Sheila Riddell

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.

Can restorative practices in schools make a difference

Schools in the UK looking for solutions to concerns about indiscipline have been enthused by the basic premise of restorative practice; the need to restore good relationships when there has been conflict or harm; and develop a school ethos, policies and procedures that reduce the possibilities of such conflict and harm arising. In 2004 the Scottish Executive funded a national pilot project on restorative practice and commissioned a team at Glasgow and Edinburgh Universities to carry out a two‐year evaluation of the pilot. In this paper, we discuss staff and pupil understandings and offer some exploration of the underpinning principles of restorative practice as it has developed thus far in schools. We explore the successes and challenges schools experienced and discuss the potential contribution of restorative practices for schools in challenging times. Finally we relate our findings to some critical arguments about the meaning and purposes of discipline and control in schooling.

Policy and provision for disabled students in higher education in Scotland and England: the current state of play

Higher education in the UK has been through a period of major change since the mid‐1980s. A massive expansion in the number of students has been coupled with a reduction in the unit of resource, increased inter‐institutional competition and greater accountability. Within this demanding context, pressure has also been applied to institutions to improve accessibility for disabled people, through funding council mechanisms, quality assurance procedures and, more recently, changes in legislation. Drawing on the findings of an ESRC‐funded research project, Disabled students and multiple policy innovations in higher education, involving a survey of higher education institutions, the article describes and discusses the current state of policy and provision for disabled students in higher education in Scotland and England. It concludes that, while there are definite signs of progress in the development of provision for disabled students, many areas need much further attention. A particular area of concern is teaching and learning. Effecting real change in this area means addressing questions which challenge conventional notions of effective teaching and learning practice. It is argued that improvements in provision for disabled students in this area would mean improvements for all students. Disability is still seen as a fairly distinct policy area, mainly addressed by student support services. Further significant progress can only be made if disability is embedded into all institutional policies and procedures. Its relocation, particularly in the area of teaching and learning, however, will demand a significant commitment on the part of all institutions.

‘I was dead restorative today’: from restorative justice to restorative approaches in school

This paper explores definitions and understandings of restorative practices in education. It offers a critique of current theoretical models of restorative justice originally derived from the criminal justice system and now becoming popular in educational settings. It questions the appropriateness of these concepts as they are being introduced to schools in parts of the UK and refers to a recent Scottish Executive funded pilot initiative to implement restorative practices in schools. The paper then reflects on some findings from the evaluation of this pilot project, outlines a new notion of restorative approaches and suggests that this broader conceptualisation may offer an important way in which to promote social justice in education and to reassess the importance and inevitability of conflicting social interaction and structures inherent in schools as complex social institutions.

Support for students with mental health difficulties in higher education: the students' perspective

ABSTRACT A massive expansion in student numbers in higher education, coupled with an overall reduction in funding, has led to higher staff–student ratios and a reduction in the amount of staff time available to support students. This has been linked to rising demands being placed on student support services. This article draws on case studies of five students experiencing mental health difficulties, to provide insight into these issues from the student perspective. The students confirmed that aspects of the higher education environment had exacerbated their difficulties. An innovative model of support is described. Traditionally interventions for students with mental health difficulties have focused at the individual level. We argue that attention also needs to be paid to changing aspects of the environment and that this would improve the learning experience for all students.

Education, social justice and inter-agency working: joined up or fractured policy?

Gender equality has been a major educational theme for the past two decades and has become interwoven with other policy themes, including those of marketisation and managerialism. Contributors to this strong collection are key researchers in their fields and seek to address the following questions: * What patterns are discernible in the educational attainment of girls and boys over the past two decades? * To what extent are changes attributable to gender equality policies? * What form have gender equality policies taken in different parts of the UK? * What has been the impact of European equality policies? * How have gender equality policies been experienced by particular groups including pupils from ethnic minority and working-class backgrounds? This book aims to take an overall look at how significant have been the changes in experiences, aspirations and culture of girls and boys and male and female teachers. It explores how attempts to improve equal opportunities in education have fared and examines the tensions and contradications in recent policies.

What counts as a reasonable adjustment? Dyslexic students and the concept of fair assessment

This article focuses on the construction of dyslexia in higher education and explores the nature of negotiations between students, lecturers and academic institutions over diagnosis, support and assessment. Disabled students are now entitled, under the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA), to reasonable adjustments in assessment. However, there continue to be debates about the nature of dyslexia and the extent to which requests for reasonable adjustments threaten to compromise academic standards. The article begins with a brief overview of the provisions of the DDA and its implications for learning support and adjustments to assessment in higher education, before considering current debates in education over the nature of dyslexia and its implications for assessment in higher education. We then consider the incidence of dyslexia in higher education and the implications of the rapid growth in the number and proportion of disabled students in higher education for assessment practices. Subsequently, we present case studies of dyslexic students and discuss (a) the way in which dyslexia is understood by different actors and (b) institutional responses to claims for reasonable adjustment in teaching and assessment.

Social justice, equality and inclusion in Scottish education

Social justice, equality and inclusion are complex and inter-linked concepts and feature prominently in Scottish social policy rhetoric. This paper begins with an overview of the discourses surrounding these concepts and the ways in which they are used in Scottish education policy, which, in general, is founded on principles of universalism. The need for some degree of redistribution has been recognised for certain children, but less attention has been paid to recognising the identity of marginalised groups. Children with additional support needs are seen as a group requiring extra resources, but decisions on the nature of that support and which groups should be prioritised has been left to professionals, with little input from parents or children. Overall, there has been inadequate additional resourcing to support mainstreaming, which has made little progress despite having become the policy orthodoxy. There is also evidence to suggest that categories such as learning disabilities and social emotional and behavioural difficulties are applied disproportionately to children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, cementing rather than challenging their marginalisation. Major beneficiaries of inclusion policies, particularly in relation to disabled students in higher education, are students with a diagnosis of dyslexia, who are particularly likely to be male and middle class. The paper concludes by suggesting that children with additional support needs require more, rather than less, redistribution and recognition, but policies need to be couched within a discourse of rights, rather than individual needs.

Chipping Away at the Mountain: disabled students' experience of higher education

Within the context of marketisation and managerialism, this article discusses the effects of recent attempts to dismantle the barriers encountered by disabled students in higher education. Exploring statistics compiled by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council and drawing on recent Scottish small-scale studies (Baron et al, 1996; Brown et al, 1997; Hall & Tinklin, 1998), it is suggested that although disabled students now have a greater presence in higher education, nonetheless many barriers to full participation remain, and indeed may be reinforced by some initiatives intended to widen access. The article supports Clarke & Newmans contention (1997) that an effect of new managerialism is to sidestep important social, cultural and political problems, leaving these in an unresolved state to be tackled by less powerful people when they encounter them in practice. The barriers met by disabled students are structural in nature, but in the dominant liberal equal opportunities approach means that these a...

Policies on special needs education: competing strategies and discourses

This paper critically examines the array of policy approaches that have been adopted in the field of special needs education in Scotland over recent years. These are characterized in the following ways: (1) supporting or changing the child—an individualized approach; (2) making schools inclusive for all—a systems approach; (3) challenging the mainstream—an anti‐discrimination approach. Each approach creates different distributions of power, accountability and resource allocation. They formulate categories and eligibility requirements that can both include and exclude children (and their parents), and create rights and duties with varied potential and limitations. Thus, the policy approaches may aver their promotion of inclusion but, in fact, they create a new quilt of inclusive and exclusive policies and practice. This is further examined through the analysis of official statistics, which suggests that there has been little difference in the proportion of children who are excluded spatially from mainstream schools and classrooms. Recent legislation, the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004, claims to underpin a radical new approach to promoting inclusion. However, many features of the Act suggest that it will reinforce the power of professional groups, rather than investing more power in children and their parents. There is a real danger that, whilst policy frameworks shift, practices remain the same as a result of inertia and resistance to change.