Education in times of conflict and the invisibility of disability: a focus on Iraq?

Abstract

Education has come to be a key focus of the humanitarian response of international agencies in countries affected by conflict, but disabled children tend to be excluded from these education initiatives. Yet the reconstruction process can provide governments with a unique opportunity to reassess the way they educate disabled children, and consider moving towards more inclusive educational approaches. Indeed, crises can be seen as opportunities to 'build back better'. A review of the limited literature is followed by an account of a disability study in Iraq, and reflections on the way forward for collaborative research on educational reconstruction in post-conflict societies.

People with disability and new disaster communications: access and the social media mash-up

“…While 'shifting frontiers and boundaries' were considered during 2011, in 2013 'global conflicts and crises' were explored. These special issues investigate the experience of people with disability during times of disaster and conflict in the context of the invisibility and vulnerability of people with disability (Miles 2013;Mirza 2011;Rohwerder 2013), the experience of refugees and those seeking to cross borders (Kim 2011;Mirza 2011;Soldatic 2013;Straimer 2011) and, finally, the importance of advocacy and increasing the voice of disabled people (Aldersey 2013;Arenas Conejo 2011;Burton, Sayrafi, and Srour 2013;Loja, Costa, and Menezes 2011;Munsaka and Charnley 2013;Wehbi 2011). However, the topic of the Internet and social media and their role in disaster communications is not addressed.…”

Prioritising the Inclusion of Children and Young People with Disabilities in Post-conflict Education Reform

“…If the link between conflict and education is a "grossly under-analysed area", as Lynn Davies suggests (2004, p. 7), what does that mean for the analysis of educating children with disabilities in post-conflict circumstances? Unfortunately, remarkably little is known about these circumstances due to a lack of data collected to monitor the participation of children with disabilities in schools and few academic studies in this area (Bines & Lei, 2007;Lei & Myers, 2011;Miles, 2013). The lack of available analysis demonstrates that this has been an under-resourced area of study which should be addressed.…”

4 Children with and without disabilities in disasters. A narrative overview of play-based interventions into the humanitarian programmes and researches

“…These children may have a pre-existing disability prior to emergencies or they may have reported an impaiment due to the conflict or the disaster. Vulnerability in their cases is exacerbated by facing natural and man-made hazards and their indipendence reduced (Miles, 2013), by factors that include mobility difficulties, preexisting medical conditions, and existing social and physical structures and policies (Peek & Stough, 2010;Boon et al, 2011). Physical disabilities can limit children's effective responses to disaster; in Haiti, hundreds of children lost their limbs from crashes during the 2010 earthquake, while others under-went amputation as a result of secondary infections (Alexander et al, 2012).…”

“…), and can be used in post-conflict situations as well as for educational access for otherwise marginalized children, such as children labourers, children living in remote geographical areas and very poor children. In advocating also for the importance of education in emergencies, literature focuses especially on the development of more inclusive education systems and schools (Miles, 2013).…”