Making inclusion count: a feasibility study to explore the collection and use of disability data in schools in Sierra Leone

• To understand how disability is currently included within the national Education Management Information System (EMIS)
• To assess how children with disabilities can be reliably identified in schools
• To explore how internationally accepted instruments for collecting data on childhood disability can be embedded within the existing annual school census
• To explore how data can be effectively used to improve education policies and practices

Between 2021 and 2024, Sightsavers conducted a series of interrelated studies into how disability data is included in Sierra Leone’s EMIS. The three-phased study was conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE), Sierra Leone Union on Disability Issues (SLUDI) and the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD). The studies were conducted in Freetown and two districts (Bombali and Karene) in northern Sierra Leone. The three phases of the study are discussed below and detailed findings are in the reports.

Phase 1: Assessment of EMIS

Objective – This phase examined the strengths and weaknesses of EMIS and determined how it can be made more disability inclusive.

Drawing on the World Bank Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER) EMIS framework, the study used documentary review, focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with teachers and senior MBSSE officials. A key finding from this phase was that EMIS in Sierra Leone requires significant strengthening and investments in infrastructure to improve its functionality, inclusiveness and usability.

Phase 2: Feasibility of disability data collection in schools

Objective – This phase tested the feasibility of collecting disability data in schools using the Washington Group Short Set Questions (WG-SS) and the Child Functioning Module – Teacher Version (CFM-TV).

Teachers were recruited and engaged to use the tools to assess functional difficulties of children in their classrooms. A key finding was that teachers found the shorter WG-SS easier to understand and apply and expressed concerns about CFM-TV length and complexity.

Phase 3: Relationship between functional difficulty and academic performance

Objective – This final phase of the study attempted to understand the relationship between functional difficulty of children and their academic outcomes.

Children identified by teachers during Phase 2 of the study as having significant functional difficulty in three disability domains (seeing, hearing, or walking), were referred for school-based clinical assessment by specialist institutions. Data from children’s records was extracted to determine school attendance and academic performance in three core subjects (English language, mathematics and general science) respectively. Data was also collected from teachers to explore their experiences on using the tools and the impact on day-to-day classroom practices.

A key finding was that the relationships between functional difficulty and academic outcomes in our data were unclear. At primary school level, children with functional difficulties identified by the CFM-TV had better academic outcomes than those without.

Conclusion

EMIS in Sierra Leone is largely associated with the annual school census (ASC) than a living database. Making the database effective requires considerable investment.

Collecting disability data in schools using the above tools by class teachers as enumerators is feasible and can provide comprehensive disability data for ASC. However, MBSSE may find it difficult to adopt as it might make school census forms too long and increase the cost of data collection.

Teachers provided positive feedback about the value of the process, notwithstanding the additional requirement on their time.

They found data generated through this study valuable and used it to strengthen classroom practices to support greater disability inclusion.

• Read the phase 1 report (pdf)
• Read the phase 1 research summary (pdf)
• Read the phase 2 report (pdf)
• Read the phase 2 research summary (pdf)
• Read the phase 3 report (pdf)
• Read the phase 3 research summary (pdf)

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