To want it is to create it

(Music)

Audio Description [AD]: Intro to the Super Capaces program.

Ana Belén Castillo is sitting on a sofa, watching television.

Ana Belén Castillo - A.B. (v.o):—I'm not going to lie to you, there are things I have to listen to these days that make me indignant.

(She addresses the television) How can they say that?

It's tiring to be so clear about it and still have to listen to certain things.

(Addressing the television) Come on!, seriously?

But, sometimes, suddenly, something happens. As if by magic. And it starts reaching you from everywhere.

Audio description [AD]:Ana Belén looks at her phone.

A.B. (v.o):—A message that resonates with you, that is part of you, that breathes the same air, that moves you to follow that path, that is essential if we want to advance in justice. Quickly, you look for a source, an origin, but you can't find it.

A message with such force that you can't believe it. It's everywhere, everyone talks about it and knows it, but where does it come from? Who is behind it?

Audio description [AD]:Ana Belén searches the internet for "Inclusive Education. Quererla es crearla."

A.B. (v.o):—There is no answer. What we do know is that it manages to uncover a tsunami of inclusion partisans, equality workers, diversity militants.

With meticulous curiosity, I isolate my targets.

Audio description [AD]:Images of Luna with Ana, her mother, and other relatives are shown.

A.B. (v.o):—Ana is a lunatic, and not because she is obsessed with the color red or fairy tales, but because of her fascination with Luna, her 9-year-old daughter, who has Angelman syndrome.

Luna is enrolled in a public school, in a mainstream classroom with support. Ana, besides working and living surrounded by books, is a staunch defender of inclusive education.

Audio description [AD]:Images of Lucía Enrique Moreno's Facebook profile are shown. In some, she appears with her brother, Raúl.

A.B. (v.o.):—Lucía is from Seville and is in her second year of High School, a determined young woman, feminist, activist, and an absolute militant for inclusion.

A bombshell. She has someone to resemble and be inspired by. Her brother, Raúl, 13 years old, has Williams syndrome.

Audio description [AD]:Images of Antonio Márquez's Facebook profile are shown.

A.B. (voice-over):—Antonio Márquez, a teacher in inclusive pedagogy and currently the director of the projectUnequal Classroom,from Inclusive Schools.

His main action is to train and advise on inclusion. He has 16 years of experience in schools, the last 12 in the team for the blind in Granada. His work is oriented towards transforming the school towards a model that accepts, respects, and includes everyone.

They are the chosen ones to create it, at least in these minutes, simply because you want it and you love it, and to want it is to create it.

Audio description [AD]:Close-up of Ana Belén in front of the laptop, in a video conference with Antonio Márquez, Ana Robles, and Lucía Enrique.

A.B.:—Welcome to you three toSuper Capaces. It's a pleasure to be able to speak with people who speak our language, the language of inclusion.

The first obligatory question is: what happened when that video, the mysterious video that we all received in some way and that remains a great mystery to this day, reached you?

Antonio Márquez:—The video reached me through WhatsApp and contacts I have. And well, what I suppose happened to all of you, was a bit of starting to watch it with mystery, what is it telling us. And, suddenly, seeing many things reflected that we've been experiencing for a while.

I, in my case, for example, trying to convey to teachers, families, institutions, and suddenly, everything is perfectly captured in a video that starts by making our hearts, our skin, pure feeling, stop for a moment, and well, that transmits a lot.

If you have seen it, you know perfectly well what I am talking about.

Ana Robles (A.R.):—It happened to me exactly the same as to my colleague. It reached me through several groups at once. Besides, it was simultaneous, and when I opened it, I was surprised.

At the same time, it was a little sting and a lot of joy, because I started to see important words that are important to me daily and that we deal with every day to make them seen in such an effective and efficient way.

When I read the word dignity, when I saw the word love, which is the most powerful of all, freedom, diversity, I said what is this, I'm not alone, that's the only thing I thought, I'm not alone. There has been and is on our planet, in the history of our planet, many times the need to say, come on, enough is enough, we need to be respected equally. That's what I felt. A lot of joy.

A.B.:—Totally, I understand you very well. Lucía, tell us, from your young and absolutely fresh perspective. When you received the video and saw it, what did you think?

Lucía Enrique - (L.E.):—My mother, who had received it via WhatsApp, showed it to me at first, but then I started seeing it on social media and I thought it was really making an impression on people and that people liked it.

And I, honestly, feel very identified with the video, because I have always been a person who strongly defends rights since I can remember. And, the truth is, I felt very identified, that I wasn't alone, as Ana said.

A.B.:—Inclusion is talked about in general. What a word, right? And I don't know what you all think. Whether the word is actually being used correctly in society in general, whether inclusive education really exists today.

Come on, Ana, I see you're eager.

A.R.:—Not at all, no, no, no. They are small drops. We are like the Taifa kingdoms. Each of us is fighting a bit on our own in that sense, because the Administration does not support us, the regulations are not complied with, and the rights of millions of children are still being violated today.

It amuses me when they tell me, "You're very lucky, Ana, your daughter, who has a disability, is in a mainstream school, in a mainstream classroom with her support," and I say, "Lucky." The problem is that the other children are not in those conditions; the rights of those other children are being violated.

That's the big problem, isn't it? I'm not lucky at all. I think what I have is great misfortune, because precisely in my daughter's school she continues to be different. Because she is a child with diversity. They are not diverse children in a classroom, in a school, each with their own characteristics. She will continue to be the different girl because she has extraordinary support and doesn't speak, because she uses an augmentative voice communicator. She's the odd one out, she's still the odd one out.

So no, inclusion is a path and a permanent struggle, but from the morning onwards, at all levels. In other words, no, it's still a dream.

A.B.:—Ana, does your daughter have significant curricular adaptations?

A.R.:—Well, look, she had all the significant curricular adaptations, as you know, and if not, I'll tell you. There are problems with the issue of graduation if you have significant curricular adaptations.

A.B.:—That's why I was telling you.

A.R.:—In a school council, I explained this reason, which was unknown to the teaching staff. They didn't know what was happening because of significant curricular adaptations, and right now, she has a specific one in two areas, math and language.

The others are curricular adaptations, but they are not significant. We are progressively removing them, appealing to the concept of universal design, of learning for all, but, even so, it's a journey. As I say, a ripple in the water.

The educational response from the center is favorable, therefore, that is important, but it is a problem. It remains a problem because she would need it, but, on the other hand, we hit another wall, so that's where we are, fighting.

A.M.:—To begin with, as long as we keep talking about inclusion when referring to persons with disabilities, with learning difficulties, it means that the concept of inclusion has not been understood at its core, because you cannot link those things. Inclusion means the participation of everyone, and then, as you begin to understand that, you start to realize that we cannot have a person's condition transformed.

In other words, a word that is used a lot, which is normalization, and which is in the principles of our education law and everything, I don't like it because it means trying to make someone normal who isn't. And then, those kinds of adjustments, supports you are talking about, significant curricular adaptations, non-significant ones, specific programs, and everything else start to happen with the intention of making the child normal.

Notice that it is a condition that cannot be changed, so we have to shift that perspective and realize that, indeed, what we can change is how the educational center addresses the diversity of its students. And then, when we shift that focus, we will begin to realize that the barriers are not brought by the student, but rather we are the ones who put them in place. And that is the effort I make in training sessions.

We started practicing universal design for learning, with multilevel design and other strategies, which in the end, when I finish the training, it's very interesting because we can spend up to 8 hours of training in 4 or 5 sessions, and we are working on open and flexible designs for everyone, everyone understands it, everyone applies it.

And when I finish, I say, have you realized that we haven't mentioned the word 'significant adaptation'? They all look like they're saying: 'Hey, that's true.' It could be done if we planned and shifted the focus here.

What happens is that the word inclusion is being distorted a bit, it's becoming integration again. Now everything is inclusive. They add the inclusive label, and that's it. It makes me laugh because I see an announcement for 'inclusive outing from the association so-and-so, with such disability.' And then, all the children with that disability come out, they go there, and it's already an inclusive outing. Well, no, 'inclusive' means that space or place has to be prepared to address or cater to anyone who goes there.

A.B.:—Lucía, I know you're listening, I'm very interested in your opinion as a student, as someone who has recently gone through the education system. I'm not talking to you, as Antonio says, about the issue of teaching as it is today, which is not inclusive, it not only harms people with special educational needs or people with different social and economic realities. It affects everyone, it affects you too.

Listening to Antonio speak like that, do you notice that in your teaching, in your education, you have missed things, have you missed having your interests, your reality, your talents taken into account?

L.E.:—For the education system, we are not people, we are a grade. And only, in the case of my school, they only see us as (unintelligible).

In my brother's case, my brother is in a mainstream school, but it's not really an inclusive school, it's a school with integration. But my brother, as Ana said earlier, is still seen as the odd one out, as the different one.

So, I strongly disagree with the education system and everything, because I don't think it's fair to anyone.

A.B.:—Have you all taken a step further than what we experienced in our generation? That is, you've already had a system of integration, not inclusion, but integration. In some cases, you've coexisted with someone in the classroom who had these realities with functional diversity.

Have you experienced this? Do you think that young people have learned a little more than us, that you are prepared to be a little more aware of what is truly fair?

L.E.:—I think so, but there's still a long way to go for me to be able to cover it, because in my class at school there was a child with functional diversity and the other children always kind of left him out, like he was (inaudible) his friend.

A.B.:—What do you think is needed? Because that is one of the main arguments used to say that we cannot all be together in school, bullying, rejection. What do you think?

What kind of environment, what kind of space needs to be created? Or what kind of work needs to be done? Because maybe some preparatory work needs to be done, or maybe, well, not create, but perhaps prepare specific staff so they know how to articulate those social relationships that occur in schools. What do you think can be done to avoid those kinds of situations which, to this day, are usually one of the things that are most present? That these children will not integrate in one way or another, or will not be able to socialize adequately in schools.

A.M.:—I think that what Lucía is saying encompasses everything and is somewhat the key, because it's about changing a system of values that is deeply rooted in our society.

So, it's not just a specific issue for one educational center, but it surrounds the entire educational community. The whole community involves family, involves institutions, involves the model of each school, of each educational center, and that's what we call inclusive cultures, those cultures that are the first and most difficult thing to change, because from there, the models we are experiencing emerge.

Look, I always use the same example. When children enter early childhood education and have a student as a classmate who may have any kind of difference, they accept it naturally, they are just another one. Well, yes, they talk about something, but the other one is blond and the other one… They understand that everyone is diverse and it doesn't bother them at all. But look how, as they progress through school, they start to adopt values that we adults who are there, the community that surrounds us, are not transmitting to them. That community includes teachers, family, and teaching staff.

So, of course, that would have to be a strategy for a center that, in conjunction with its immediate environment, begins to mature a project in which education in values, respect for diversity, is something assumed by that entire community and to make proposals for that to happen.

That is to say, hold meetings in educational centers, projects, learning, services from the students themselves who go out into the community and raise awareness on this issue, but that also requires leadership in the educational center that is definitively, strongly, and deeply committed to inclusion, because otherwise it's impossible; otherwise, what we are doing is replicating.

If a student with disabilities was with their group in early childhood education and, mysteriously, within two months it is found that they can no longer be with them, then this child, who is five years old, upon turning six and observing that they are being taken elsewhere, understands that something is happening.

Then they begin to assume that they were different and that is why they were taken away. And as they get older, they see this practice repeated. Not only in school, but also in society, where exclusion also occurs, because the situation of exclusion has been normalized without any hesitation.

So, it is we who are transmitting this culture and these values that are replicated and replicated and replicated from one generation to another. The change, I believe, must be a seed planted with the children, so they always see that everyone is together, no matter what.

A.R.:—They briefly told an anecdote when Luna arrived, we changed her educational center and she arrived at five years old, in the third year of early childhood education. I wanted to explain to those children, to her classmates, why Luna didn't speak.

So, I made up a story. I love stories, and I made up that in Luna's head there was a Ferris wheel where all the words were going around and around. And then, because Ferris wheels are so fun, they had trouble coming down, they had trouble, they had difficulty coming down, and that's why Luna didn't speak.

And the children's response was fascinating, because they raised their hands and one of them said, how muchmoney Did I give Luna to ride the Ferris wheel? The most important thing. And the second, 'teacher, I have an idea, let's pay for the fair lights'.

That is, they looked for solutions, but the problem wasn't that Luna didn't speak. If you've presented this to me as a problem, then it can be solved. That is, that wonderful and great innocence of 'let's act, we have no time to lose'.

I'm also going to talk about early childhood education, because it's great to prepare the ground, prepare minds, talk, the video, Quererla es crearla, right? Because it really has a big impact and is very much needed; but, above all, you have to be everywhere.

It's a parental responsibility. We have to take our child anywhere. Visibility is what matters. It can't be theory first and then practice, because in the end, someone always gets left behind.

Children must all be in school now, mainstream school, all of them, with all their difficulties. And we parents have to be brave and say, 'They don't have the resources of special education?' It doesn't matter. Let's fight, let's compensate. This teacher isn't prepared enough? Would they need to be trained in inclusion now? No. They need children with problems in class, they need children with difficulties, and we'll solve it together, right? I've always said: 'I don't have time.' I say, 'I'm sorry, I don't have time, I can't wait.'

My daughter is growing up and my daughter can't have an idyllic setting where she is. My daughter can't have a wonderful, inclusive culture, where the museum and the activity... no. My daughter will be in this activity.

So, what have I done? Created it. I started creating it. I started doing activities for all children in the museums of this city. And I've been able to convince, little by little, let's look at where the focus is, in non-formal education, and in early childhood education.

We already have it, we're not going to dwell on it anymore, now what's needed is for the children to be in the classes. Come on, a whole bunch, a tribe of children and parents at the doors of the schools, saying: 'My child will be here.'

A.B.:—But, I don't know what you think, Antonio, about Ana's proposal, which I love, by the way, I love it.

A.M.:—Well, what can I tell you, if my... All the work I'm developing has that as its ultimate goal, that all children are together. As Ana says, when you already have the problem at home, you have no choice but to find a solution. No, that's not true. And besides, as she says, there's no time to wait either. But it is true that I don't think it should be done badly either.

It shouldn't be done without planning, without considering all aspects, because it is true that, for example, we need to look at how the connection between health and education would be implemented within a mainstream school.

Because that would be fundamental for many students with disabilities. In mainstream schools, when we have a minor behavioral issue, everything falls apart in the classroom. The teacher says (acting): 'Oh, this child, I don't know what, I don't know what...'. Behavior is not known how to be addressed in mainstream classrooms today.

So, very important preparation would be needed, and we should also look at existing models. There are models where this is being promoted. I myself was at the ONCE School for the Blind, which had specific centers for the blind and which have now undergone a complete transformation and are becoming resource centers that serve to provide guidance.

But they still accommodate certain students who may have very specific needs and require a period of time, always with a temporary space, to provide coverage and then, once again, return to the mainstream school.

A.B.:—It's interesting, Antonio. That aligns a lot with a provision I think is out there that stirs up a lot of controversy, right? And yet, there's already a real example you're telling me about, which I didn't know.

A.M.:—Yes, and many times, when I've told this story, people say that blind children are a different disability, that it's more difficult, and so on, and I say, of course, they are, but I'm referring to the model they've used.

That model of wanting to transform, of doing it little by little, of gradually reducing their specialized center, and having the staff who were in these specialized centers, who are wonderful, valuable staff with incredible experience, go to a mainstream school to advise and say, 'No, they're doing this all wrong, this is how it's done, like this, like this.'

And we would all be eager for this professional to come, because they are the ones who know these things, right? Universal Design for Learning has become trendy and regulations are incorporating it, and teachers say, 'It's mandatory, but no one has told me how to do this.'

So, we're not going to plan well.

A.B.:—Do you think we are at the beginning of something? Do you think enough is being done regarding this discourse, in which it seems we all agree, but which is not the discourse society is truly hearing these days? Do you think a path is starting to open up in any way? What future do you see?

A.R.:—I am super optimistic, and very much so. I am convinced that the campaign is working and the timing couldn't be better. Look, we are in the midst of a pandemic. We have readapted the education system in record time. We thought it was going to be an absolute disaster, how children would cope with masks and class bubbles. We said: 'Oh, it's going to be a huge mess.' It's proving to be where it works best. If we foresee a pandemic, put it on paper, write down all the possibilities, everything we need to do to avoid contagion among children, we won't have enough time.

If I have the model there and we have it, it means we are, it means we can, it means Quererla es crearla, it means it has to be done. I am convinced that we are on magnificent paths with programs like yours and with wonderful professionals and people like Antonio and Lucía, well, I want to believe so.

A.B.:—I think the video had a lot of social impact and that people are realizing what is truly needed, and that is Quererla es crearla. I can't make any other reference. I think whoever disseminated this video did not choose a random moment, right?

I think it's a very key moment, precisely because of what Ana says, because of this pandemic issue too, and just before a new educational reform is approved, which could slightly change the model we had, which seems to be heading in the right direction, although far from what we want, but it seems to be heading in the right direction.

And, well, I think yes, it's an appropriate moment. You know what I was telling you before. Now, there is more and more legislation in the different Autonomous Communities, they are already starting to implement mandatory measures, starting with language.

For example, in the Valencian Community, they no longer speak of a special education teacher, but of inclusive pedagogy. And language is important; it seems not, but it's starting to take hold. When you start hearing those therapeutic terms, it implies that we have to provide therapy to a child. As I say, we are not therapists; we are teachers. It seems that steps are being taken.

What happens? Well, as you say, politics gets involved and distorts many of these things. Because regarding the Celaá Law, the only thing being discussed is whether Spanish is the vehicular language or not, and other such matters that don't affect us as much. And they aren't discussing, for example, the inclusion model, the model they intend to adopt, and all these things. It's sad on the part of our politicians. But the teaching profession and society, I believe, are starting to see a change, also with the help of the pandemic.

Just one more thing about the pandemic. Notice that I mention this a lot now in the training sessions for teachers that I lead: there was a very significant shift in the concept of special educational needs. This happened because, when we were confined at home, many students who might have seemed brighter in the classroom and got better grades—due to this very rote-learning model we have or for other reasons, as they adapted well to the teachers' guidance—but at home, where parents perhaps worked, or couldn't, or didn't know how to support them, began to show special educational needs.

Furthermore, in many other cases, as parents themselves point out, those students who already had special educational needs, who benefited from a lot of work at home, with many routines and great effort, adapted much better to the situation of not having teachers or other students around.

So, this should make us realize that needs are caused by the context, not by the student. The context is what generates these needs, and we now have the opportunity, having realized this, to reverse all contexts.

A.B.:—Well, I think that's a magnificent reflection, Antonio, to conclude this conversation, which I maintain is not over: there is no finish line in inclusion.

Inclusion is the path that we must all travel together, just as there is no finish line in justice. You can never be too just; you can never be too inclusive. Thank you very much to all three of you for sharing these minutes with me, and I hope that all these things continue to happen.

Let's keep talking, let's keep reflecting, as we have done during this time, because I believe that from there, the elements will emerge to be able to implement what we want to show on the ground.

In unison:— Thank you very much.

Audio description [AD]:— Intro to the trailer ‘Quererla es crearla’.

Voice-over:—There was a time when the rights or lives of the working class did not matter, but we wanted dignity.

There was a time when children had no rights, when to protect boys and girls from mistreatment, one had to resort to animal protection laws. But we wanted love.

There was a time when the color of some human beings made them the property of others, a time when the law discriminated against and segregated them. But we wanted freedom.

There was a time when half of the population was not considered people, when our bodies, our will, and our decisions were not our own. But we wanted equality.

There was a time when persons with disabilities could be abandoned, mistreated, and eliminated with impunity. But we wanted humanity.

There was a time when for being, wanting, and desiring freely, you were locked in a closet, a psychiatric hospital, or a prison. But we wanted diversity.

There was a time when schools segregated students based on their origin, ethnicity, social class, or ability. A time when the UN accused Spain of gravely and systematically violating the right to education of children with disabilities.

And that time is today. What do we want? Inclusive education. Wanting it is creating it.