Eleventh International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

Students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) in Malaysia face issues to do with exclusion and disadvantage in relation to the educational experiences they may have. This has been recognised by the Malaysian government and as such policy has been developed to attempt to address it. Additionally, the Malaysian Ministry of Education is eager to integrate creative learning into the curriculum across all age groups within the Malaysian education system and indeed is keen to ensure that SEN students have equitable experiences. One way that creativity can be integrated into a curriculum is through the use of gallery education (Selkrig & Keamy, 2017), and whist this is increasingly being done in mainstream settings, this approach has not been developed specifically in relation to initiatives that focus on the needs and requirements of SEN students. The aim of this project therefore is to attempt to increase the opportunities in this area for students with SEN, by bringing gallery educators together with SEN teachers so as to develop a tailored gallery education experience for such students. This is a unique project in Malaysia. Phase one has established that there is a willingness on both parts to develop this new model. Phase two will bring the parties together and design a number of specific programmes. Phase three will offer an evaluation of the initiative.