On November 7 the European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education organized the European Hearing, the aim of which was to share experiences and expectations related to inclusive education of young people both with and without disabilities. The Hearing, which was held in the European Parliament in Brussels, was attended by 31 delegations from 27 member countries of the Agency; the representatives of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union as well as the representatives of the European Commission and members of the European Parliament were also present at the Hearing.

The Polish delegation was composed of Wacław Dzięcioł and Jakub Jarmuła – the students of the 2^nd grade of lower secondary school in Zespół Szkół Integracyjnych no. 71 in Warsaw, Łukasz Śmietana – the student of the 3^rd grade of upper secondary school (Liceum Ogólnokształcące) in Wodzisław Śląski and Dorota Kaczorowska (mentor of Wacław Dzięcioł) and Paweł Sosnowski (mentor of Łukasz Śmietana).

During the Hearing young people highlighted among others that a well-prepared teacher plays an important role in inclusive education. They also emphasized that students with special educational needs should be taught together with their peers, that the use of modern technologies in their education has an enormous significance, and they should have equal opportunities when applying for a job after the graduation. The participants of the Hearing also discussed their own experiences and the progress in inclusive education achieved since the previous meeting (the Hearing in the European Parliament was the third meeting of this kind organized by the European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education – the former meetings were held in 2003 in Brussels and in 2007 in Lisbon).     

The representatives of the Polish Presidency that participated in the Hearing – Emilia Wojdyła and Jerzy Barski from the Ministry of National Education – underlined that all the European countries agree that inclusive education constitutes a significant foundation ensuring equal opportunities of students with diverse needs in all areas of life – education, vocational education, employment and social life. They also took note of the fact that every country of the European Union builds this foundation in relations to its own economic situation, legal conditions and existing solutions in its education system. They also stressed that the dimension of social inclusion was present in the framework of the Polish Presidency – the documents that will be adopted by the Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council of the European Union will include the references to the situation of people with special needs.    

The participants of the Hearing prepared special posters illustrating their regard to inclusive education. The posters were displayed in the hall of the European Parliament. The poster elaborated by the students from upper secondary school in Wodzisław Śląski received recognition.