III International Congress of "Human Rights and Inclusive School"

We inform you that the Congress dates have changed to the 16th and 17th of April, 2021, and that it will be held in person and online. I accordance with these dates, all deadlines (submission of new communication proposals/registration dates, etc.) on the Congress page have been rectified. Proposals which have already been submitted will be assessed within the new deadlines.

The recognition of the right to education for children and young people with disabilities recognised in the World Declaration on Education for All (UNESCO, 1990), in the Salamanca Declaration (1994) and in the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) expresses an international consensus on the rejection of educational models focused on deficits and segregating spaces and practices.  To respond effectively to the needs of ALL students, the educational model must be centred on inclusion, on learning and must incorporate the concepts and principles of Universal Design for Learning (DUA).

In compliance with the international guidelines and agreements, of which it is a signatory country, Portugal has been developing education policies that fulfill the principles of inclusion and educational equity for all children/young people and that promote positive attitudes and respect for the diversity of the Human being.  This has been a process of deepening and consolidating Portuguese educational institutions, particularly for students with disabilities, of which the recent Decree-Law No. 54/2018 is an example, and which incorporates inclusion, equity and DUA.

The change is not only made in the way of educational policies, but, fundamentally, in the way of the (re)construction of culture, school organisation and educational practices produced by the daily experience of all of those who work in the educational institutions of pre-school education, basic education , secondary and higher education.  The III International Congress on Human Rights and Inclusive School aims to be an interdisciplinary space in which stakeholders from the educational community (educators, teachers, principals and other elements of the educational system) and researchers can share and reflect on their practices in response to recent educational policies to achieve educational equity for ALL students.