Inclusive education reform in Kazakhstan: civil society activism from the bottom-up

Abstract

ABSTRACT It is a common discourse in Kazakhstan that policy-making is state-driven with weak engagement of civil society. The Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan announced a transition to an inclusive education model by 2020. The present study sought to challenge the traditional perspectives on the policy-making process and to investigate to what extent and how civil society in Kazakhstan contributes to inclusive education reform. It employed a qualitative approach, interviewing seven representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) about their contribution to inclusive education reform in Kazakhstan. The findings show that the NGOs actively engage in revising the policies and ensuring their implementation. Furthermore, they facilitate the provision of methodological support to schools and professionals, contribute to promoting cultural change about perceptions of people with special needs, and inform parents, the state, and the public more broadly about the needs of children requiring additional educational supports. These findings give credit to the leadership of NGOs and suggest the need for government and schools to cooperate more closely with civil society organisations, which serve as change-agents in facilitating inclusive education in Kazakhstan.