Session Information
04 SES 04 A, Discourses
Paper Session
Contribution
While it is clear that the language of special education has evolved one must question whether this is still “the means by which the dominant discourse is maintained by the established elite no matter what the current fashion” (Bidder, 1996: ix). Nevertheless, Thomas et al. (1998) contend such dominant discourses, in terms of policies for inclusion, will not ‘magically induce inclusive practice’ (1998:26) if those involved at the ‘chalk face’ are not ready for and dedicated to change. If such conditions are not met then the aims of a policy can be undermined. It is these ‘street level bureaucrats’, as Lipsky (1983) calls them, which can be crucial to the success of a policy. Fullen (1993) argues that many education policies fail because they are ‘top down’ models of policy, lacking any participation or collaboration with the street level bureaucrats. One possible explanation of this could be that local or ‘vernacular’ influences exist in conjunction with these global policy discourses. Such vernacular influences have the potential to create divergent, heterogeneous pressures at the local level. This can ultimately lead to, what Robertson (1994) has called, ‘glocalisation’; that is global policy rearticulated and recontextualised by localised action. Clough and Corbett (2000) agree that this is true in the area of special education and state that, “…individuals’ ideas…are in a dynamic relationship within policy contexts; this is to say that they may directly influence, as well as be influenced by, the development of policy” (Clough and Corbett, 2000:4). However, Corbett (1996) argues that whilst the psychological and social characteristics of special education have been considered, along with the influence of policy and politics, language is an area that has been somewhat overlooked and generally neglected. Hence, currently there is a gap in our knowledge and a significant need to understand how dominant official discourses relate to school discourses. My research is focused on what part language plays in the construction of educational need in both official discourses and school discourses. It focuses on the introduction of the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (Scottish Executive, 2004) and specifically the issue of inclusion.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
ARNESEN, A-L., MIETOLA, R. & LAHELMA, E. (2007) ‘Language of inclusion and diversity: policy discourses and social practices in Finnish and Norwegian schools’, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 11 (1), pp. 97-110. BIDDER, J. (1996) Foreword. In Corbett, J. Bad-Mouthing: The language of special needs. London: Routledge. CLOUGH, P. & CORBETT, J. (2000) Theories of Inclusive Education: A Students’ Guide. London: Paul Chapman Publishing. CORBETT, J. (1996) Bad-Mouthing: The language of special needs. London: Routledge. FLORIAN, L. (1998) ‘Inclusive Practice: what, why and how?’, in Tilstone, C., Florian, L. & Rose, R. (eds) Promoting Inclusive Practice. London: RoutledgeFalmer. FULLAN, M. (1993) Change Forces. London: Falmer. HABERMAS, J. (1988) On the Logic of the Social Sciences Cambridge. Boston: The MIT Press. LAWSON, H., PARKER, M. & SIKES, P. (2006) ‘Seeking stories: reflections on a narrative approach to researching understandings of inclusion’, European Journal of Special Needs Education, 21 (1), pp 55-68. ROBERTSON, R. (1994) ‘Globalisation or Glocalisation?’, Journal of International Communication. 1 (1), pp. 33-52. SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE (2004) Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004. Edinburgh: The Stationary Office. THOMAS, G., WALKER, D. & WEBB, J. (1998) The Making of the Inclusive School. London: RoutledgeFalmer. TAYLOR, S. (2001) ‘Locating and Conducting Discourse Analytic Research’. In Wetherell, M., Taylor, S. & Yates, S. J. (eds.) Discourse as Data: A guide for analysis. London: Sage Publications. van DIJK, T. (2003) Critical Discourse Analysis, in Schiffrin, D., Tannen, D. & Hamilton, H. E. The Handbook of Discourse Analysis. London: Wiley Blackwell.
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