Some students with disabilities still excluded from classroom: Inclusion Saskatchewan

WATCH: Inclusion Saskatchewan is raising concerns about students with disabilities being excluded from education.

Inclusion Saskatchewan says students with intellectual disabilities continue to be left out of the classroom.

It said the lack of data has made the issue hard to track, prompting the organization to start collecting information on how often students are excluded from education.

“The numbers were shocking, but they also did prove what we were noticing from people that call us for advocacy support,” said Christina Martens-Funk, CEO of Inclusion Saskatchewan.

After receiving data from 18 of the province’s 27 school divisions through a freedom of information request, the organization said about one in nine students with intensive support needs, roughly 1,250 to 1,350 students, were excluded from school on a part or full-time basis last year.

The organization said some students were sent home when support workers weren’t available, while others were put on altered schedules that cut their school day to as little as 30 minutes.

It alleges the main drivers were funding decisions, staffing shortages, behavioural support gaps, and barriers in accessible transportation.

Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation president Samantha Becotte said the findings reflect what she’s been hearing from members.

“What I’ve been hearing from teachers across Saskatchewan is primarily around the lack of resources that are available in school to meet the needs of all students, especially those students who have significant challenges in schools,” Becotte said.

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Saskatchewan School Boards Association President Shawn Davidson said the report quantifies what school divisions already suspected.

“We’re working very hard as school divisions to provide a more inclusive environment for all of our students, and that there’s still work to do,” Davidson said.

In a statement to CTV News, the Ministry of Education said Inclusion Saskatchewan’s report highlights important concerns about the experiences of students, and it’s committed to working with school divisions to provide every opportunity for students to succeed.

“Ensuring that every student has access to education is a priority for our government,” the statement read.

The province says it’s added 50 Specialized Support Classrooms this year, and funded more classroom-complexity teachers through the recent collective bargaining agreement.

“School divisions are responsible for assessing student needs and making operational decisions, including staffing,” the statement read.

Inclusion Saskatchewan said it hopes the findings will help guide decisions to improve inclusion in the classroom.

“We have a very large and complex system, and I believe that together, when we collaborate and we get creative, we can find some solutions for these students,” added Martens-Funk.