In the August 2024 edition of Early Childhood Update, we introduced the Disability Inclusion Research in Kindergartens project, a 2-year initiative exploring ways to better support children with complex medical needs, disabilities or developmental delays in kindergarten settings.
This research began in 2024 to investigate contemporary approaches to inclusion. Now with the research entering its final year, we’d like to take this opportunity to share the progress made throughout 2024 and key findings from this phase of the project.
What we did
The 2024 research involved:
- conducting the Disability Inclusion Needs survey to better understand the number of children with additional needs and level of support needed across Victorian funded kindergarten programs
- developing and testing a new Kindergarten Inclusion Support Profile (KIS Profile) to help identify strengths, support needs, and required modifications for children with additional needs
- designing options for new systems and supports to help educators, teachers, services and the system provide inclusive education for children with additional needs.
We worked with key stakeholders to develop the KIS Profile, and incorporated research and literature on inclusive education to further refine its design. Read further below for ‘where to next’ in this project.
What we learned
In 2024, key research initiatives looked at enhancing inclusive practices in early childhood education.
We learned a lot more about Victorian children with additional needs in kindergartens. The Disability Inclusion Needs survey was an early step in learning about the range of needs across the early childhood education sector. This helped inform where to focus our improvements.
We were able to develop a new way of considering how to support children that uses strengths-based language and considers the functional needs of children to participate and benefit from engagement. This new tool, the KIS Profile, was tested with more than 100 children across Victoria.
We were also able to consider how to respond to identified needs. We considered a range of options that layer support to equip educators, services and the system with practical strategies for inclusive learning.
Where to next
Research activities in 2025 will build on what we learned in 2024 and include:
- refining and testing an updated KIS Profile with about 200 children and 150 services, please keep an eye out for the opportunity to express your interest in being part of this in Term 2, 2025
- developing and testing options recommended for inclusive education practice supports and guidance to improve the inclusion of children with additional needs
- collecting more data on the level and type of support needs for children with additional needs in funded kindergarten programs.
By working together on this research project, we can create a more inclusive and supportive kindergarten system for all Victorian children.
Find out more
For more information, refer to the Disability Inclusion in Kindergartens research project fact sheet.
For further enquiries, contact the Inclusion Policy and Reform team by email: EC.Inclusion.Research@education.vic.gov.au
Updated