FULL REFERENCE: Purdue, K., Griffiths, V., Hall, E., Hartley, D., Hohaia-Rollinson, F., Malcolm, J., Solomon, J., Tate, A. & Williamson-Garner, D. (2024). Barriers to and facilitators of inclusion and equity for teachers with disabilities in early childhood education: Advancing the conversation in Aotearoa New Zealand. NZ International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 26, pp. 30 – 44.
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ABSTRACT: In April 2023, we initiated a kōrero/conversation about the rights of kaiako/teachers with disabilities in early childhood education (ECE) in Aotearoa New Zealand. We noted that national research regarding the training and workforce experiences of disabled kaiako/teachers in ECE was limited. Accordingly, we wanted to find out more about what constitutes quality learning, teaching, and workplace environments for disabled kaiako/teachers, what their inclusion and exclusion experiences are, and the implications of these experiences for their rights, sense of belonging, and wellbeing.
We invited disabled kaiako/teachers who were either training and/or working in ECE to share their experiences by completing an open-ended questionnaire delivered online via Survey Monkey. The 56 respondents shared their positive and negative experiences with us. In this article, we share insights gained into the barriers to and facilitators of inclusion and equity in initial teacher education (ITE) and ECE for disabled kaiako/teachers. We also offer some recommendations for the ITE and ECE sector about what needs to be done to ensure an equitable and inclusive teaching sector for this group of kaiako/teachers both now and in the future.
KEY WORDS: Disabled teachers, disability, inclusion, equity.
INTRODUCTION
Over the past three years, our research into kaiako/teacher diversity in early childhood education (ECE) in Aotearoa New Zealand has explored the extent to which ECE learning and teaching environments are inclusive, culturally safe, and supportive of all kaiako/teachers (Griffiths et al., 2021, 2022, 2023a). Most recently, we have turned our attention to the rights and wellbeing of disabled kaiako/teachers (Griffiths et al., 2023b). The United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) states that “persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others” (United Nations, 2006, p. 4). The New Zealand Disability Strategy 2016–2026 (Office for Disability Issues, 2016) defines disability as “something that happens when people with impairments face barriers in society … it is something that happens when the world we live in has been designed by people who assume that everyone is the same” (p. 12). Kaiako/teachers with disabilities currently working towards an early childhood teaching qualification and/or working within the sector can have a wide range of disabilities, including neurodiversity, learning, mental health, physical, sensory, and health.
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