Missy Morton

Disability studies and inclusive education — implications for theory, research, and practice

This paper serves as a broad introduction to Disabilities Studies in Education (DSE). The emergence of DSE over the last decade has resulted in a vibrant area of academic scholarship as well as a critical forum for social/educational advocacy and activism. First, the authors trace the roots of DSE in the growth of disability studies (DS) within the UK and the USA. Second, they describe the formation of international networks dedicated to DSE. Third, they chart the evolution of DSE’s conceptual framework, complete with tenets and examples, carefully crafted over time by a community of scholars. Fourth, they comment upon twelve papers selected for this special double issue of the International Journal of Inclusive Education, highlighting the contribution of each toward both advancing and elucidating the tenets within the conceptual framework of DSE. Finally, the authors close with reflections on the significance of DSE, contemplating what it offers theorists, researchers, and practitioners, as well as highlighting future possibilities.

Bridging two worlds: special education and curriculum policy

In a report to the Aotearoa New Zealand Ministry of Education entitled Curriculum Policy and Special Education Support (2004), the team of writers noted the lack of collaboration between experts in these two fields. This paper explores the apparently separate worlds of special education and curriculum policy in order to develop an understanding of where are the intersections, near misses and black holes. The experiences of the present authors, as education professionals in the two fields, are used to illustrate these gradually merging worlds. Discourses in special education are explored along with the need for new directions in curriculum developments for children with disabilities that disrupt current boundaries. The authors see possibilities in policy aims and practices; they have found (and participated in) attempts to reach out across the divides.

Kinds of participation: teacher and special education perceptions and practices of ‘inclusion’ in early childhood and primary school settings

This paper presents narratives from two parents about the exclusion of their disabled children within early childhood and primary school settings. Interpretations of particular ‘kinds of participation’ that appear to be accepted as inclusive are explored. We argue that these interpretations have disabling effects on the childrens learning and participation. We critique participation that is interpreted as ‘presence’, ‘fitting in’, and ‘irrelevant or unimportant’. New Zealand curriculum documents [Ministry of Education. 1996. Te Whäriki: Early childhood curriculum. Te Whäriki matauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa. Wellington: Learning Media; Ministry of Education. 2007. The New Zealand curriculum. Wellington: Learning Media.] are briefly considered with regard to their socio-cultural views of learning, teaching, and participation and their positioning of disabled learners. A ‘pedagogy of listening’ (POL), based on a critical, ethical, and political approach to learning and teaching, is presented as an alternative to deficit approaches to learning and participation [Dalhberg, G., and P. Moss. 2005. Ethics and politics in early childhood education. London: Routledge; Rinaldi, C. 2006. In dialogue with Reggio Emilia: Listening, researching and responding. In Contesting early childhood series, eds G. Dalhberg and P. Moss. London: Routledge]. POL and narrative approaches to assessment are considered in relation to their implications for inclusive New Zealand pedagogy.

Introduction to the special issue – making inclusive education happen: Ideas for sustainable change

The articles in this special issue are based on papers presented at an international conference entitled, Making inclusive education happen: Ideas for sustainable change, which was held in Wellington, New Zealand in September 2009. The conference was the work of a group in New Zealand called the Inclusive Education Action Group (IEAG). In this introduction to the special issue, we describe the IEAG, the context for our work and the aims of the conference. We also provide a brief overview of the papers. New Zealand has often been identified as an example of a nation where neoliberal policies have been implemented both quickly and widely. These policies focus on outputs rather than outcomes, stressing the need for efficiency and cost effectiveness (e.g. Apple 2002; Lather 2009; Whitty and Power 1998). Lather (2009) described the resulting climate in schools as an ‘audit culture’ that requires teachers to continuously demonstrate their effectiveness through simplistic and instrumentalist approaches to assessment. Critiques of the implementation of neoliberal policies in education in New Zealand have come from a wide range of educationists within New Zealand, which is evident in the following statement by Peters et al. (2000, 1):

Silenced in the court: meanings of research and difference in the US legal system

In this paper I report a qualitative study of a series of court decisions concerning the meanings of science and the gold standard of special education research. I describe two sets of court proceedings and subsequent decisions that considered the admissibility of statements purportedly given by disabled children using a strategy known as facilitated communication. The legal decisions focused on the admissibility of novel scientific evidence. I draw on Minows descriptions and critique of three approaches to legal analysis to interrogate the two court decisions. I have argued that the legal system privileges a particular kind of scientific discourse, based on the traditional scientific method that emphasizes empiricist forms over questions of rights or value. This discourse dismisses and disqualifies forms of knowing and the subjects who claim to know about their own lives.

Poto He Anga: Collaboration and Consultation in Pasifika Research

Research into the literacy of Pasifika (Pacific Island) children has predominantly focused on what the children cannot do. We present a layered account as we report on the issues, strategies and learnings from a project that set out to focus on success. With the guidance of matai (chiefs) we drew on the traditional Pasifika approach of Talanoa to allow important stories to be told. Talanoa both supports and challenges traditional and alternative Palagi (a Polynesian word for European) approaches to qualitative research. Three critical issues for researchers are identified: group ownership and control of the process and outcomes, the importance of collaboratively sharing research outcomes with the researched and the wider Pasifika community, and the value of opportunities for Pasifika and Palagi to undertake Pasifika research together.

Parents’ Lived Experiences of Teachers’ Construction of Giftedness

This chapter explores three interrelated questions: How do parents whose children have been labelled ‘gifted’ understand and interpret their own and their children’s experiences in early childhood education and the early years of primary school? How do teachers make sense of the idea of giftedness? How do teachers’ understandings of giftedness shape the early childhood centre and classroom experiences of children labelled ‘gifted’? Parents’ stories give insights into how gifted children are treated by their teachers and how their learning environment is managed by the teachers.