Inclusion, the individual and the environment

Session 1 Inclusion, the individual and the environment

Learning Outcomes

Trainees will:

understand how the terms ‘inclusion’, ‘special educational needs’ (SEN) and ‘disability’ are used

understand of the context provided by the statutory and regulatory framework for SEN and disability

be aware of the nature of duties on schools and their staff in relation to SEN and disability

know of key recent documents on SEN and disability and where to refer to them

understand the difference between ‘within-child’ and ‘environmental’ models of disability.

Feelings associated with:

Inclusion Exclusion

valued rejected

at ease upset

content angry

happy frustrated

useful unhappy

hard done by

useless

The principles of an inclusive education service

Inclusion is a process by which schools, local authorities and others develop their cultures, policies and practices to include pupils

With the right training, strategies and support nearly all children with SEN and disabilities can be included successfully in mainstream education

An inclusive education service offers excellence and choice and incorporates the views of parents and children

The interests of all pupils must be safeguarded

Defining inclusion

“ Inclusion in education involves the processes of increasing the participation of students in, and reducing their exclusion from, the cultures, curricula and communities of local schools. Inclusion is concerned with the learning participation of all students vulnerable to exclusionary pressures, not only those with impairments or categorised as having SEN. Inclusion is concerned with improving schools for staff as well as for students.” (CSIE 2002)

Thinking about inclusion

What are the differences between the Salamanca and CSIE descriptions of inclusion?

Why does the CSIE description of inclusion say

‘ Inclusion is concerned with improving schools for staff as well as for students’?

Activity 3: Learning outcomes

Trainees will understand:

the relevance of the Every Child Matters outcomes to inclusion

the importance of high expectations within the national curriculum inclusion statement.

The Every Child Matters outcomes

 Being healthy

 Staying safe

 Enjoying and achieving

 M aking a positive contribution

 Achieving economic well-being

The national curriculum inclusion principles

Teachers must not ignore the three principles of inclusion in their planning and teaching

The statement gives substantial flexibility to allow teachers to match their plans to the needs of all pupils

Expectations

Why is the first part of the national curriculum inclusion statement so important?

(You can include reasons not mentioned in the film)

Click on box to start film clip.

Adam’s days

“ After following Adam for 18 months, we gave up specifying his traits as the explanations of his behaviour and began talking instead about what happened around him daily that seemed to organise his moments as an LD person.”

(McDermott 1993)

What are the implications of Mc Dermott’s findings when we think about planning learning opportunities for pupils with SEN and/or disability?

Adam’s Days

“ The point of this story is that a person’s competence is

interwoven with the context and cannot be viewed as

separated. This case points to the importance of

recognising learning as being different in different

institutional practices. The child learns in the realising

of institutional practices in interaction with other

persons. Neither the child nor the institutionalised

activity/practice in itself create learning or learning

problems.” (Hedegaarde 2001)

The environment and the individual

Corbett suggests that we should work to ensure that:

no one voice be allowed to dominate discussions

an ever-expanding space be allowed to ‘accommodate new voices which have remained silent or unheard in the clamour of status’. (Corbett 1996)

Involvement in planning

Think of an example of planning for the learning of a pupil with SEN and/or disability. Consider:

which professional or other groups, including the child and their parent/carer, were involved in deciding on the action to take?

who had most influence in the decision-making?

was the process negotiated so that everyone had a say?

were efforts made to ‘expand the space’ to people who might find it hard to join in?

Similarities

What are the similarities between the

national curriculum inclusion statement

and the ICF approaches to addressing

issues in relation to disability and SEN?

The SEN framework

Legislation, regulations and guidance

Makes provision to meet SEN

Includes what schools provide from their delegated budgets and what local authorities provide from their centrally retained funds

In England and Wales, Part 4 of the Education Act 1996 is the principal legislation, amended by the SEN and Disability Act, 2001

Special educational needs

“ Children have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for them. Children have a learning difficulty if they have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age or have a disability.” (DfES 2001: the revised SEN Code of Practice)

Pupils with SEN are said to require something ‘additional to’ or ‘different from’ that offered to other pupils

SEN framework SEN and Disability Act 2001

Planning duties

Planning duties in the DDA require schools and local authorities to

plan to increase access to education for disabled pupils. The

duties cover three aspects of planned improvements in access:

improvements in access to the curriculum

improvements to the physical environment of the school to increase access to education and associated services

improvements in the provision of information in a range of formats for disabled pupils.

SEN arrangements Planning duties SEN and Disability Act 2001

Disability discrimination duties

Disability discrimination duties in the DDA provide protection from discrimination for disabled pupils in schools.

Definition of disability

The DDA defines a disabled person as someone who has ‘a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’

Physical or mental impairment includes sensory impairments and also hidden impairments. In the DDA ‘substantial’ means ‘more than minor or trivial’. ‘Long-term’ means a year or more.

SEN arrangements Planning duties Disability Discrimination duties SEN and Disability Act 2001

Protection from discrimination Who and what are covered? Current and prospective disabled pupils Every school and every aspect of school life: admissions, education and associated services, exclusions The ‘responsible body’ for the school

Protection from discrimination

Two key duties

Responsible bodies :

must not treat disabled pupils less favourably

must make reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils

Every aspect of school life: - admissions - education and associated services - exclusions

Every school: - maintained, independent - mainstream, special - nursery, primary, secondary, including school VIth forms - community, voluntary, foundation or a city academy

SENCOs

SENCOs have responsibilities at individual pupil and whole school level. They may take charge of budgeting, resource allocation, timetables and also work with individual pupils