Abstract

Moving towards inclusion has become a significant step among educational institutions both in international and local fields. This, however, still presents several challenges that must be address starting from investigating the ideas of inclusion in an institution including its capability and resources to efficiently deliver and achieve the goals of inclusive education. This study was conducted in a non-sectarian private educational institution in terms of practices, culture, and policies which would be the bases for developing inclusive policies for the school. This involved 292 participants composed of school officials, teachers and staff, parents/guardians, and students through a mixed methods approach. The result of the study yielded to a very high level of inclusion while the qualitative data that were gathered from eight (8) randomly selected participants from the sample size expressed that the barriers in implementing inclusive education were focused on the lack of trainings and skills of teachers and staff to attend to the needs of the diverse learners and the lack of awareness about engaging with students with special needs, and the insufficiency of the resources and facilities to implement inclusive education. While the experiences and effectiveness vary among the participants in terms of positive and negative perception of the implementation of inclusive education, the absence of actual policy about inclusive education has led to the need to craft inclusive policies: these may revolve around skills development, knowledge development, inclusive facilities and resources, sustainability, and assessment and admissions. The high index of inclusion may be rooted in the participants’ ideal notion of inclusive education but not as a system due to the absence of actual policies in the school.