Ingrid Lunt

Inclusive education: are there limits?

Over the past 10 years there has been a growing impetus worldwide towards ‘full inclusion’. More recently this has been balanced by desires to ensure ‘responsible inclusion’ and an awareness that there may be some pupils for whom ‘inclusive’ schools are inappropriate, at least at some stage in their school career. The study aimed to find out the views of a range of professionals in relation to ‘inclusion’. A questionnaire was sent to Principal Educational Psychologists in England and Wales, and focus group discussions of mixed groups of professionals were arranged to address questions of ‘inclusive education’. The study suggests that there are considerable obstacles in the way of ‘full inclusion’ and that schools as currently organised frequently find it difficult to meet the wide range of individual needs. The apparent conflicts in government policy between the ‘standards’ and ‘league tables’ discourse and the ‘inclusive schools’ discourse make it difficult for schools to become more inclusive.

A common framework for the training of psychologists in Europe

This paper presents the common framework for the training of psychologists in Europe, developed by a team of 15 members from 12 European countries partially funded by the European Union under its Leonardo da Vinci program. The team worked for over 2 years (1999-2001) through a series of transnational meetings and workshops, using consultation networks both in individual countries and across Europe, conference presentations, and an analysis of existing national education and training routes for psychologists in various European countries. The resulting framework provides a general structure for education and training which meets the requirements of the majority of participating countries.

The Implications of the “Bologna Process” for the Development of a European Qualification in Psychology

Abstract. The Bologna Declaration was signed by signatories from 29 countries on 19 June 1999, just over 40 years after the formation of the European Community by the Treaty of Rome in 1957, and heralded the start of what has come to be known as the “Bologna Process,” which aspires to form the “European Higher Education Area” by 2010. The nature, extent, and implications of this process are still unclear, in particular whether it is part of a “harmonization” or “convergence” project or rather more of a comparability and equivalence initiative. Over the past 20 years there have been a number of initiatives within Europe, both at the level of the European Community and within bodies such as the European Federation of Psychologists Associations (EFPA), which have aimed to improve mobility for students and professionals from psychology and other disciplines through attempts to develop systems of mutual recognition of qualifications. One of these initiatives is the development of a European Diploma in Psycholo...

Global mobility for psychologists: the role of psychology organizations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and other regions.

Global mobility for psychologists is rapidly improving because of an emerging consensus on recognition standards, the demand for cross-border mobility both internal and external to the profession, and the efforts of membership, credentialing, and regional organizations to promote mobility. In the United States, multiple credentialing organizations promote mobility, primarily through individual endorsement of credentials. The Canadian regulatory boards signed a mutual recognition agreement implementing fast-track mechanisms for licensed psychologists seeking mobility and a competency-based assessment for initial registration. Europe plans to reduce barriers to mobility through mutual recognition of qualifications via a EuroPsy diploma that provides a benchmark for professional psychology education and training. Other regions have not made as much progress with regard to promoting mobility, as many do not yet even regulate the practice of psychology. The authors examine who seeks mobility, which geographic regions promote mobility, and by which mechanisms.

The Context for a European Framework for Psychologists' Training

In this paper we analyze the context in which the European Framework for Psychologists Training was developed over a 2-year period 1999-2001. The increasingly global context in which European psychologists have to function suggests that the costs of not having a common framework are too great. Pressures by the European Union to promote mobility and convergence across the European member states create further impetus for a common framework. The wider European context provides an interesting tension between diversity and overarching common commitments and principles. It is suggested that the benefits of a common framework outweigh the disadvantages. These benefits include greater student and staff mobility, a clearer identity of European psychology, increased opportunities to attract world-class scholars to European universities, enhanced transparency of qualifications, and common solutions to problems at a European level. We argue that European psychology cannot afford not to have a common European framewo...

The market forces? The effect of local management of schools on special educational needs provision

Abstract This paper explores the approaches taken by local education authorities (LEAs) to the funding and organisation of provision for special educational needs (SEN) under local management of schools (LMS). LMS is seen as playing a central role in the new rights attempts to introduce market ‘realities’ into public sector organisations. It is argued that a more market‐oriented discourse, with its concomitant emphasis on individualism, is taking hold in LEAs, and this is illustrated by references to developments in special education in two case study authorities. The two LEAs respond differently to this situation. However, it is concluded that, despite these variations, LEAs are increasingly in a position where they are having to adapt to a more market‐oriented culture. One element of this is that responsibility for pupils with special needs (particularly those without statements) is increasingly becoming that of the school alone. However, arrangements for ensuring and monitoring that provision remain u...

The Professionalization of Psychology in Europe

Over the past 100 years psychology has become increasingly professionalized. Emerging from a scientific discipline at the beginning of the century, it has rapidly became a professional field with psychologists working in health, education, and organizational settings as practitioners. A number of measures of this increased professionalization are discussed: increased length of education and training, greater specialization and specialist training, pressures for regulation and laws for psychologists, the development of ethical codes, and a greater institutionalization of psychology. Professional organizations for psychologists play a key role in the professionalization of the discipline. However, the path followed is the traditional path of the traditional professions, and questions are raised about the appropriateness of this for the next century.

Professionals Under Pressure: the administration of special education in a changing context

Abstract This paper explores the role of professionals employed in the special education section of local education authorities (LEAs). Its examination of the political, cultural and financial contexts in which decision‐making occurs is illustrated by data collected in interviews with LEA personnel in five local authorities. The first section of the paper examines the nature and effects of professional control in special education. Depoliticisation, individualisation and a concentration on technical solutions are seen as the main outcomes of professional control. The second section of the paper analyses the discourses which underpin professional notions of special education. The paper argues that it is the nature of these discourses which renders special education vulnerable to incursions by recent public sector reforms; namely managerialism and the concomitant shift towards rule‐based decision‐making. It concludes that the dominant discourses in special education are ill‐equipped to penetrate beyond proc...

Clusters: inter‐school collaboration in meeting special educational needs in ordinary schools

This article reports the findings and discusses the implications of a research project on school clusters, a system of inter-school collaboration to meet special educational needs (SEN) in ordinary schools. The project was in two stages. The first stage involved detailed qualitative case studies of four different kinds of cluster arrangement. These were analysed in terms of antecedents, processes and outcomes based on documentation and interviews with key participants as informants. The second stage surveyed a wider sample of cluster arrangements in three regional meetings using a group interview methodology. The overall findings are summarised in terms of the conditions and factors which promote SEN inter-school collaboration and the outcomes for schools, teachers, local education authorities (LEAs) and support services. The significance and implications of these forms of inter-school collaboration are finally discussed in terms of the current changes to the school system and the education of pupils with SEN.

Vygotskian Theory and Special Education Practice in Russia.

Summary This paper discusses tensions and dilemmas that arise in the implementation of Vygotskian psychology. It analyses the development of special educational needs (SEN) provision and practice in the former Soviet Union from this perspective and identifies similarities and differences with the changes in emphasis being witnessed in England and Wales. The analysis is illustrated via reference to interviews conducted during recent visits to Russian schools and the Moscow State University.