with disability, Dr Schedlich and Ms Deborah Summerhayes, Deputy Secretary of Public Schools at NSW Department of Education, both noted the absence of a system-wide approach.^{[footnote 85.]} However, Ms Summerhayes stated that 'schools are very conscientious about understanding the needs of their students' and individual schools 'will respond to particular family needs or particular student needs when identified'.^{[footnote 86.]}

As for the Department of Communities and Justice, it assumes a role in supporting young carers through:

• comprehensive case planning for children with disabilities in OOHC, thereby relieving siblings of care-giving responsibilities
• case planning for siblings with assessments of the impacts on siblings
• employing caseworkers from the Department of Communities and Justice to provide a holistic child support network
• providing a fortnightly allowance to young carers
• funding Carers NSW to offer specialised information, training and services for young carers under the age of 25. ^{[footnote 87.]}

In their submission, Siblings Australia noted that the needs of siblings are often overlooked 'as family attention focuses on the needs of the person with the disability'. They argued that 'siblings do not often have the emotional and cognitive maturity' to fully grasp the complexities surrounding a brother or sister with disability. Siblings Australia advocated for greater recognition and inclusion of siblings in discussions on inclusive education policies. Better support for siblings not only benefits them but also enhances outcomes for their brother or sister with disabilities. ^{[footnote 88.]}

Impact on broader society and ongoing discrimination against people with disability

Beyond the impact on students, siblings and families, barriers and challenges caused by a lack of inclusion in the education setting also pose broader issues for society. Inquiry participants impressed upon the committee that separating children with disability from their peers during childhood reinforces ideas of discrimination and ableism in society.^{[footnote 89.]} This negative attitude toward people with disability perpetuates non-inclusive environments in school systems, creating a cycle that hinders progress toward more inclusive practices. The evidence below highlights stakeholders' views of how a lack of inclusion in schools translates into broader barriers in society and shared their experience with prejudice, discrimination, and ableism.

Barriers of discrimination and ableism

As People with Disability Australia contended in their defence of inclusive education environments: 'Segregation is more than just a physical reality. It is an attitude. It is a way a system thinks, relates, and organises'.^{[footnote 90.]}

Ms Ellen Armfield, person with lived experience, discussed negative attitudes towards people with disability in schools as contributing to broader negative perceptions of disability. She stated:

I think the way we talk about disability, just like the way we talk about anything, impacts the way society thinks about it. If we are constantly framing autism as a negative thing, even in the way that people—I see it in the schoolyard—call others autistic as an insult. That, in itself, is framing autism as something that is negative and as something that should be punished. Yes, I think the understanding of it definitely impacts it. And because, also, as you said, it is based off a deficit—it is like a list of all these things that are wrong with someone—it is very easy to then use those things as a source of something to be bullied about.^{[footnote 91.]}

During a hearing, Brian, a parent of a child with disability, shared with the committee the discrimination and negative attitudes his family has experienced outside of the classroom due to society's lack of understanding for people with disability:

We've experienced all of the discrimination and attitudes towards people with disability – all of the dirty looks and things that we would get when Child A was having a meltdown in the middle of the shopping centre that most of us have experienced. They're clearly not understanding.^{[footnote 92.]}

Similarly, Mr Brent Phillips, Deaf Connect shared a personal story with the committee that alluded to the ableist attitude towards people who are deaf: 

My wife is also deaf and we have two children, who can both hear. When our first daughter was born, the first or second day they did the newborn hearing screening, as they do. The nurse straightaway fitted the technology, tested my daughter, put her hand out and said, 'Congratulations'. My wife and I looked at each other and said, 'Are you congratulating us? Why?' She said, 'Your daughter can hear'. So what would the nurse say to parents whose babies are diagnosed as deaf? It's a pass or fail mentality from the day your child's born, and that struck me a lot when my daughter was born.^{[footnote 93.]}

In response to the stigma around disability, Mr Andrew Wilson, Chair of Australian Alliance for Inclusive Education (All Means All) called for a shift in perception to view disability as something that adds 'difference, nourishment, and diversity' to society. He stated:

We need to change the world view that the education system and our society has that kids with disability are sick and need a medical model so that we can help fix them. We need to change that to a view of diversity … we have kids of different mental and physical ability, and they form a wonderful spectrum that gives our society difference, nourishment and diversity.^{[footnote 94.]}

A cycle of non-inclusivity

In addition, stakeholders discussed how discrimination and ableism in turn perpetuate non-inclusive practices in the education setting.

For example, Family Advocacy used the term 'polished pathway' to describe how a person with disability can too easily move from one segregated setting to the next 'from early intervention to special school … to a sheltered workshop to a group home'.^{[footnote 95.]}

Ms Joanne Yates, Acting Chief Executive Officer of People with Disability Australia, explained how the exclusion of children from mainstream schools leads to segregation, which further 'impedes the transition to inclusive education':

Being excised from the main school body or from the community itself leads to students and their parents unsupported and without collegiate connection. Neither the disabled nor the abled community experience each other. Segregation becomes a self-fulfilling need, and because fully inclusive, unsegregated schools do not exist, it is incredibly hard to imagine their reality. Segregation itself stifles and impedes the transition to inclusive education. It negates any opportunity for parents and students to envisage a fully integrated learning environment.^{[footnote 96.]}

Ms Yates further emphasised the 'critical' role education plays in 'shaping attitudes towards people with disability'. She referred to the Disability Royal Commission, which found segregation reinforces persistent negative perceptions that predispose people with disability to 'lifelong disadvantage', while ableist attitudes perpetuate low expectations regarding the learning abilities and interest of students with disability, further entrenching segregation.^{[footnote 97.]}

Expanding on the theme of ableist attitudes, Mr Julian Laurens, Senior Policy Officer of People with Disability Australia, commented on the different 'structural' and 'systemic' ways ableism can 'creep into' the education setting:

An example is the assumptions about what somebody can and cannot do, what they will or will not like and expectations as well about what they can and cannot achieve … Ableism can creep into—in both those dimensions—so many aspects of an education system: from the assessments we set, from the playgrounds we design, from the seats we have, from the size of the doorways, from the writing—it literally can creep in anywhere.^{[footnote 98.]}

Similarly, on the way in which ableism plays out in the school context, Ms Laura Howard, Senior Community Support Specialist, Muscular Dystrophy NSW, highlighted that ableism instils in kids the 'mindset that they're an inconvenience or they're an added burden on the school'.^{[footnote 99.]}

Ms Libby Gunn of Square Peg Round Whole noted that 'if our mainstream schools were truly inclusive, there would be no need for a choice or segregated settings to be available'.^{[footnote 100.]} This was echoed by Family Advocacy, who said:

Neither mainstream nor special schools offer a genuine choice for parents. Parents of children with disability shared that they do not have viable schooling options to choose from, and that they decide on special school to escape the rejection, stress and academic neglect that is possible in the mainstream schools that are not prepared for children with disability. But we also heard special schools also fall short of providing academic achievements, friendship and the normative preparation for life that families want and expect.^{[footnote 101.]}

Another concern identified by All Means All is the 'deep-seeded stigma and discrimination around disability and special needs that is being played out both openly and subtly'. According to All Means All, there is 'a real cultural problem within the education system around disability' and that this culture is based on perceptions and assumptions that people with disability are '"subhuman", incapable of learning, and burdensome'.^{[footnote 102.]}

What inclusion looks like

Stakeholders also told the committee about the benefits of inclusion on society and shared examples where it was implemented successfully.

Some stakeholders highlighted that adequate resources are vital for inclusive education;^{[footnote 103.]} this includes additional funding for additional support staff, incentives for teachers to gain additional specialist qualification and assistive technology.^{[footnote 104.]}

As described in the examples in Chapter 1, inclusive education benefits more than just the child with disability. This was emphasised by the Australian Centre for Disability Law in their submission:

Providing students with disability adequate support within educational settings facilitates an inclusive environment that enriches the educational experience for all students, preparing them for a society that values diversity and embraces the unique contributions of every individual. The benefits of providing this support are not limited to only students with disability. It will also foster empathy, understanding, and acceptance within the schooling community and society at large.^{[footnote 105.]}

Similarly, the Australian Association of Psychologists noted that 'fostering an inclusive educational environment promotes diversity, empathy, and understanding, contributing to a more compassionate and accepting society'.^{[footnote 106.]}

Adjunct Professor Tamara Smith MP, Member for Ballina, suggested that providing adequate support for students with disability 'sets up disabled people for employment and reduces ableism and discrimination in wider society'.^{[footnote 107.]}

During a hearing Gemma, a parent of a young boy with disability, informed the committee that the key to reducing ableism in society is allowing students with disability to interact with those without disability, as children learn to respect and value each other's differences:

As parents, Jeff and I … are from a generation where we didn't go to school with people with disabilities, or I didn't. But Child D is at school with his brother, who has a disability, and so are Child B's peers. Watching how they naturally interact with Child B gives me hope that having kids with disabilities in mainstream schools with everybody else could actually get rid of the ableism in society, because it changes the way they interact with each other as well. They learn how to make a place for someone who's different, and they learn how to value differences and learn that everyone's different, everyone has struggles, everyone has strengths and everyone has something to contribute.^{[footnote 108.]}

The committee subsequently heard from Ms Loren Swancutt, Chairperson, Inclusive Educators Australia, about the importance of including students with disability in mainstream settings. She stated:

'You don't transition from being in a segregated school with limited opportunities, with limited interaction with communities and then go on to have a flourishing inclusive life beyond school. We know and all the research shows that when students are included in schools, their school outcomes improve considerably and so do their post-school outcomes'.^{[footnote 109.]}

This sentiment was reinforced by young people with disability. Students told Youth Action the benefits of inclusion in mainstream environments:

It would also benefit people in mainstream environments who don't have disabilities to see people with disabilities, to learn to integrate and try to be kinder and more understanding of the fact that disability is a spectrum and that everyone with a disability is going to look different. People with disabilities shouldn't be invisible. Often in mainstream environments they are.

I think that having people with disabilities at regular public schools helps normalise disability. Kids can actually grow up alongside people that have different needs and society will function better.^{[footnote 110.]}

Committee comment

The committee acknowledges with concern the significant impact that a lack of inclusion in education and consequential barriers and challenges faced by children and young people can have on them, their siblings, and their families. It is clear from the evidence that these impacts are wide-ranging and can have potential lifelong consequences. It saddens the committee to learn that many children and young people, along with their families, are burdened with such experiences.

These barriers and challenges caused by a lack of inclusion, such as access to education, learning outcomes, inclusivity, and behaviour, have profound impacts on various aspects of the lives of children and young people with disability.

The committee also heard about the additional barriers to inclusion faced by children with disability in out of home care, as well as the disproportionate number of young people with disability in the youth justice system due to disengagement with education.

The committee learned that distance education can provide a transition pathway for students back to a school classroom setting, and that this transition pathway can particularly suit vulnerable students such as those in out of home care. However, funding for organisations that provide distance education is generally lower than that available to schools with in-person attendance. To meet the needs of students in out of home care, and particularly those with disability, the committee recommends that the NSW Government provide increased funding for organisations that provide distance education for out of home care students with disability.

We note that there were a substantial number of concerns regarding the use of exclusionary discipline like expulsion and suspension by schools. These practices not only profoundly affect student learning outcomes, behaviour, and mental wellbeing; they can also impact parental ability to work and lead to financial stress for families. The committee also finds that the suspension and expulsion of students with disability can have long-term impacts, including their engagement with school and post-school pathways. 

The committee is also troubled by the fact that, on a broader scale, these barriers and challenges caused by a lack of inclusion reinforce prejudice, discrimination and ableism in society which, in turn, perpetuate non-inclusive practices in the education system. However, it should be acknowledged that stakeholders also spoke about examples of excellence. Good inclusion is possible and has far reaching positive impact on society.

End of Chapter 2.​

Continue to Chapter 3 | Return to table of contents​

Footnotes