Doing justice to inclusion: a response to John Wilson

This study explored mainstream education teachers' perceptions of instructional adaptations in inclusive classrooms and its feasibility, effectiveness, and desirability of implementation. It was of particular interest to know how teachers of different grade levels would respond to such adaptations. Kindergarten (n = 16), elementary (n = 34), secondary (n = 26) and high school (n = 13) teachers rated the feasibility, effectiveness and desirability of 29 items on the Teaching Adaptation Scale. Results indicated a moderate teacher acceptance of instructional adaptations. Additionally, statistically significant differences between grade grouping (high school vs compulsory grades) surfaced. Findings are discussed in the light of needs of professional practice and significant reforms to improve curriculum preparation programmes.     

公平之辨及其特质再认识

公平是人类社会追求的理想和价值取向,但公平概念内涵的丰富与日常使用上的“日用而不辩”,造成公平概念认识上的无序与混乱,实践层面也同样面临无从入手的局面。因此,有必要对公平概念进行进一步研究,明晰公平的真实面貌。通过对公平及其相近概念的逐层辨析,可以得出以下探讨性的结论：公平是一个内涵复杂的独立概念;公平是一个相对价值的操作性概念;公平是代价最低、效率最高的追求;公平以权利平等为基础,向往机会均等。     

A just state of affairs: philosophical reflections on justice,inclusion and the education of disabled children

In the current education policy environment, inclusion – that is the situation in which all disabled children and young people attend their local school and there is no alternative form of provision – is widely accepted as best representing a just state of affairs as regards where these children go to school; any alternative circumstances are equated with injustice and unfairness. This article presents a philosophical reflection on this matter. Drawing on the work of Nussbaum, Cigman and others, the author argues that a single conception of just educational arrangements as articulated in inclusive education policies is insufficient to what is a complex issue. It is proposed that any assessment or evaluation of the justice or otherwise of educational arrangements for disabled children and young people requires a nuanced approach that takes into consideration the lived experiences of those children and the different values and desires they and their families might hold.     

Doing injustice to inclusion: a response to John Wilson

In recent years, there has been an increased recognition of the importance of parenting and the way in which parenting programmes can be an effective intervention in changing behaviour and parent–child interactions. The aim of this research, funded by the Department for Education and Skills, was to provide a map of parenting programme provision in England. In phase 1 of the research data were collected through responsible local authority (LA) officers from all LAs in England to explore the different types of parenting programmes available. On the basis of findings from phase 1 of the research, 20 examples of particular types of parenting programmes were selected for more in‐depth study. In phase 2 field‐visits were undertaken to parenting programmes and interviews undertaken with staff. The paper reports the extent to which LAs have access to or provide educationally related parenting programmes in England and the nature of that provision, including infrastructure, organization and funding; the set up of programmes and referral systems; participants and dropouts; types of programmes; programme content and follow‐up; evaluation; staff training; and difficulties experienced in providing such programmes and for parents in accessing them. The findings are discussed in the light of the implementation of Parenting Orders and the operationalization of the Antisocial Behaviour Act 2003.     

Using an Assistive Technology Toolkit to Promote Inclusion

Although the use of assistive technology for young children is increasing, the lack of awareness and the lack of training continue to act as major barriers to providers using assistive technology. This article describes an assistive technology toolkit designed for use with young children with disabilities that can be easily assembled and implemented by early childhood professionals. Specifically, we will describe assistive technology tools that support young children’s participation in their daily activities that involve movement and sensory needs, communication, and interaction with materials and offer strategies on how to implement these devices. An assembled toolkit that allows young children with disabilities immediate access to experiences that lead to acquisition of skills they need to learn and grow is discussed.     

Disability and education: The longest road to inclusion

Children with disabilities are one of the many groups of children still not enrolled in primary education in developing countries. However, their educational exclusion and right to education are now receiving more policy attention. This paper reviews some of the key issues and challenges in relation to disability, education and development: definitions and data, policies, service delivery and finance, and capacity development. Drawing on a review of education sector planning and provision in 28 developing countries and other literature, the paper makes comparative reference to policy and practice in a number of developed and developing country contexts.     

Using teachers' prior knowledge,attitudes and beliefs to develop in-service teacher education courses for inclusion

This paper examines one important dimension of inclusive education: the development of in-service teacher education courses. Using an example from Cyprus, it discusses the issue of contextualizing teacher training courses to suit teachers' prior knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about inclusion. The paper considers some of the findings of a survey about issues relating to inclusion. The findings suggest that teachers' conceptualizations of inclusion are problematic. According to the findings, teachers tend to think on the basis of a medical and charity model and they favour special schooling for specific groups of children. The discussion considers how a training course for inclusion can be academically robust and professionally useful, while at the same time taking into consideration teachers' prior knowledge and expectations.     

The tyranny of setting (ability grouping): Challenges to inclusion in Scottish primary schools

Debate around the use of ability grouping in schools, resonates across national boundaries as concerns rise around the possible negative impact on young people, particularly those in already disadvantaged groups. In this paper, a survey focussing on primary schools in Scotland established the extent to which some form of ability grouping has emerged within classes dealing with children from 5 to 12 years of age, the rationale behind the decisions made and the issues and challenges faced by schools.     

Attitudes of Greek parents of primary school children without special educational needs to inclusion

Successful inclusion of children with special educational needs (SEN) in school settings depends largely on the attitudes of parents of peers without SEN. The purpose of the present study was to explore the attitudes of Greek parents of primary school children without SEN towards inclusion. The participants were 338 parents (182 fathers, 156 mothers), aged 27 to 58 years (mean age = 39 years and 5 months). They were asked to complete the My thinking about inclusion scale and a further short questionnaire. The findings revealed that Greek parents of primary school children not identified as having SEN had an overall positive attitude towards inclusion. Gender differences were also established—fathers held more positive attitudes towards inclusion than mothers, even when controlling for age, educational level and the presence of a child with SEN in their child’s classroom. However, mothers were overall more willing than fathers to engage themselves and their child in interaction with a child with SEN.     

Disabled children's evolving digital use practices to support formal learning. A missed opportunity for inclusion

This paper takes an interdisciplinary approach combining digital education with disability theory to investigate disabled children's digital use practices for formal learning. Evidence suggests that children's lives have been transformed through engagement with digital technologies, eg, computers, laptops and mobile devices. Even so, empirical studies about disabled children's uses of technology remain limited, particularly studies that engage with disabled children's own views in context. In response, an exploratory, participatory research study was designed to gain up-to-date insights into how visually impaired children, as an illustrative case, experienced digital technologies for learning within the context of inclusive education policy. Disabled children and teachers were interviewed in mainstream schools in England; results were analysed using social practice theory to identify digital use practices characterised as digital learning and digital accessibility practices alongside children's experiences. Outcomes were mixed. Youngsters saw benefits to using digital technologies, particularly tablets, for learning. Nevertheless, digital accessibility practices were potentially stigmatising and carried an extra task load to overcome barriers that occurred when teachers had not developed inclusive digital pedagogy. The paper discusses the implications of these findings and calls for further research to guide schools to use digital technologies to support inclusion.     

Barriers to inclusion: insights of special and general educators from the US and St. Lucia

Globally, inclusion has been touted as best practice for working with students with disabilities. Despite the universal acceptance of inclusion, educators have identified several challenges in using inclusive practices. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of general and special educators from the United States and St. Lucia on barriers to inclusion. Using qualitative research methodology, 32 teachers were interviewed. Data were analyzed inductively and special and general educators’ perception of barriers emerged under six themes: inadequate resources and time, environmental and professional barriers, lack of administrative support, negative attitudes of stakeholders, differing interpretation on inclusion, and unsuitable curriculum and assessment. Analysis was also guided by Lewin’s (1947) theory of planned change. Results indicated that teachers across regions identified similar obstacles to inclusion with time and limited resources being the predominant problem. The main difference was that environmental and professional barriers were identified by more teachers from the US, while lack of administrative support was predominantly identified by teachers from St. Lucia. In analyzing the responses from both general and special educators, the researcher found that there were no major differences based on participants’ role. Recommendations and implications for practice are discussed.     

Literacy,social justice and inclusion: a large-scale design experiment to narrow the attainment gap linked to poverty

This paper describes the development and use of a tool designed to support educators to use a broad range of professional knowledge to enable inclusive literacy teaching that delivers social justice and narrows the attainment gap associated with poverty. The tool encourages teachers to formally recognise and act on a wide range of evidence about students as learners and to design their literacy curriculum and teaching according to this evidence. The research operationalised a Capabilities approach to inclusion and a design experiment methodology, working with 48 schools, 650 teachers and 12,783 students. A paired sample T-test showed a significant improvement in standardised age scores and that the ‘tail of underachievement’ shortened for all social groups. Goodman and Kruskal's gamma showed a weakening of the relationship between poverty and attainment. This gives cause for cautious optimism that attainment gaps associated with economic disadvantage can be narrowed if educators act on a wider range of evidence in literacy teaching, and if education researchers develop and trial tools to support them.