Epilepsy and school in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: The current situation, challenges, and solutions

Najib Kissani*, Khaoula Balili, Boulenouar Mesraoua, Fatema Abdulla, Ghaieb Bashar, Raidah Al-Baradie, Rabha Elsahli, Eetedal Ibrahim, Abdullah Al-Asmi, Nesma Mounir, Nirmeen Adel Kishk, Amina Harharah, Ahmed Abu Aliqa, Arlette Honein, Maher Arabi, Ali Akbar Asadi-Pooya

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Education is a human right that plays a key role in social and economic development. Children having active epilepsy may not be properly schooled in ordinary school structures. Students with epilepsy (SWE) are often faced with academic barriers. The lack of information about the current status of special education for SWE obliged the researchers to try to describe the existing reality of the special education practices in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. We disseminated a simple self-administered questionnaire via email to main healthcare professionals involved in epilepsy care in the MENA region, and we also did a literature search on the PubMed, Google Scholar, and Embase engines. We ranked the countries in terms of their educational system. The 1st group contains the most advanced educational system, including specialized schools for SWE. The 2nd group contains an educational system with specialized but less structured schools. The 3rd group includes countries using integrated classes or classes mixing many children with cognitive disabilities. The 4th group includes countries with ordinary classes for SWE, and finally, the 5th group with no schooling for children with epilepsy (CWE). This study indicates that 60% of the countries in the MENA region belong to the 3rd group; there is only one country in each of the first two groups. This work highlights the need to develop structured environments for schooling for SWE in the MENA region.

Original languageEnglish
Article number107325
JournalEpilepsy and Behavior
Volume112
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2020

Keywords

  • Disabilities
  • Epilepsy
  • MENA region
  • School
  • Special education
  • Students with epilepsy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Behavioral Neuroscience

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