Figure 1 - available via license: CC BY-NC
Content may be subject to copyright.
Source publication
The educational field is traditionally characterized by a distinction between general and special education in educational practice, theory and research. Especially in cross-professional collaborative processes related to inclusion, it becomes evident that the professionals represent different perspectives and positions with different roles, functi...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... shows that understandings of problems related to inclusive school development are directed mainly towards strategies targeting and compensating the needs of the student but seldom involve changing the professional practice of teachers and other educators. 1 Figure 1 illustrates these tendencies and is based on data that show what is in focus when professionals in and affiliated with the school discuss intervention strategies at meetings. Figure 1 shows that the use of individual interventions to address student deficits or difficulties in relation to learning and participation dominate in collaborative processes in public schools in Denmark. ...
Context 2
... Figure 1 illustrates these tendencies and is based on data that show what is in focus when professionals in and affiliated with the school discuss intervention strategies at meetings. Figure 1 shows that the use of individual interventions to address student deficits or difficulties in relation to learning and participation dominate in collaborative processes in public schools in Denmark. Data show examples of, e.g. ...
Context 3
... shown in Figures 1 and 2, the assumptions that underlie special education are strongly represented in a Danish collaborative school practice. The current model draws on the medical view of disability and is based on assessments of individual defects that can be remediated through strategies and programmes targeting the individual student. ...
Context 4
... a result, the students are not necessarily supported to (learn to) participate or to adapt to the social order. The tangle twister and the weighted vest are used based on the expectation that they will help the students to be able to calm down and thus fit into the idea of the ideal student (Hansen et al., 2018). These strategies might remediate the students' defects, but they do not allow them to experience how to be able to adapt to the collectivity, besides to become more calm. ...
Citations
... This is a basic factor in the success of DFS and inclusion. Similarly, Hansen et al. (2020) conclude that inclusive schools must take a team approach to achieve inclusion. Norwich et al. (2005) discuss partnership with parents in the DFS and emphasize activating the role of parents in DFS and the need to enhance the relationship between parents and teachers. ...
This study contributes to the exploration of the most promising practices for dyslexic students in overcoming difficulties. In this study, I investigate teachers’ views regarding the instillation of dyslexia-friendly schools (DFS) in Saudi Arabia. I use the qualitative approach through semi-structured interviews. The sample addressed eleven teachers who specialized in learning disabilities (LD) in public schools. The results showed generally positive attitudes toward DFS. However, there were differing views regarding the possibility of currently applying this model. Different reasons for this view were given, such as the lack of appropriate conditions (e.g., funds, time and awareness) for applying DFS’ criteria. Some implementation challenges, however, seemed surmountable. Different suggestions were proposed to help schools become friendly for dyslexic students, such as developing school environments by providing the necessary support and providing appropriate training for teachers besides the planning offered by the school administration. In light of these results, I recommend the implementation of DFS in some model schools in Saudi Arabia in addition to studying the results and effects of such a practice. Received: 1 November 2022 / Accepted: 26 December 2022 / Published: 5 January 2023
... Furthermore, interprofessional meetings were more often used to discuss how collaborative practices ought to support the students, than how the teachers could support the students. Similarly, Hansen et al. (2020) stated that there are sub practices in a school setting, and that teachers and other professionals seem to be eager to protect their own practices, which further hampers interprofessional collaboration. ...
... Reflection on process is a dimension that relates to how often a team evaluates its collaboration and how often it incorporates feedback to strengthen the collaborative processes. Both Hansen et al. (2020) and Maelan et al. (2020) demonstrated that feedback and reflection are important for the overall functioning and success of collaboration, whereas poor communication between team members is detrimental to 3.33 (3.14-3.53) 57 ...
... Using qualitative data, we reported in a previous study that one of the key success factors of the LOG model was that it increased the legitimacy of the external collaborators at schools, and enabled them to gain acceptance as interprofessional collaborators within schools . This finding is important, as several studies such as those by Maelan et al. (2020) and Hansen et al. (2020) have shown that parallel practices and the lack of integration between school staff and interprofessional collaborators can be a major obstacle to successful collaboration. ...
Although interprofessional collaboration is emphasized as important in schools, little is known about how it should be organized. We analyzed the effects of an organizational model of interprofessional collaboration, the LOG model. The model aims to improve interprofessional collaboration by identifying and improving various meeting places for collaboration, involving municipal school leaders, principals, staff, and interprofessional collaborators, and by increasing feedback from meeting places in and around schools. In a cluster-randomized design including 35 Norwegian primary schools, 19 schools were randomized to the experimental group and implemented the LOG model, and 16 were randomized to a control group. A total of 142 interprofessional collaborators (e.g., school nurses, social workers, and principals) received a questionnaire prior to randomization, with one- and two-year follow-up. Using a validated scale to measure interprofessional team collaboration, we evaluated the effects of the model on collaborators’ perceptions in four dimensions: (a) Reflection on process, (b) Professional flexibility, (c) Newly created professional activities, and (d) Role interdependence. During the first, but not the second year of follow-up, the results demonstrated positive and statistically significant effects of the LOG model on the dimensions Reflection on process (p< .001) and Newly created professional activities (p= .016). Our findings demonstrate the potential of interventions addressing interprofessional collaboration at the organizational level.
... Although it has been argued that teachers' beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours are critical factors in building an inclusive context (Bhroin and King, 2020), the critical approach underscores the role of the school community in the inclusion process. And in so doing, this approach has put in the forefront some forms of interaction through which inclusion is daily experienced, i.e., collaboration, communication, power and even exclusion (Hansen et al., 2020;Paju et al., 2021). ...
Educational personnel are seen as agents of change toward inclusive schools. This research aims to examine the daily-based interactions through which inclusion is experienced by support teachers and how their social identity is constructed within a secondary school in a northern Italy province. The theoretical basis of this research is formed by the conceptual contributions of social identity approach and symbolic interactionism to understand self-categorization and identification processes, through the narratives of actors. An ethnographic design was implemented, with 4-month participant observation and 20 semi-structured interviews of long duration as the main data collection techniques. Fieldnotes and interviews transcriptions were inductively analyzed through a thematic approach to grounded theorising. Results show a school community in which there is a strong hierarchical relationship among main and support teachers, where support teachers experience strong feelings of inferiority and marginalisation, since they have entered school. These school interactions are also shaped by the school culture and management. However, support teachers have a potential avant-garde role as agents of change in the inclusion process. Future research should target this aspect to investigate best inclusive practices.
... For this reason, the United Nations 2030 agenda aims to ensure inclusive and equitable education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. The concept of inclusive education has changed from being understood throughout history as a concept that emphasizes the importance of educating students with SEN in conventional classes to transforming schools to facilitate the acquisition of relevant learning by diverse students and to promote belonging to the group (Ainscow, 2005;Meijer, 2010;Porter, 2011;Hansen et al., 2020). Thus, inclusion is an initiative that leads to the improvement of educational systems and the promotion of more equitable societies (Arnesen et al., 2007;Graham and Slee, 2008;Vlachou et al., 2016). ...
... The literature reviews show that inclusive school development has focused primarily on teachers' readiness to cope with special educational needs students (SEN) in an inclusive classroom (Van Mieghem et al., 2018;Hansen et al., 2020). Teachers' knowledge and skills play an important role in implementing inclusive classroom practice. ...
... Additionally, school policy that support school-wide structural changes is equally important (Hadfield and Ainscow, 2018;. In order to design inclusive schools, the key capacity building strategy is enhancing cross-professional collaboration (Hansen et al., 2020). A school-wide training approach, collaboration between teachers and support professionals, collaboration and support from school leaders and resource centers, including universities, promotes the implementation of different characteristics of inclusive education at the school level (Harris and Jones, 2017;Juma et al., 2017). ...
Most countries face the challenge of reconstructing their education systems to ensure equitable quality education for all children in inclusive settings. This challenge is also relevant in Estonia, the context of this study. A long-term in-service training course for school teams (school leaders, support specialists, and teachers) was developed and implemented in Estonia. The main goal of the training course was to develop attitudes, skills, and knowledge of school staff about the concept and meaning of inclusive education (IE) and the effective implementation through inclusive school development strategies. The aim of the current study was to find out how the in-service training course for school teams influences system-wide changes in the implementation of IE at the school level and what factors affect it. Purposeful sampling (two schools) was used, and the qualitative thematic case study research method was chosen to find answers to the research questions. Data were collected from school policy documents, homework assignments of the training course, semi-structured interviews in the middle and at the end of the training course, open-ended questionnaires at the end of the training course, and researcher diary. The results showed that the in-service training course for school teams enhanced cultural and structural changes at the school level. These changes were influenced by factors such as leadership, collaboration, commitment, and contribution of different parties, system-wide approach, resources, and external expertise. The implications of these findings are discussed further in the paper.
... The action and support from a 'village' is required (Subban and Sharma 2021); strategies calling on the strengths of diverse teaching communities (e.g. collaboration, consultation, community partnerships) -drawing on strengths of multiple stakeholders -are increasingly important in school-based efforts to understand and address diverse learner needs (Haines et al. 2015;Hansen et al. 2020;Lyons, Thompson, and Timmons 2016;Specht and Katz 2015). ...
... Additionally, a critical premise was that collaborative practice is noted as a strength of inclusive schools (Hansen et al. 2020). Shared commitment to ensure effective inclusion has long been advocated by researchers, with clear evidence that holding communal responsibilities contributes to a better school experience for students with disabilities (Katz 2017;Lyons, Thompson, and Timmons 2016). ...
Research in inclusive education reveals multiple studies that explore the efforts of individual stakeholders to create an equitable educational experience for students with disabilities. However, these individual efforts are often examined discretely, compartmentalising the contributions of various stakeholders. As a consequence, the complex interplay between these contributions has not been fully explored, with the capacity for a rich network of support being assumed rather than explicitly constructed. This report draws on the personal reflections of nine academics in the field of inclusive education from Australia, Canada, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Switzerland. Serving as both contributors and participants, this study draws together their personal interpretations and their expertise regarding the value of collective and collaborative inclusive education. Inductive thematic analysis of participant reflections yielded the view that stakeholders working together within an educational setting, offers more effective and appropriate opportunities to support learners with additional needs.
... Often, an understanding of problems and strategies that only draws on the medical view of disability will appear as too simple. This perspective can, of course, provide support to enable a child, but a child also needs support through the professionals' general work with participation in the inclusive practice (Hansen et al., 2020a). ...
This chapter focuses on how collaboration within special education needs (SEN) and inclusionary practices in broader early years education takes place in—and across—early education and early care (ECEC). Recently, there has been a focus on how collaboration between professionals can have an impact on the development of pedagogical inclusionary practice. The purpose of this chapter is to argue that collaboration in and of itself does not solve the challenges of developing inclusive environments but that it requires more focus on how to collaborate to develop inclusionary practices. Our research shows that the traditional understanding of SEN is dominate in collaborative processes, that the general understanding of professional work related to SEN is mainly directed at strategies targeting and compensating for the needs of the individual child and that these strategies seldom involve changes in the actual professional practice of educators and social workers, including their collaborative methods. Unintended collaborative processes may result in an exclusion process rather than inclusive one if collaboration is understand as a harmonic and resourceful place for consensus and not a place for negotiations and conflicting perspectives that can develop practice. Based on the findings from the research project ‘Approaching Inclusion’ (2016–2020) (Hansen et al., Samarbejdsprocesser om inklusion og eksklusion [Collaboration processes on inclusion and exclusion]. NUBU (National Research Center for Children and Youth at High Risk), 2020b), we propose an understanding of collaboration that succeeds in creating new spaces and places for all children.
... They achieve successful learning for all through the variety of methods offered, the modeling of the goal of flexible education, cultural relationality, and meaningful content. All this forms the basis for the differentiation of education [40,41]. By modeling a barrier-free learning environment, they create interdisciplinary links of professional cooperation and, by acting together, enable the participation of pupils with special educational needs in joint learning activities [42][43][44][45]. ...
The critical situation in education caused by COVID-19 has significantly reduced the involvement of pupils from vulnerable groups, particularly those with low learning achievements. The aim of this study is to reveal the modeling of the sustainable educational process and the factors that ensure optimal learning achievements of pupils from vulnerable groups in general education schools in critical educational transformation situations. To reveal the factors ensuring the sustainability of educational processes, this study was conducted in three Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia) involving 1432 subject teachers from public education schools. The results of the study highlight that self-regulatory collaborative learning has a sustainable, strong impact on the achievements of pupils with emotional and learning difficulties in various (stable and unstable) educational environments in all three countries. The development of digital skills, digital scaffolding, and technological provision for pupils with special educational needs enabled their teachers to have a sustainable positive impact on pupils’ learning achievements in Lithuania.
... Exclusion takes place when students are unable to learn or adapt due to lack of sufficient support in a learning environment that supports the learning of other students (Hansen et al., 2020). While the teachers in this study used exclusion strategies to compensate the lack of inclusivity in online teaching through additional one-to-one sessions, this exclusion and other strategies raise other issues such as social exclusion and poor communication skills (Hansen et al., 2020;Parmigiani et al., 2020) in the long run since the classes were conducted separately after school hours. ...
... Exclusion takes place when students are unable to learn or adapt due to lack of sufficient support in a learning environment that supports the learning of other students (Hansen et al., 2020). While the teachers in this study used exclusion strategies to compensate the lack of inclusivity in online teaching through additional one-to-one sessions, this exclusion and other strategies raise other issues such as social exclusion and poor communication skills (Hansen et al., 2020;Parmigiani et al., 2020) in the long run since the classes were conducted separately after school hours. Toquero (2021) argued that the opportunities for students to voice their learning are somewhat constrained in an online environment. ...
The rapid shift to online teaching or emergency remote teaching (ERT) following the COVID-19 pandemic requires a high level of inclusiveness in teaching efforts to ensure children who are at risk for learning are not left behind. Using a mixed-method design, this small-scale study (a) explored the relationship between Malaysian private and international primary school teachers’ attitude towards inclusive teaching during ERT, teaching efficacy, TPACK mastery, and burnout, and (b) identified ERT-specific factors that are associated with the teachers’ attitudes and experiences during ERT. A total of 28 teachers participated in an online survey that comprised four established scales to measure the teachers’ inclusive attitude, teaching efficacy, TPACK, and teacher burnout. The online survey also consisted of open-ended questions about their ERT teaching experiences. Two of the teachers who completed the questionnaire were then interviewed online. Attitude towards inclusive teaching was not correlated with all other variables, but (a) teaching efficacy correlated positively with TPACK mastery, and (b) high teaching efficacy, and high TPACK correlated with low burnout. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data generated four themes that supported the correlational findings: inclusion attitude during ERT, exclusion strategies, prolonged online teaching at home, and parental involvement. Findings imply that pre-pandemic inclusive teaching practices and TPACK were insufficient to fully support inclusive teaching attitude during ERT. New inclusive practices that support prolonged online teaching and effective parental involvement are needed to prevent digital exclusion during ERT. This small-scale study challenged the accessibility of online teaching during ERT and calls for the need to modify or reinvent our understanding of effective support for students with additional needs in fully online and distance learning conditions.
... According to the Salamanca Statement (1994) and Article 24 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2016), inclusion is a matter of solidarity, democracy, and civil rights, while exclusion is an expression of a dysfunctional society 'failing' individuals by excluding them from participation in society (Bjerre 2015;Hansen et al. 2020). From this perspective, no one should be rejected or excluded from ordinary schools because of a disability, and no risk factors should prevent participation. ...
... Despite this goal and a wealth of research-based knowledge, the number of children referred to special educational services is steadily increasing (SIMB 2019). Danish surveys have shown that students with special needs seem to be less engaged in learning and social activities, and that they show lower academic self-confidence, lower academic development, and lower academic educational level (Hansen et al. 2018(Hansen et al. , 2020SFI 2015). Although schools have become more inclusive over time, Danish public schools still continue to face challenges in relation to reaching the political goal of inclusive school development (Nielsen and Rangvid 2016;Pedersen, Kollin, and Ladekjaer 2016). ...
... During the past five to ten years, Danish municipalities have focused on cross-professional collaboration as a key strategy for improving inclusive school development to a higher degree. Given this background, we have in a wider study investigated if, and how, cross-professional collaboration has had an impact on inclusive school development (Jensen et al. 2019;Hansen et al. 2018Hansen et al. , 2020Molbaek et al. 2019aMolbaek et al. , 2019bSchmidt et al. 2018). More specifically, in this paper, we examine if, and how, collaborative processes have had an impact on displacing the border between inclusion and exclusion by changing the social patterns of social practice in schools. ...
The paper is based on a study of cross-professional collaboration in Denmark and its impact on inclusive school development. The study takes its starting point in the understanding that all kinds of schools constitute a social practice, which is created through inclusion and exclusion processes, and characterised by both individuality and diversity, collectivity and homogeneity. Hence, we argue that inclusion is a right and an obligation for students with and without special needs, and that inclusive education is primarily a matter of supporting all students in learning to be participants in learning activities and social life at school. It is also a matter of transforming the social structure so as to displace the border between inclusion and exclusion to better ensure equity for all students. Based on an analysis of how collaborative processes take place in a school practice, the present study offers a complex and nuanced understanding of cross-professional collaboration, influenced by many different mechanisms and factors that interact and affect each other. The study concludes that collaborative processes do not have any real impact on inclusive school development. The tendency is to focus on the student’s deficits, compensation, and treatment.
