With Warnock, the so-called ‘architect’ of inclusion now pronouncing this her ‘big mistake’ and calling for a return to special schooling, inclusion appears to be under threat as never before. This book takes key ideas of the philosophers of difference – Deleuze, Foucault and Derrida – and puts them to work on inclusion. The book offers new challenges for those involved with education to invent new ways of tackling the ‘problem’ of inclusion.

Making a Difference in Theory brings together original work from an international group of authors on the roles of theory in educational research and practice. The book discusses the different roles theory plays, can play and should play, both from a historical perspective and in light of contemporary discussions and developments. Particular attention is paid to the question of whether there are or should be distinctively educational forms of theory and theorising. The double engagement with the theory question in education and the education question in theory and theorising provides original insights in what theory does, might do or should do in educational research and practice. With contributions from internationally renowned authors in the field of educational theory, research and practice, the book will be of value to academics, researchers and postgraduate students in education.

Although we live in an era of multiple identities and belongings, origins still seem to matter. For most people origins are obvious and transparent. We all come from somewhere. Yet talking about one’s origins can be highly sensitive and problematic depending on our roles, emotions, interlocutors and contexts. This volume problematizes the relativity, instability and politics of the concept in the field of education. The authors examine how origins are played upon in many and varied educational contexts and propose alternative ways of dealing with – see reinventing – origins. This volume is original in several senses. It is one of the first books to deal directly and honestly with the thorny concept of origins in education. Balancing arguments for and against the advantages and drawbacks of origins, the volume will appeal to confirmed and novice researchers, practitioners and decision-makers who struggle with these elements. The volume is not a ‘recipe book’ to be followed as such. It offers fresh and sincere perspectives to current discussions on multiculturalism, intersectionality and social justice in education around the world by tackling a somewhat taboo subject.

Many people who work in education start out with enthusiastic ideals about education as a positive force that can spur change in the life of the learner and in society at large, yet find themselves frustrated with a bureaucratic system that often alienates and excludes many of its students. This is particularly true for students identified as having "special educational needs" (SEN) or disability, a label often used to justify the ways in which students are failed by a system that focuses on narrow definitions of knowledge, seeks to normalise and control behaviour, and values economic productivity over other forms of human activity. Radical Inclusive Education explores how current educational practices, such as standardised tests and league tables, exclude and fail many disabled students, and naturalise educational inequalities around gender, class, ethnicity and ability. Informed by the social model of disability, the book argues that educational theories and practices that are geared towards social justice and inclusion need to recognise and value the diversity of human embodiments, needs and capacities, and foster pedagogical practices that support relations of interdependency. The book draws on work in disability studies, critical psychology and critical pedagogy, and also real life examples from interviews with activists in the disabled people’s movement, and from research in a school, to offer examples of what radical inclusive education – that is sensitive to the needs of all students – might look like in practice. As such, it will be of great interest to practitioners and students in the field of education, particularly for those interested in SEN and disability, sociology of education, critical pedagogy, informal education and social movement learning.

Inclusion for immigrant students with special educational needs (SEN) is a neglected area of research. This edited volume addresses this problem, providing up-to-date insights into the provided support and special needs education (SNE) for immigrant students in different contexts of the Nordic countries. This important book explores the diversity of student experiences, addressing both compulsory schools and vocational education, and examines how different Nordic countries conceptualise and approach support and SNE for immigrant students. Readers will get an opportunity to read various studies that address gaps in the realisation of inclusion and special need education. This book initiates a dialogue on generating new knowledge, approaches, and methods to expand the flexibility necessary to implement a fully inclusive education. The book offers research that includes strong theoretical and practical frameworks, interviews, interventions, assessments, case studies as well as offers future directions for inclusive and special needs education. By exploring the process of inclusion and special needs education in the Nordic countries, this book is an essential read for those who intend to deepen their understanding and to enact inclusion, and the development of special needs education for immigrant students.

As societies become more diverse, so too must they become more inclusive. In inclusive societies, all members, regardless of their ethnicity, religion, socio-economic status, ability or disability are valued and free to participate, and there is equity of access and reward. Schools have a powerful role to play in creating inclusive societies, and this begins with the notion of inclusive schools - schools were all children belong, where all children have a place, and where difference is a natural part of what it is to be a human being. Based on this understanding, many countries around the world are moving towards more inclusive education systems. However, working against inclusive education are forces of exclusion – factors that act to exclude and marginalize minority students from participation and learning at school. Therefore, in order to progress the principles and practices of inclusive education, an examination of the construct of exclusion is critical. Important questions to be interrogated if inclusive education is to be a reality are: What is exclusion? Why does it occur? How can it be reduced and eliminated? This book critically examines the construct of exclusion, exploring how disabled students experience exclusion both from and within school and suggesting reasons why this occurs. Finally, key foci for change are proposed as platforms for interrogating, reducing and eliminating the forces of exclusion.

Accommodating the diversity of learners in mainstream schooling and providing high quality education for all, inclusive education is prioritised at international and European levels as a human rights issue and as a reform strategy which tackles inequalities and promotes social cohesion within both schools and wider society. This book advances critical realist ideas in empirical research in order to close the theory–practice gap and shift the emphasis from epistemology to ontology with regard to teachers’ empowerment to provide inclusive education. With a focus on the school context rather than the agency of the individual teacher, the authors use empirical data from case studies to demonstrate teachers’ disempowerment as real, and rooted in features of reality. Offering a unified critical realist model, the book challenges taken-for-granted ideas and practices concerning the empowerment of teachers in inclusive education and seeks to set the ground for a more holistic and inclusive educational change.

This dissertation’s purpose is to concretise pedagogical concepts that help us think about the voices and positions of children in vulnerable situations in contemporary contexts of educating and researching. What matters when thinking about children’s voices, roles and positions in pedagogical and research spaces entangled with our own roles, positions and ethics? This doctoral study is built around four intra-active encounters within pedagogical spaces in Flanders where we bring in a posthuman reconceptualisation of voice to understand and value the entangled, collective and supported ways in which children become present in research. Each intra-active encounter sheds light on methodological and ethico-epistemo-ontological aspects of assembling children’s (posthuman) voices in research and possible creative and participatory ways of doing so. We describe five helpful movements when engaging with and listening to children in intra-active pedagogical and research encounters. Five movements that concretise listening to children’s voices in vulnerable situations and have the potential to transform an encounter into intra-active encounters of genuinely listening. This dissertation will be thought-provoking for practitioners in education and welfare contexts as well as for students and researchers that have the intention of doing research with (vulnerable) children in pedagogical contexts.

This book offers insight on the politics of inclusion in Vietnam through a Foucauldian and post-colonial perspective on disability and education. Drawing on a socio-historical analysis of the inclusion of disabled people in Vietnam in the twenty-first century, the book guides readers through a ‘history of the present.’ By reflecting on the treatment of disabled people in Vietnamese social history, the book argues that this journey to inclusion calls for critical reflections on the challenges and possibilities for policies to transform exclusion for disabled people. The book unveils the problematics of social and educational institutions in governing disability and difference through a critical reflection on discourses and power in the global and local juncture, in relation to its engagement with disability in the global South. The intersection between the global politics of disability rights and development and the local politics of inclusion in Vietnam shapes the cultural politics of education. The ways inclusive education is historically constructed, within this socio-historical condition, reflects the challenges of inclusive thought and action for transforming injustice. Going beyond ‘deconstructive politics,’ The Journey to Inclusion argues for a re-positioning of the relationships between the global North and South as an alternative approach to inclusion. It suggests that critical research must construct a politics of engagement with subjugated voices and representations in transnational, national, and local contexts. A reflexive, critical, and inclusive dialogue that engages with Southern knowledge offers a political platform for reframing justice in the twenty-first century.

This book begins by exploring what is meant by SEND in primary schools and goes on to cover everything trainees and teachers need to know about their statutory responsibilities in school. It then examines the range of needs they will encounter in primary schools with plenty of practical advice along the way. This third edition has been fully restructured and updated to include a new section on the key theories and theorists relating to SEND. Also new to this edition is a chapter focusing on the role of the SENCO in primary school. Finally, the book includes more practical support with coverage of current legislation and the Code of Conduct as well as checklists and information about useful resources and outside agencies.