Role of digital tools in supporting inclusive education

Abstract

The development and implementation of the principles of democracy, humanism and openness in education contributes to social progress and comprehensive intellectual and spiritual development of the individual. Responding to the needs of the individual and society as a whole brings us closer to the establishment of an educational paradigm, which is the need to ensure equal access to quality education for each individual, regardless of his/her characteristics and limitations. According to the World Bank, 10-12% of the world’s population belong to the category of people with mental and physical disabilities. At the same time, the number of children under the age of 16 who fall into this category is estimated at 140-165 million people. 62 million of them are children of primary school age. They face many barriers to education, which means that school attendance rates and the percentage of those who have successfully completed their studies are much lower than their peers. Of the 75 million children worldwide who did not attend school, a third were children with disabilities. In developing countries, exclusion from the education system is much more significant for people with mental and physical disabilities, of whom about 97% can neither read nor write.