Publications by Anne M Hayes
Disability Inclusion in Development Efforts: Analyzing the United States Agency for International Development’s Funding Solicitations for Evidence of Inclusive Practices
Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 2024
In 1997, the United States Agency for International Development established a policy focused on i... more In 1997, the United States Agency for International Development established a policy focused on including people with disabilities in its development efforts. For the past two decades, this initiative has been echoed globally, yet research on its effectiveness remains limited. This study revisits a previous 2015 analysis by examining the language in the agency’s 2021 solicitations, a total of 194, which detail program requirements and activities. The research reveals an incomplete adherence to the commitment to including persons with disabilities. Of the solicitations, 44% did not mention persons with disabilities. Thirty-eight percent (n = 92) of Requests for Applications included some or significant inclusive language, while 23% (n = 22) of Annual Program Statement solicitations did. All (n = 11) Requests for Proposals had some degree of inclusive language. Education and global health are the most inclusive sectors. This study also identifies four practices in the more inclusive solicitations: (a) explicit clarity on who to engage, (b) inclusion of instruments to protect persons with disabilities, (c) the outlining of indicators linked directly to persons with disabilities, and (d) mandated co-design and engagement with persons with disabilities. This highlights a need for more consistent inclusion of disability considerations in development solicitations
Employment and Inclusive Childcare for Mothers of Children with Disabilities, 2025
Assistive devices: Any item used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of... more Assistive devices: Any item used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities, such as wheelchairs, hearing aids, or communication boards. Disability: Long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments that, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Disability-inclusive childcare: Childcare that is accessible, affordable, safe, and responsive to the specific developmental, physical, and emotional needs of children with disabilities. It includes trained staff, inclusive practices, and accommodations to support all children. Early childhood development (ECD): Interventions directed at children or their caregivers to promote child development, typically including health, nutrition, and early education services. Early identification and intervention: The timely detection of developmental delays or disabilities in children and the provision of support services aimed at improving outcomes in health, education, and social participation. Inclusive education: A process of strengthening the capacity of the education system to ensure equity and inclusion in the forms of educational access, participation, and achievement for all learners. Organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs): Representative bodies that are led, directed, and governed by persons with disabilities and that advocate for the rights and inclusion of persons with disabilities. Reasonable accommodation: When required in a specific situation, refers to modifications and adjustments that are necessary and appropriate, provided they do not impose a disproportionate or undue burden, to enable persons with disabilities to enjoy or exercise all human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis with others. Social protection: Policies and programs designed to reduce poverty and vulnerability by promoting access to essential services and income support, including disability-inclusive provisions.
Disability Inclusive Pre primary Education White Paper, 2022
This document was developed by Inclusive Development Partners (IDP) with the support of the U.S. ... more This document was developed by Inclusive Development Partners (IDP) with the support of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) through the USAID Leading Through Learning Global Platform (LTLGP). LTLGP is a global education learning system for USAID and its partners to enhance thought leadership and education program quality. LTLGP is implemented by the Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), one of the world's leading nonprofit research and development organizations. EDC designs, implements, and evaluates programs to improve education, health, and economic opportunity worldwide.
Disability Inclusion in Development Efforts: Analyzing the United States Agency for International Development’s Funding Solicitations for Evidence of Inclusive Practices
Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 2024
In 1997, the United States Agency for International Development established a policy focused on i... more In 1997, the United States Agency for International Development established a policy focused on including people with disabilities in its development efforts. For the past two decades, this initiative has been echoed globally, yet research on its effectiveness remains limited. This study revisits a previous 2015 analysis by examining the language in the agency’s 2021 solicitations, a total of 194, which detail program requirements and activities. The research reveals an incomplete adherence to the commitment to including persons with disabilities. Of the solicitations, 44% did not mention persons with disabilities. Thirty-eight percent (n = 92) of Requests for Applications included some or significant inclusive language, while 23% (n = 22) of Annual Program Statement solicitations did. All (n = 11) Requests for Proposals had some degree of inclusive language. Education and global health are the most inclusive sectors. This study also identifies four practices in the more inclusive solicitations: (a) explicit clarity on who to engage, (b) inclusion of instruments to protect persons with disabilities, (c) the outlining of indicators linked directly to persons with disabilities, and (d) mandated co-design and engagement with persons with disabilities. This highlights a need for more consistent inclusion of disability considerations in development solicitations.
Using Information Communications Technologies (ICT) to Implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL): A working paper from the Global Reading Network for Enhancing Skills Acquisition for Students with Disabilities, 2019
The ppurpose of this paper is to assist Ministries of Edcaon their donors and partners and t... more The ppurpose of this paper is to assist Ministries of Edcaon their donors and partners and the practitioner community funded by and working with USAID to select, pilot and--as appropriate- scale up ICT4E solutions to facilitate the implementation of UniersalDesignfor Learning UDL with a particular emphasis on supporting students with disabilities to acquire literacy and numeracy skills. The paper focuses primarily on how technology can ssupport skills acquisition for stdents ith disabilities while also explaining when, why and how technologies that assist students with disabilities can in some applications have positive impacts for all students' basic skills development.
RTI Press, 2018
Learning disabilities are among the most common disabilities experienced in childhood and adultho... more Learning disabilities are among the most common disabilities experienced in childhood and adulthood. Although identifying learning disabilities in a school setting is a complex process, it is particularly challenging in low- and middle- income countries that lack the appropriate resources, tools, and supports. This guide provides an introduction to learning disabilities and describes the processes and practices that are necessary for the identification process. It also describes
a phased approach that countries can use to assess their current screening and evaluation services, as well as determine the steps needed to develop, strengthen, and build systems that support students with learning disabilities. This guide also provides intervention recommendations that teachers and school administrators can implement at each phase of system development. Although this guide primarily addresses learning disabilities, the practices, processes, and systems described
may be also used to improve the identification of other disabilities commonly encountered in schools.
United States International Council on Disability, 2015
United States Agency for International Development , 2017
RTI Press, 2020
The World Health Organization and World Bank (2011) estimate that there are more than 1 billion p... more The World Health Organization and World Bank (2011) estimate that there are more than 1 billion people with disabilities in the world. To address this population’s diverse needs, the United Nations drafted their Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2006. Article 24 (Education) of the CRPD requires ratifying countries to develop an inclusive education system to address the educational needs of students with disabilities alongside their peers without disabilities. Despite substantive improvements and movement toward inclusive education, many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) continue to struggle with accurately identifying and supporting students with disabilities, including knowing how to effectively screen, evaluate, and qualify students for additional services (Hayes, Dombrowski, Shefcyk, & Bulat, 2018a). These challenges stem from the lack of policies, practices, and qualified staff related to screening and identification. As a result, many students with less-apparent disabilities—such as children with learning disabilities—remain unidentified and do not receive the academic supports they need to succeed in school (Friend & Bursuck, 2012). This guide attempts to address the lack of appropriate, useful disability screening and identification systems and
services as countries look to educate all students in inclusive settings. Specifically, this guide introduces viable options for screening and identification related to vision, hearing, and learning disabilities in inclusive classrooms in LMICs. It also provides guidance on how LMICs can transition from an assessment-center model toward a school-based identification model that better serves an inclusive education system.
Books by Anne M Hayes
United States Agency for International Development, 2018
his toolkit adheres to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ... more his toolkit adheres to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, supporting inclusive education as the most appropriate educational setting for students with disabilities. The toolkit supports the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) educational framework, which guides the development of flexible learning environments that accommodate individuals with learning differences.
Providing evidence-based research and information on effective teaching techniques, the toolkit offers information on how to teach early literacy skills to students with different categories of disabilities, including how to best apply these theoretical approaches in practice in Low- and Moderate- Income Country (LMIC) settings. Although the toolkit provides information on multiple aspects of literacy (grammar, spelling and writing), the techniques and interventions focus on the concept of reading as taught in the early years of primary school.
Specifically, the toolkit describes:
the phases of literacy for students with disabilities
supports and services that can be used to gain literacy skills
specific instructional techniques using the framework of UDL
suggestions to monitor students’ progress
funding practices and suggestions for a phased approach to move towards inclusive education
a self-reflection checklist that covers many of the items in the toolkit to help educational systems recognize possible gaps and areas for improvement
This is the first iteration of this toolkit; it is anticipated that future versions will be developed that build upon lessons learned and the application of recommendations in LMICs.
Papers by Anne M Hayes
Inclusion of Children with Learning Difficulties in Literacy and Numeracy in Ghana: A Literature Review
International Journal of Disability Development and Education, Jul 21, 2020
Ghana has a long-standing commitment to improving the education of its citizens. Since its ratifi... more Ghana has a long-standing commitment to improving the education of its citizens. Since its ratification of the United Nation Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), this count...
Screening for dyslexia in low-resource and multilingual contexts
USAID ACR Asia Disability Inclusive Education Review Final Report, 2022
Disability-Inclusive Pre-Primary Education Landscape Review, 2022
Research shows that all children, especially children with disabilities, benefit from participati... more Research shows that all children, especially children with disabilities, benefit from participation in preprimary education (PPE) programs . Disability-inclusive PPE enables children with disabilities to acquire foundational skills needed to benefit from the education system and later contribute to society at large. These foundational skills include phonological awareness, pre-numeracy, social and emotional skills, physical abilities, and other skills that prepare children for the early years of primary school (USAID, 2021). Research also indicates that disability-inclusive PPE can enhance the benefits of home-based early intervention programs that may have been delivered before age 3, by building upon emerging skills. However, in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), children with disabilities have limited access to PPE compared to their peers without disabilities due to environmental, economic, organizational, and attitudinal barriers. Not much is known about the extent to which children with disabilities currently receive and/or are included within PPE programming. As a result, a large gap remains within the evidence base for disability-inclusive PPE. Access to PPE has, however, increased significantly over the past few decades. In 1986, an average of 30 percent of children around the world benefited from early childhood services, compared to the more than 60 percent in 2019 (UNESCO, 2021b). Although much has changed, progress is still too slow to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 4.2 for universal access to PPE by 2030. UNICEF (2019) estimates that, at the present rate of progress, more than half of LMICs will miss this target. This landscape review uses the definition of disability used by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which states that disability is an "evolving concept and that disability results from the interaction between persons with impairments and the attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis as others" (United Nations, 2006). This includes individuals with sensory, mobility, intellectual, developmental, behavioral, attentional, and cognitive disabilities. This landscape review is part of the United States Agency for International Development's (USAID) Leading through Learning Global Platform (LTLGP), which is implemented by the Education Development Center (EDC). LTLGP is a global education learning system for USAID and its partners to enhance thought leadership and education program quality. This landscape review was designed to provide USAID and its partners with a better understanding of how disability-inclusive PPE manifests across a range of contexts, including in contexts of crisis and conflict. To make a meaningful contribution, USAID wants to understand the organizations that are working in this space: what they are doing, what their goals/objectives are, how USAID can collaborate with these organizations to contribute to this work in the future, and how they can translate/actionize these ideas with missions and partners working in the field. This resulting Disability-Inclusive PPE Landscape Review will immediately contribute content to USAID's training on PPE and help USAID achieve their commitment at the Global Disability Summit by providing a more robust evidence base on PPE for learners with disabilities. globally? 1 World Vision has nearly 35,000 staff across 100 countries and six continents, as well as an extensive network throughout these countries. IDP chose World Vision during the proposal phase to ensure that the landscape review was as exhaustive as possible. World Vision sent the survey to 59 of its offices. 2 This did not include 10 participants removed due to a lack of alignment with the survey criteria, which included not being from a LMIC and/or not representing an organization.
A Human Rights-Based Evaluation Approach for Inclusive Education
American Journal of Evaluation, May 28, 2023
This article reports on ways in which United Nations human rights treaties can be used as a norma... more This article reports on ways in which United Nations human rights treaties can be used as a normative framework for evaluating program outcomes. In this article, we conceptualize a human rights-based approach to program evaluation and locate this approach within the broader evaluation literature. The article describes how a rights-based framework can be used as an aspirational set of indicators for program evaluations to promote activities that align with internationally agreed-upon human rights norms. We then describe a case study of the evaluation through which this method was developed, including its sampling design, methodology, and findings. The United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) inclusive education evaluation described highlighted the need for conceptual clarity around what inclusive education is, and the importance of contextualized innovation toward meeting the educational rights of children with disabilities. Human rights perspectives and evaluation designs can help create such clarity, but should also be used with care.
You may not use the material for commercial purposes. Translations: If you translate this work, p... more You may not use the material for commercial purposes. Translations: If you translate this work, please add the following disclaimer along with the attribution: This translation was not created by USAID and should not be considered an official USAID translation. USAID shall not be liable for any content or error in this translation.
Learning disabilities are among the most common disabilities experienced in childhood and adultho... more Learning disabilities are among the most common disabilities experienced in childhood and adulthood. Although identifying learning disabilities in a school setting is a complex process, it is particularly challenging in low- and middle-income countries that lack the appropriate resources, tools, and supports. This guide provides an introduction to learning disabilities and describes the processes and practices that are necessary for the identification process. It also describes a phased approach that countries can use to assess their current screening and evaluation services, as well as determine the steps needed to develop, strengthen, and build systems that support students with learning disabilities. This guide also provides intervention recommendations that teachers and school administrators can implement at each phase of system development. Although this guide primarily addresses learning disabilities, the practices, processes, and systems described may be also used to improve ...
The Democratization of Inclusive Education: Political Settlement and the Role of Disabled Persons Organizations
Comparative Education Review
Inclusive education is a core initiative of United Nations organizations and national governments... more Inclusive education is a core initiative of United Nations organizations and national governments around the world. In this article, we chronicle the development of a 2019 inclusive education policy in Lesotho by examining the role of organizations of persons with disabilities (DPOs) and their policy advocacy. A standpoint epistemological approach is used, relaying the direct experiences of DPO leaders. We frame these events through political settlement theory, which states that when there is a policy conflict, settlements are drawn between powerful actors (governments) and those advocating for change. This typically occurs when the political or economic price of ignoring or suppressing advocacy groups becomes too high for governments to bear. In this study, a DPO successfully advocated for a new policy through media campaigns, direct engagement of government officials, leveraging donor support, and arguing for accountability around international treaty commitments. The political settlement of DPO and government in Lesotho is instructive about new ways in which inclusive education policies are being developed in the wake of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and increased DPO activism.
Comparative Education Review, 2022
Inclusive education is a core initiative of United Nations organizations and national governments... more Inclusive education is a core initiative of United Nations organizations and national governments around the world. In this article, we chronicle the development of a 2019 inclusive education policy in Lesotho by examining the role of organizations of persons with disabilities (DPOs) and their policy advocacy. A standpoint epistemological approach is used, relaying the direct experiences of DPO leaders. We frame these events through political settlement theory, which states that when there is a policy conflict, settlements are drawn between powerful actors (governments) and those advocating for change. This typically occurs when the political or economic price of ignoring or suppressing advocacy groups becomes too high for governments to bear. In this study, a DPO successfully advocated for a new policy through media campaigns, direct engagement of government officials, leveraging donor support, and arguing for accountability around international treaty commitments. The political settlement of DPO and government in Lesotho is instructive about new ways in which inclusive education policies are being developed in the wake of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and increased DPO activism.
Having a disability can be one of the most marginalizing factors in a child’s life. In education,... more Having a disability can be one of the most marginalizing factors in a child’s life. In education, finding ways to meet the learning needs of students with disabilities can be challenging, especially in schools, districts, regions, and countries with severely limited resources. Inclusive education—which fully engages all students, including students with disabilities or other learning challenges, in quality education—has proven particularly effective in helping all students learn, even while challenges to implementing inclusive education systems remain. This guide provides suggestions for developing inclusive education systems and policies, especially for low- and middle-income countries that are moving from a segregated system toward an inclusive system of education. We specifically address the needs of countries with limited resources for implementing inclusive education. However, our strategies and recommendations can be equally useful in other contexts where inclusive education p...
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Publications by Anne M Hayes
a phased approach that countries can use to assess their current screening and evaluation services, as well as determine the steps needed to develop, strengthen, and build systems that support students with learning disabilities. This guide also provides intervention recommendations that teachers and school administrators can implement at each phase of system development. Although this guide primarily addresses learning disabilities, the practices, processes, and systems described
may be also used to improve the identification of other disabilities commonly encountered in schools.
services as countries look to educate all students in inclusive settings. Specifically, this guide introduces viable options for screening and identification related to vision, hearing, and learning disabilities in inclusive classrooms in LMICs. It also provides guidance on how LMICs can transition from an assessment-center model toward a school-based identification model that better serves an inclusive education system.
Books by Anne M Hayes
Providing evidence-based research and information on effective teaching techniques, the toolkit offers information on how to teach early literacy skills to students with different categories of disabilities, including how to best apply these theoretical approaches in practice in Low- and Moderate- Income Country (LMIC) settings. Although the toolkit provides information on multiple aspects of literacy (grammar, spelling and writing), the techniques and interventions focus on the concept of reading as taught in the early years of primary school.
Specifically, the toolkit describes:
the phases of literacy for students with disabilities
supports and services that can be used to gain literacy skills
specific instructional techniques using the framework of UDL
suggestions to monitor students’ progress
funding practices and suggestions for a phased approach to move towards inclusive education
a self-reflection checklist that covers many of the items in the toolkit to help educational systems recognize possible gaps and areas for improvement
This is the first iteration of this toolkit; it is anticipated that future versions will be developed that build upon lessons learned and the application of recommendations in LMICs.
Papers by Anne M Hayes