Children with special educational needs: An impact evaluation

Children with special educational needs related to socioeconomic, language or cultural disadvantage (SENs) frequently do not have a positive attitude towards school, they are not motivated to study and have difficulty achieving satisfactory school results. The “RIBES” project, carried out in 9 Italian regions from 2019 to 2022, implemented two main interventions i.e. “Family Coaching” (where a family without any SEN children helps another family having at least one SEN child) and “Class Coaching” (a set of school activities aimed at supporting both children with SENs and their peers in the class group), aimed at improving the well-being of children with SENs and their families involved in the project. An impact evaluation aimed to explore outcomes of the project experienced by the children, families and communities involved. By adopting a multimethod approach, using both quantitative tools (scales and questionnaires, allowing also pre-post comparisons) and qualitative tools (focus groups, documentation used by professionals), such evaluation highlighted positive outcomes for multiple targets. First of all, children with SENs experienced outcomes mainly related to relational and personal growth and school performance. Other children (without SENs) within Class Coaching also experienced an increase in their well-being. Families supported through Family Coaching improved in terms of network development, ability to use services, and awareness of their own capabilities. Other actors in the community also benefited from their participation in the project, especially in terms of developing their network and enhancing their skills and knowledge. These results suggest that Family Coaching and Class Coaching interventions involving several actors in the community (families, private non-profit organizations, schools, …) and focusing on the specific needs of disadvantaged children and families can generate positive outcomes and social impacts.