Project News

The job title "Inclusive Education Officer" (IE) refers to officers who have been assigned to education departments and divisions in each Aimag and District, and are responsible for promoting inclusive education in their respective areas. Due to budget constraints, in many cases, the primary education officers and formal and non-formal education officers who are already in place also serve as IE officers.

In the project, we are working with IE officers to promote inclusive education in kindergartens and schools. The following is an example of the daily work of one IE officer.

Ms. Tsogzolmaa, who is working as an IE officer in Bayangol District, was assigned in July 2021. She has a dual role in formal and on-formal education and inclusive education. Bayangol District was also a pilot district for the previous phase of the START project, and the entire district is working to support children with disabilities and promote inclusive education.

One day in November 2021, the START project staffvisited the Education Division of Bayangol District in the morning to discuss with Ms. Tsogzolmaa and the Director of the Education Division the inclusive education dissemination plan that will last until June 2022. The plan consists of 14 activities that have been developed, including online training for school committee members of schools in the district, a survey on the degree of implementation of individualized education plans, etc.

After the discussion, her work was to visit kindergarten No. 164 with the project members. This kindergarten is planning to renovate the restrooms, install ramps, and eliminate steps to make it easier for children with disabilities to attend, and Ms. Tsogzolmaa is in charge of coordinating with the kindergarten.

That afternoon, together with a representative from the Division of Social Development, she participated in an online meeting for a project that is being implemented with the support of World Vision. After that, she revised the format of the survey of children with disabilities that she regularly asks kindergartens and schools to conduct, and shared it with them through the Facebook group page.

That evening, she prepared for the completion ceremony of the training program for English teachers conducted by the district. Besides these duties, she is busy every day preparing documents and answering phone calls from kindergartens and schools.

The IE officers will be supporting and monitoring the efforts of kindergartens and schools to promote inclusive education. Although this is still a new role, the project will work with them to ensure that their activities are efficient and effective.