The School Outreach program works towards promoting and implementing inclusive cultures, policies and practices in schools.
Ummeed’s School Outreach program works both with mainstream and special schools to promote the development of inclusive environments in the following three ways:
Inclusive cultures
Building accepting, collaborative and inspiring communities for all participants
Inclusive policies
Ensuring that school policies celebrate diversity and support children with varied learning need
Inclusive practices
Mobilizing resources and establishing sustainable practices that reduce barriers to learning
To read more on inclusive practices across India, visit Ummeed's Inclusion in Education microsite.
Read more on developing inclusive school environments from British educators Tony Booth and Mel Ainscow.
Inclusion is often associated with students who have impairments or students with special needs. However, Ummeed believes that inclusion involves the education of all children, not just children with special needs.
Hence, anything that stands in the way of a child being able to learn and participate on an equal basis with his or her peers constitutes a barrier to learning.
Once children enter the school system, whether public or private, families need ongoing support for a variety of issues.
Coping with the academic demands of the school, peer relationships, bullying and exclusion (for several reasons) in the school system are all issues that children especially children with disabilities and their families face daily.
Through the School Outreach program Ummeed advocates for such children and their families by interacting with schools to support the learning and participation of these children within the school context.
Ummeed views inclusion as an approach to address barriers to learning, build resources to support learning and participation and respond to the diverse needs of every child.
Short Term
Build awareness and sensitivity among schools so that they can be more inclusive and accepting of diversity and differences among children
Long Term
Build customized training programs for schools to promote and develop inclusive culture, policies, and practices
Provide ongoing mentorship and support to schools towards engaging with children with varied needs in their school context
Ummeed has worked with 80 teachers across all 17 BMC special schools to help them better understand and engage children with autism
Ummeed has worked with the non-profit organization Muktangan, which focuses on inclusive schooling for underprivileged Mumbai children, to help build capacity to promote inclusive cultures, policies, and practices in their school system.
Shamin Mehrotra | Joyeeta Sen | Trishna Bhagtani
For school outreach related inquiries, please email us at
