Inclusive early childhood care and education: background paper prepared for the International Forum on inclusion and equity in education, every learner matters

Experiences around the world show that it is necessary to respond to the specific needs of each category of exclusion (sex, poverty, remoteness, ethnicity, language, legal status,and developmental delay anddisability) and to each excluded child–without further marginalizing or labelling them. The overall focus should be on inclusive ECCE policies, strategies, and practicesto remove all barriers, and promote optimal development and learning for all children, build ramps for participation and inclusion, and thereby help all relevant ministriesto become fully inclusive, both in vision and in practices. Only then can we really achieve the goal of good quality education for all.