Quererla es crearla: A school for an inclusive society
The people and groups who promote this initiative firmly believe in the need to transform and improve the Spanish education system from an inclusive perspective, with the conviction that, in this way, we contribute to the development of a society with greater equity, more just and, therefore, more democratic.
We share the basic moral principle of considering that all human beings are equal in dignity and rights, regardless of differential characteristics in matters of gender, ability, beliefs, social stratum, or any other, and that these characteristics constitute the richness of human diversity through which we shape plural societies.
We affirm that this conviction in favor of inclusive education is based on an extensive body of international norms, conventions, and treaties that, in matters of human rights, form an International Code of Human Rights, which gives legitimacy and legal backing to the aspirations that mobilize us to achieve deeper and more sustained progress in inclusive education.
We recall that the Spanish Constitution, in accordance with its article 96.1, requires that international treaties that Spain ratifies in matters of human rights become part of its legal system and that, therefore, and due to their superior rank, lower-ranking norms (Laws, regulations, or other provisions) must comply with what is established in said treaties.
Sabemos, además, que el Sistema de Naciones Unidas ha establecido como uno de los principales Objetivos para el Desarrollo Sostenible, en el marco de la Agenda 2030 (ODS 4), el compromiso ineludible para todos los estados de avanzar, sin demora, hacia el desarrollo de sistemas educativos de calidad guiados por la equidad y la inclusión.
Somos conscientes de que esta ambición educativa y social supone necesariamente una transformación profunda y sistémica de los sistemas educativos vigentes, a través de un proceso que debe hacerse sostenible en el tiempo, y que requerirá de determinación, voluntad y recursos efectivos, pero que no puede dilatarse, porque la vida escolar y el futuro de muchas niñas y niños que hoy viven ya situaciones de exclusión está en juego, y no acepta demoras.
Nos apoyamos en un amplísimo corpus de conocimientos e investigación en este ámbito, realizadas con el más alto nivel y rigor, que han puesto de manifiesto que no solo es justo y necesario sino posible y factible el desarrollo de culturas, políticas y prácticas escolares inclusivas, y nos oponemos a que todo ello quede ensombrecido por falsas creencias, mitos, malentendidos, bulos y mentiras.
Exigimos una planificación coherente a corto, medio y largo plazo, acompañada de una inversión sostenida y suficiente para generar las capacidades adecuadas en el sistema y en los docentes de todas las etapas educativas. Esta planificación e inversión permitirá crear y construir culturas, políticas y prácticas escolares que encarnen los valores de igualdad, respeto a la diversidad y desarrollo de la libertad, de forma que todo el alumnado, sin eufemismos, pueda compartir un espacio común de aprendizaje y participación social, donde sentirse parte y formar parte del grupo de niños y niñas de sus barrios, pueblos o entornos, que se aceptan y reconocen por quienes son.
We actas free and responsible citizens, without ties to economic or any other interests, except for the best interests of children and the fulfillment of the rights that all children have recognized.
We are convincedthat we are right, that legality is on our side, and that ethics concerned with the care, full life, and well-being of everyone supports us, and here we declare:
We want Inclusive Educationand we will support any person or group willing to create it, because in doing so we advance our humanity, and because this will be the best legacy for our children, for future generations, and to help achieve a dignified life in society for all people, one that is sustainable and worth living.
Endorsements
Regarding the gear
Perhaps the use of a gear as an image representing the movement for inclusive education may seem striking. The gear has often been used as a metaphor for the system (social, economic, political…), and therefore has symbolized for many people the feeling of being subjected to conditions that prevent them from fully exercising their citizenship.
The school system is no stranger to this. Even today, its structure still maintains characteristics that hinder, limit, and discriminate against certain individuals and groups. However, we are optimistic. Schools are places that can embody the best of human beings, if they offer a beautiful continuity with our nature. And a gear is also a magnificent metaphor for this reality: for us, it represents delicacy, the value of detail and care, the possibility of flowing without everything needing to be homogeneous and the same, with each piece being important for the whole to function. This is something we have seen very clearly with the pandemic, in which the work of one person, or a group of people, is not enough; we all need each other.
We wanted to illustrate this educational and social change with an element that transmits power to others. Inclusive education is an inexhaustible project of conquering our humanity in the relationship between adults, children, and young people. This transformation occurs with every step a person decides to take, transmitting their movement and involving others to continue in that search for living, learning, and recognizing each other together in schools.
We can beautify the education system by valuing people and the most genuine teaching work. The kind that we must recover from those who know that their work is precious, complex, unique, and necessary, just like eating. We can value education again. Replacing the metaphor of the school as a factory – in which the gear crushes creativity, freedom, people, and our relationships – with the artisan’s delicacy of someone who creates watches with their hands, knowing that their work is delicate, unique, fragile, and beautiful.
Scientific basis
- Bridge Project ‘Emerging Narratives on Inclusive Schooling from the Social Model of Disability. Resistance, Resilience, and Social Change’, funded by the University of Malaga’s Own Research Plan. Duration: 2018.
- R&D&I Project ‘Emerging Narratives on Inclusive Schooling from the Social Model of Disability. Resistance, Resilience, and Social Change’, funded by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (RTI2018-099218-A-I00). Duration: 2019-2022.
- Special Action ‘Students for inclusion’ (AEPP01/23), funded by the University of Malaga’s Own Research Plan. Duration: 2023.
- R&D&I Project ‘Emerging Narratives for the Construction of Inclusive Schools’, funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2022-140193OB-I00). Duration: 2023-2027.
- FPU17/00385 Contract, funded by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, obtained through competitive bidding by Jesús Javier Moreno Parra, September 2018-March 2023, 54 months duration.
- FPU19/05477 Contract, funded by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, obtained through competitive bidding by Luz del Valle Mojtar Mendieta, November 2020-November 2024, 48 months duration.
