Bridging unspoken differences: Fundación ICAL’s contrarian and hugely successful approach to inclusive learning
Colegio Campestre ICAL, an independent school in Chía, Colombia,run by Fundación ICAL, has implemented a unique educational model that breaks down the traditional barriers and prejudices related to disabilities. With 72% of its student population having hearing or mild cognitive disabilities, the school’s innovative “inverse inclusion” model integrates non-disabled students in the remaining 28%, creating an environment of true understanding and fostering a culture of empathy, acceptance, and shared growth.
For the last 61 years, Fundación ICAL has worked hard to provide quality education and opportunities to hearing disabled children despite its community’s low-income status and associated high psycho-social risks. To address the barriers and prejudices, the school began integrating siblings and other children without disabilities and developed a curriculum to accommodate both needs simultaneously.
The school empowers students in their personal growth and development by combining in-person classes, technology, and support for sign and oral language learning. This support includes specialised methods, such as the verbotonal method, logogenic, logodactic, and bilingual approaches. At the same time, non-deaf students also learn Colombian sign language to accompany their deaf peers, fostering social inclusion and cultivating values of solidarity and acceptance.
The school’s educational model has gained international recognition, being selected as one of the hundred most innovative and scalable models worldwide in the HundrED Global Collection. In addition, it was selected by the World Economic Forum to be part of its Education 4.0 Lighthouse Network Programme.
The school, however, sees its impact not in the communication skills it teaches, but in demonstrating and fostering a sense of resilience in its students. And in this, its success is impressive, with 82% of its graduates going on to further education or finding employment – far surpassing national occupation rates for individuals with disabilities – and several more going on to hold influential positions advocating for the rights of people with disabilities in Colombia.
If Fundación ICAL wins the World's Best School Prize for Overcoming Adversity, the school aims to strengthen its entrepreneurship programme, extending its reach to younger students, both with and without disabilities, through the development of a digital app. Additionally, the school plans to enhance its facilities, including building an arts classroom, improving the school's edible garden, and acquiring new Montessori materials to benefit the younger students. By investing in these initiatives, Fundación ICAL aims to continue making a lasting difference in the lives of its students and the broader community.