Policy Practice Gap in Participation of Students with Disabilities Some Selected Primary Schools of Sodo Woreda, Gurage Zone, SNNPRS Ethiopia

<strong>ABSTRACT: </strong>The main purpose of the study was to investigate the policy practice gap in participation of students with disabilities at primary schools. The study conducted in four primary schools in Gurage Zone Sodo Woreda.Besides this qualitative case study, method was employed in the study. Bearing in mind that there were 32 participants covered in zone educational bureau experts, woreda educational office heads and vice heads, woreda educational office experts, schools’ principals, cluster supervisors, special needs professionals and regular teachers were selected by using purposive sampling and available sampling techniques. For instance, the data collection tools employed was semi-structured interview, focus group discussion, document analysis and observetation used as data gathering insturement. In addition, data analysed by using descriptive/narrative/ method and to triangulate the data. Finally, the findings from the study revealed that lack of all international and national policy, strategies, guidelines, rules and regulation.Not only the documents but also little knowledge on documents.Woreda and schools were not supported by appropriate budget to implement the policy, strategies, lack of close follow up, and supervision, monitoring and evaluation, lack of consistent tools for identification assessment and intervention.Therefore,the study suggested that pay special attention to implement policies, the government shoud make collaboration with other stakeholders to built their capacity on policy documents, prepare consistent tools for identifaction assessments and intervention, create awareness raising on policy documents, the policy documents should be printed and delivered to teachers as part of other curricula documents