L’uso dell’Index for Inclusion and Empowerment e lo sviluppo dell’idea di didattica inclusiva nelle scuole Palestinesi dell’area di Gerusalemme Est

Abstract

This contribution presents the results of a research carried out in four schools in East Jerusalem
area during the academic year 2018/19. The aim was testing the use of the Index for Inclusion
and Empowerment (IIE) as tool for promoting a level of instructional design more attentive to
the dimensions of equity, inclusion and self-determination of all those involved in educational
processes. The IIE, built during years of work on the Palestinian territory (Taddei and Pacetti,
2018), aims to enrich the original tool of the Index for Inclusion (Booth and Ainscow, 2002; 2011),
focused on inclusion, with the concept of empowerment. This choice is motivated by a careful
reflection about the characteristics of the Palestinian reality, strongly determined by conditions
of violence, conflict and different forms of individual and social freedom’s limitations. What are
the representations of Palestinian teachers regarding the concepts of empowerment and inclusive
education? What are the teachers' perceptions about the level of Palestinian schools’ inclusion?
What is the impact that the use of the IIE has on instructional design practices? The research
highlights the effectiveness of the IIE as a tool to better identify pupils' needs and then make
appropriate designs. It also highlights the constraints of an international cooperation structure
(who pays little attention to the continuity of educational projects) and the limits of the Palestinian
school system (which does not foresee teachers payments for the hours spent planning
and designing).