When inclusion ends at 16

Malta is making strides in reducing early school leaving among youths aged 18 and over. Yet, for some students – specifically those with intellectual disabilities – the system appears to be moving in the opposite direction, quietly steering them out of the educational system.

In recent weeks, voices from the disability community have grown louder in their alarm.

Karen Buttigieg, president of the National Parents Society for Persons with Disability, highlighted a stark reality: “Children with intellectual disabilities are not being offered adequate educational opportunities beyond the age of 16.” This means many families are being left in a state of uncertainty about the future. She pointed to a lack of “clear direction and vision” for these students.

This frustration was echoed in a petition launched by the mother of a teenager with a disability. Addressed to the ministries of education and inclusion, it calls for a coherent, realistic road map for students with intellectual disabilities as they leave compulsory education.

At present, most of these students begin their schooling in mainstream settings with the support of learning support educators. But, as they age, they are often moved to resource centres due to a lack of specialised, trained staff in mainstream classrooms.

Originally intended to provide supplemental services like hydrotherapy, these centres are now being used as full-time special schools.

The problem becomes even more acute after age 16, when compulsory education ends. Until that point, a structured environment, however limited, tends to exist. After that, options are few and far between.

One possible route is through specialised schools like the Wardija Resource Centre, which caters to students aged 16 to 22. But the academic educational element slows down and capacity is limited.

Another option is the two-year programme at MCAST, but this requires a level of independence that many students with intellectual disabilities simply cannot meet. After that, the system offers little more than a void.

The result is that families are left to fend for themselves. Many parents must give up work or pay privately for support, incurring significant financial and emotional strain. Meanwhile, their children risk isolation and developmental regression.

Parents are calling for more than piecemeal fixes – they want systemic change.

There is a need for increased investment in specialised staff training and resources, along with meaningful, individualised support measures like properly implemented individual educational programmes and consistent assistance from LSEs.

Marthese Mugliette, president of the Malta Federation of Organisations of Persons with Disability, joined this call, urging both the ministry for education and the Malta Union of Teachers to “stop treating inclusion as a slogan” and instead take real action to ensure that no student is left behind.

This follows the MUT’s recent directive instructing school management not to adjust exam timetables or use exam periods for non-exam activities. The fallout? Students with disabilities who are not sitting exams are told to stay home for weeks while their LSEs assist other students who can sit for exams. “Unjust, discriminatory and insensitive,” said the federation.

Mugliette did not mince words, describing the situation as “unacceptable” and calling for education of students with disabilities to be made a “national priority”.

Academic learning, it seems, is deemed to end at 16 for them – just when they need more, not less, support.

This cannot continue. If Malta is serious about inclusion, it must build an education system that extends beyond token gestures and slogans. It must provide real, structured and inclusive opportunities for every learner, at every stage.

The current path leads only to exclusion, regression, and wasted potential, and more suffering for the parents.