Inclusive Vocational Education in Russia

The chapter presents the experienceExperiences of special vocationalVocational educationEducation for people with disabilitiesDisabilities during the SovietSoviet period. Its significance as a valuable resource for the developmentDevelopment of inclusiveInclusive vocationalVocational educationEducation in modernModern RussiaRussia is highlighted. The historical review is divided into three periods i.e. the emergence of a system of vocationalVocational trainingTraining for people with disabilitiesDisabilities, covering the Imperial (since 1806) and SovietSoviet periods, and the currentCurrent stateState of vocationalVocational educationEducation. The chapter pays particular focus to the challenges of the disparities between the professionalProfessional qualifications obtained by a person with disabilitiesDisabilities and the supply of unskilled jobs on the market, and to the analysisAnalysis of special individual rehabilitation (remediation) and habilitation (supportSupport) programs, which often act as barriersBarriers to the employment of people with disabilitiesDisabilities. At the heart of these and several other challenges faced by people with disabilitiesDisabilities in obtaining vocationalVocational educationEducation and employment is the inherent and dominant medicalMedical approach to disabilityDisabilities that persists at the political level. In conclusionConclusion, we also highlight the transformationTransformations of socialSocial policyPolicy in accordance with the principles of independentIndependent living and improving the quality of lifeLife of people with disabilitiesDisabilities, as well as the transitionTransition of the RussianRussian educationEducation system towards inclusionInclusion, discussed later in the chapter, which are the results of the ongoing transitionTransition to the adoptionAdoption of the socialSocial modelModel approach to inclusionInclusion and disabilityDisabilities.