Doing things right or doing the right things: the case of inclusion in the Republic of Ireland

Abstract

The move towards inclusion, nationally and internationally, over the past three decades is a socio-political response. Warnock (1978) drew attention to categorization and labeling and its use in justifying placement and provisions for persons with different educational needs. Pedagogical practices were also identified as an important element of successful integration. This raises an important question: if special education in a special school is not the answer, is special education in a mainstream system the answer to historical exclusionary practices? Norwich (2007) asserts that there is a choice in the ethical decision making of policy makers, teachers, and education systems and structures, positing that the “dilemma” arises in relation to the gaps in the rights-based versus the needs-based dilemma. So, in essence, the central challenge of inclusion is whether we include individuals because every person is entitled to be treated the “same”, or do we include and recognise “different needs”. In Ireland, educational inclusion has progressed with the partial enactment of the Education for Person’s with Special Educational Needs Act (EPSEN: 2004). The Act “enshrines” in law that that the preferred educational provision for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) is inclusive education (Day & Travers, 2014). However, as with many educational and social concepts, the daily practice of “inclusive education” is variable across individual educators, children, and schools. A proscriptive and homogenous “top down” approach to the operational delivery of inclusive education would not be welcome. However, Ravet (2011) cautions us to the disconnect between each individual’s professional knowledge and their applied practice. A number of case studies are included.