Lani Florian

Cross-Cultural Perspectives on the Classification of Children With Disabilities Part I. Issues in the Classification of Children With Disabilities

This article is the first of a 2-part synthesis of an international seminar on the classification of children with disabilities. It synthesizes 6 papers that address broad questions relating to disability classification and categorization, cross-national comparisons on disability in education, the World Health Organizations International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), and Amartya Sens capability approach. The focus of the article is the intentions, purposes, and future directions for disability classification in education. The authors argue that these advances offer researchers and policy-makers the opportunity to examine the relational nature of disability classification in any recalibration of statutory standards or educational policy reforms. Such developments are necessary to move beyond discrete categorical classification systems traditionally used in education that (a) do not recognize the complexity of human differences, (b) unnecessarily stigmatize children, and (c) do not always benefit the individuals who are classified.

Preparing teachers for inclusive education: using inclusive pedagogy to enhance teaching and learning for all

As the concept of ‘inclusive education’ has gained currency, students who would previously have been referred to specialist forms of provision, having been judged ‘less able’, are now believed to belong in mainstream classrooms. However, it is often argued that teachers lack the necessary knowledge and skills to work with such students in inclusive classrooms. This paper reports findings of a study of a new initial teacher education course that starts from the premise that the question is not whether teachers have the necessary knowledge and skills to teach in inclusive classrooms, but how to make best use of what they already know when learners experience difficulty. The theoretical rationale for the development of the course is outlined and examples of how teachers might engage in more inclusive practice are presented.

Effective Inclusive Schools: A Study in Two Countries.

Abstract Over the past several years a number of constituencies in the USA and the UK have advocated for the concept of the inclusive school as the placement of choice for students with disabilities. Such a school offers appropriate educational opportunities to all students regardless of type or severity of disability or difficulty. To determine the characteristic features of such a school, two separate studies of inclusive educational practices were undertaken in locations that shared a commitment to inclusive education but differed geographically and culturally. The first study focused on the implementation of a statewide policy on inclusion in a rural state in the USA. The second study was conducted in a densely populated London Borough also committed to inclusive education. Both studies utilised interviews with key personnel and observations of innovative practice. Results suggest that effective inclusive schools are diverse problem solving organisations and that there are different ways of achieving ...

Enacting inclusion: a framework for interrogating inclusive practice

This study reports on the development and use of an analytical framework for interrogating the practice of newly qualified mainstream teachers recently graduated from a one-year Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) that was informed by a concept of inclusive pedagogy. Inclusive pedagogy is an approach to teaching and learning that supports teachers to respond to individual differences between learners but avoids the marginalisation that can occur when some students are treated differently. The analytical framework was based on the principles of inclusive pedagogy, which were linked to the core themes of Aberdeen University’s PGDE course. Its purpose was to provide a robust and coherent framework for documenting inclusive pedagogy in action. This study describes how the framework was developed and used with new teachers in order to further understanding of how reforms of initial teacher education can impact inclusive teaching and learning. The framework was initially designed in the context of a teacher education project but has wider applicability as a research tool for exploring inclusive pedagogy in action. This is particularly relevant to the study of inclusive education in the practical setting of the classroom where there is little guidance to support systematic research on how inclusive education is enacted.

Preparing Teachers to Work in Inclusive Classrooms Key Lessons for the Professional Development of Teacher Educators from Scotland’s Inclusive Practice Project

The increasing cultural, linguistic, and developmental diversity of today’s classrooms demands more inclusive approaches to schooling, but classroom teachers often report feeling unprepared for inclusive education. This article reports some lessons learned from the Inclusive Practice Project, a teacher education reform project that has developed an innovative approach to preparing teachers to enter a profession in which they take responsibility for the learning and achievement of all students. It identifies four crucial issues, describes how they were addressed, and considers the challenges of professional development of teacher educators that emerged from the project studies. Key lessons focusing on the professional development of teacher educators in the establishment of a new curricular approach to teacher education for inclusive education are discussed.

Preparing teachers for inclusive and diverse educational environments: studying curricular reform in an initial teacher education course

Inclusive education is based on the principle that local schools should provide for all children and young people regardless of any perceived social, emotional, cultural intellectual or linguistic difference or disability. This paper identifies key concepts associated with inclusive education and discusses them in relation to issues in the reform of teacher education. It argues that the reform of teacher education for inclusive education is an important activity in improving educational equity. It presents the study design and some early findings of an innovative research and development project, the Inclusive Practice Project, based in the School of Education at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

Classroom Teachers' Craft Knowledge of Their Inclusive Practice.

Whilst recent decades have seen significant progress in research on inclusive education, many teachers still feel that the research literature does not fully address their professional concerns about how to enact a policy of inclusion in their classrooms. To help to bridge this gap, we drew on the concept of craft knowledge to undertake a detailed study in two Scottish primary schools of the practice of class teachers who are committed to meet the needs of all learners. This paper describes the processes involved, and considers how these helped us to develop a greater understanding of what constitutes inclusive practice, whilst also contributing to a more robustly theorised knowledge of what we have termed inclusive pedagogy, or the inclusive pedagogical approach. Methodological complexities arising from the use of the concept of craft knowledge are also explored.

Inclusive Practice in English Secondary Schools: Lessons learned

This paper considers how some secondary schools in England have been able to respond to the conflicting demands of school improvement policies, as measured by high academic standards and the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs. It begins with a discussion of the context in which all English schools are currently operating and a summary of the extent to which research on school effectiveness and school improvement has influenced research on inclusion and vice versa. Key findings from our work in secondary schools committed to inclusion are presented and discussed in light of teacher, subject department and whole school responses to pupil diversity. The paper concludes with a conceptualisation of inclusive schools as those that meet the dual criteria of enrolling a diverse student population and improving academic standards for all.

Inclusive education in the market‐place

For many, the concept of inclusive schools is seen as the logical development of a more tolerant and accepting society. Recent debates about inclusion have centred on the rights of children with disabilities to attend mainstream schools and the ways in which schools must change to make this a reality. At the same time, a competitive climate, brought about by a ‘new orthodoxy’ of educational reform in the developed world, is affecting the context in which schools are working. There has been a shift from policies based on equity, social progress and altruism to new laws underpinned by the philosophy of the market‐place. In such a climate, students with special educational needs are particularly vulnerable. This paper explores some of the issues that are emerging in England and Wales as policies designed to extend the concept of inclusive education are affected by the market‐place philosophies that have driven recent reforms.

An examination of the practical problems associated with the implementation of inclusive education policies

The debate about inclusive education is a topic of educational interest throughout the world. In the UK, the concept of inclusion is a central theme in the new Labour governments education policies. Although the concept is part of a broad human rights agenda, many educators have serious reservations about supporting the widespread placement of pupils with SEN in mainstream schools. This paper reviews the arguments for and against inclusive education with particular reference to the governments policy documents, Excellence in Schools and Excellence for All Children.