Master in Educational Inclusion and Quality of Life will focus on collaborative evaluation design based on innovation and promotion of dignity

During 2023 a series of postgraduate offers have been promoted by the Catholic University of Temuco. One of them, the Master of Educational Inclusion and Quality of Life, comes to put inclusive education and its design for communities with disabilities at the center with an innovative and evidence-based approach.

By Valentina Luza Carrión / Science in Chile.-The program, based on values ​​and objectives of Sustainable Development for Inclusive Education, is aimed at professionals from all areas who are interested in being agents of change in educational institutions.

The director of the program, Dr. Carmen Paz, explains that one of the distinctive differences of this master’s degree with others is, on the one hand, its professional character, and also, its specific character.

In his words, he explains that professionalism points to the fact that those topics will be addressed in the training according to the demands and/or needs that the participants have in their own contexts of work and professional development, with the purpose of strengthening said areas.

Likewise, he explains that unlike a traditional thesis, in the Master’s of Educational Inclusion and quality of life, a project will be carried out: “a project that allows the improvement of the practice itself and from that improvement contribute to the processes and educational inclusion and quality of life of people who are in a situation of intellectual and developmental disabilities ”, emphasizes the Dr and director.

A second distinctive feature is that it has a specific character, This means that among all the amalgam of possibilities that can be learned about inclusion and different types of disabilities, here we will focus on processes of evaluation and design of support for intellectual and developmental disabilities.

For Dr., it is important to remember that these people are in regular education systems and that specific tools are needed to guide such support.

Updated and according to the needs of the environment

Another important characteristic of the postgraduate course is that it is oriented to the needs of the environment. The academic explains that it is based on studies on the needs that exist in the educational community, to which the program comes to respond in a solid way with the delivery of knowledge.

It should be noted that it is linked to the differential education career offered by the same house of study, which has a long history in the field of disciplinary training.

“In this sense, what this program does is broaden the perspective to a more interdisciplinary approach with other highly qualified professionals from the University; they contribute their views from social / legal, health, which allow nurturing the field of action, collaboration and work ”, he comments.

It also details that those who have been in initial training know that there is a new body of teachers that will support these new training processes. This faculty will also guide the training process based on reflection from their own areas of performance.

The training process will be approached from the literature and its clear guidelines with an ecological, legal, inclusive approach to disability, this will be at the base and as the axis of the work that will be carried out.

Likewise, the development will be in 2 areas: accessibility and learning. This means that other strategies can be learned that allow accessibility and diversification for learning and participation, which is a very central axis that must be promoted in the next professionals, details Dr.

“Another area of ​​services and management is to promote innovation and transformation of educational and social services and processes. Today it is not only the theme of educational inclusion and quality of life that is associated with the school, but also work is being done in different social contexts that are serving people with disabilities, we want to promote this group’s right to participation and full education”.

Impact and intersectoral character: a hallmark of the master’s degree

One of the impacts that this training will have directly on its participants will be that they will be the future professionals who will generate the change: “they will be an important group to be able to promote work with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities”

Also, the intersectoral character will be crucial. Since thanks to it, it will be possible to link with the different services of the community in order to generate better responses for this particular group.

Here students will be able to work in a collaborative, intersectoral and comprehensive way, in order to connect and answer the questions that exist in the communities in a better way. It should be noted that the professionals will work with people and their families to search for deep solutions: “It will be a job that will be robustly enriched,” says Dr.

The problems that are reflected along the way will be answered through scientific evidence, in order to create professionals strengthened with knowledge, prepared to work in educational institutions, the State, or even -if you think further- as a consultant. of innovation processes in this range.

“Working in this field and training with us in this master’s degree is intended to be a significant contribution to improving the quality of life and inclusion processes, to promote and strengthen the dignity of people and their families,” he explains.

For all those who want to join and register, the message is: “if you are interested in eliminating barriers and improving your professional training, in promoting the dignity of people, equalizing conditions so that everyone can learn, this is an opportunity for you”

This is going to be possible with a collaborative process, with innovation, evidence and facts to be able to move towards inclusion: “There are great challenges in this area and this is a small grain of sand that we grant from the Catholic University of Temuco”

You can apply to the program directly here: Catholic University of Temuco (uct.cl)