Inclusive Practices in Education - The emergence of the European Forum of Inclusion Practitioners

We wanted to empower practitioners, highlight professional development and aid the translation of research into practice. We also wanted to build a long lasting network for sustainability with an ...

We wanted to empower practitioners, highlight professional development and aid the translation of research into practice. We also wanted to build a long lasting network for sustainability with an online fram work that can develop independently by the members of the European forum. We wanted to make this European forum available to other regions globally, facilitating connections, networking, shared experiences internationally and nationally. We also set out ot achieve a shift in the inclusion narrative and understanding, moving from a deficit-expert model of inclusion to a partnership - support model of inclusion. We felt that this is best done by promoting discussions, sharing experiences and translating research into practice. Our aim was to facilitate connections between professional groups working in schools and between policy makers and practitioners as well as researchers and practitioners. In concrete terms, we wanted to create a frame work for networking, sharing and disseminating knowledge that is sustainable for the future. We wanted the IFIP Europe to be an important partner ahead for policy makers, researchers and practitioners and the forum to grow through the members.

6 transnational in situ meetings to share experiences, visit schools, get inspiration and create the online forum with activities and resources. Each partner carried out a case study connected with their line of expertise to disseminate in the forum. Online activities: 6 webinars to share knowledge about the case studies we were working on. We also had a strategic group meeting every month. We arranged to be part of a conference at UNESCO Paris to share case studies, recruit members and talk about inclusion. We set out to network independently by taking part in conferences to promote IFIP Europe and inclusion discussions. The BETT conference in London is one example as well as national conferences for practitioners and researchers. We created an online stop shop for networking, finding information and knowledge as well as get inspired by resources in different areas central to practitioners in schools. In order to populate this online resource bank we gathered information, wrote texts and put together diverse presentations, interviews and stories to inspire and promote discussions on inclusion in schools. The main objective being to empower practitioners to try and use new tools and strategies.