Barriers and Challenges Faced by Teachers and Headteachers towards the Inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs in Government Primary Schools of Karachi
Keywords:
Inclusive education, Special educational needs, Government primary schools, Karachi, Teacher perceptions, Head teachers, Pakistan, Disability inclusionAbstract
Inclusive education has become a central requirement of rights-based education reform, yet the everyday implementation of inclusion remains uneven in many low-resource public school systems. This qualitative study explores how teachers and head teachers in government primary schools of Karachi understand and experience the inclusion of children with special educational needs (SEN). Fourteen government primary schools were selected from the seven districts of Karachi, with two schools from each district. The sample included 84 participants: 70 classroom teachers and 14 head teachers. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed through a hybrid thematic approach that combined deductive codes drawn from the study objectives with inductive codes emerging from participants’ accounts. Findings show that educators generally supported the moral idea of inclusion, but their understanding was often limited to physical placement, charitable care, or integration without instructional adaptation. Four major barriers shaped practice: limited professional preparation, overcrowded classrooms, weak infrastructure and learning resources, and peer rejection or bullying. The study argues that inclusion in Karachi’s government primary schools is not failing because teachers lack compassion; it is constrained because policy commitments have not been translated into practical school-level systems, teacher preparation, classroom support, accessible infrastructure, and accountability mechanisms. The paper recommends a phased implementation model that links provincial policy, teacher education, school leadership, community engagement, and district-level resource support. It concludes that genuine inclusion requires a shift from presence to participation, from goodwill to professional competence, and from isolated teacher effort to coordinated institutional responsibility.
References
Aas, H. K., Uthus, M., & Løhre, A. (2024). Inclusive education for students with challenging behaviour: Development of teachers’ beliefs and ideas for adaptations through Lesson Study. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 39(1), 64–78. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856257.2023.2191107
Ainscow, M. (2020). Promoting inclusion and equity in education: Lessons from international experiences. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, 6(1), 7–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/20020317.2020.1729587
Ainscow, M., Booth, T., & Dyson, A. (2006). Inclusion and the standards agenda: Negotiating policy pressures in England. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 10(4–5), 295–308. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603110500430633
Ainscow, M., & Miles, S. (2008). Making Education for All inclusive: Where next? Prospects, 38, 15–34. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-008-9055-0
Antoninis, M., April, D., Barakat, B., Bella, N., D’Addio, A. C., Eck, M., Endrizzi, F., Joshi, P., Kubacka, K., McWilliam, A., Murakami, Y., Smith, W. C., Stipanovic, L., Vidarte, R., & Zekrya, L. (2020). All means all: An introduction to the 2020 Global Education Monitoring Report on inclusion. Prospects, 49, 103–109. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-020-09505-x
Arcidiacono, F., & Baucal, A. (2020). Towards teacher professionalization for inclusive education: Reflections from the perspective of sociocultural psychology. Estudios de Psicología, 41(2), 215–239. https://doi.org/10.1080/02109395.2020.1714086
Avramidis, E., Bayliss, P., & Burden, R. (2000). A survey into mainstream teachers’ attitudes towards the inclusion of children with special educational needs in the ordinary school in one local education authority. Educational Psychology, 20(2), 191–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/713663717
Booth, T., & Ainscow, M. (2016). The index for inclusion: A guide to school development led by inclusive values (4th ed.). Index for Inclusion Network.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2022). Thematic analysis: A practical guide. SAGE.
Carvalho, M., Simó-Pinatella, D., Azevedo, H., & Adam-Alcocer, A. L. (2024). Inclusive education in Portugal: Exploring sentiments, concerns and attitudes of teachers. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 24(3), 712–723. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12663
Charitaki, G., Kourti, I., Gregory, J. L., Ozturk, M., Ismail, Z., Alevriadou, A., Soulis, S.-G., Sakici, Ş., & Demirel, C. (2024). Teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education: A cross-national exploration. Trends in Psychology, 32, 1120–1147. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43076-022-00240-0
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). SAGE.
Fereday, J., & Muir-Cochrane, E. (2006). Demonstrating rigor using thematic analysis: A hybrid approach of inductive and deductive coding and theme development. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 5(1), 80–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940690600500107
Florian, L., & Black-Hawkins, K. (2011). Exploring inclusive pedagogy. British Educational Research Journal, 37(5), 813–828. https://doi.org/10.1080/01411926.2010.501096
Florian, L., & Spratt, J. (2013). Enacting inclusion: A framework for interrogating inclusive practice. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 28(2), 119–135. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856257.2013.778111
Forlin, C., Keen, M., & Barrett, E. (2008). The concerns of mainstream teachers: Coping with inclusivity in an Australian context. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 55(3), 251–264. https://doi.org/10.1080/10349120802268396
González-Fernández, D., & Iturra, C. (2024). Exploring collaborative practices between teachers and speech and language therapists in inclusive education in Chile and the conditions that influence their development. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 24(4), 999–1013. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12689
Government of Sindh. (2018). Sindh Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2018. Government of Sindh.
Han, C., & Lei, J. (2024). Teachers’ and students’ beliefs towards Universal Design for Learning framework: A scoping review. SAGE Open, 14(3), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440241272032
Hashmi, S. H., & Adnan, M. (2017). Inclusive education in government primary schools: Teacher perceptions. Journal of Education and Educational Development, 4(1), 32–47.
Hehir, T., Grindal, T., Freeman, B., Lamoreau, R., Borquaye, Y., & Burke, S. (2016). A summary of the evidence on inclusive education. Instituto Alana.
Loreman, T. (2007). Seven pillars of support for inclusive education: Moving from “why?” to “how?”. International Journal of Whole Schooling, 3(2), 22–38.
Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training. (2024). National Education Policy Development Framework 2024. Government of Pakistan.
Nelis, P., Pedaste, M., & Leijen, Ä. (2025). Supporting kindergarten staff’s agency in inclusion through long-term in-service training. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 46(1), 103–122. https://doi.org/10.1080/10901027.2024.2410401
Nelis, P., Pedaste, M., & Šuman, C. (2023). Applicability of the model of inclusive education in early childhood education: A case study. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, Article 1120735. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1120735
Pakistan Institute of Education. (2024). Pakistan education statistics 2021–22. Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, Government of Pakistan.
Shakespeare, T. (2014). Disability rights and wrongs revisited (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Sharma, U., Forlin, C., & Loreman, T. (2008). Impact of training on pre-service teachers’ perceptions and concerns about inclusive education and sentiments about persons with disabilities. Disability & Society, 23(7), 773–785. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687590802469271
Sharma, U., Loreman, T., & Forlin, C. (2012). Measuring teacher efficacy to implement inclusive practices. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 12(1), 12–21. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-3802.2011.01200.x
Singal, N. (2006). Inclusive education in India: International concept, national interpretation. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 53(3), 351–369. https://doi.org/10.1080/10349120600847797
Tomlinson, C. A. (2017). How to differentiate instruction in academically diverse classrooms (3rd ed.). ASCD.
United Nations. (2006). Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. United Nations.
UNESCO. (1994). The Salamanca statement and framework for action on special needs education. UNESCO.
UNESCO. (2017). A guide for ensuring inclusion and equity in education. UNESCO.
UNESCO. (2020). Global Education Monitoring Report 2020: Inclusion and education: All means all. UNESCO.
UNESCO. (2024). Global Education Monitoring Report 2024/5: Leadership in education: Lead for learning. UNESCO.
World Health Organization & World Bank. (2011). World report on disability. World Health Organization.
