Policy Brief
Children with disabilities are often left out of the education system globally, and in Indonesia they still tend to be overlooked at preschool level. People with disabilities are estimated to comprise 15 percent of the world’s population, and in many countries children with disabilities are more likely to remain out of school than other children across all education levels.
Globally, having disabilities can double the chance of never accessing school, and even if they go to school they tend to drop out before completing primary education. Indonesia is no exception, and despite the government’s efforts in recent decades, in particular, inclusive early childhood education (ECE) for children with disabilities is still significantly overlooked in policy, practice and empirical research. Rather, inclusive education policy and programs often highlight primary and secondary education, meanwhile inclusion is not a key focus in ECE in Indonesia.