This work has been formulated within the conceptual framework of the R&D&I project PID2022-138349NB-I00, entitled "The role of special education centres at the crossroads of inclusion from the voices of its protagonists: proposals for innovation and improvement", funded by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities of the Government of Spain (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033), together with the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) “A way of doing Europe”. Consequently, it constitutes a component of a comprehensive research initiative undertaken by the University of Murcia's research group, entitled "Inclusive Education: School for All" (EDUIN). The focus of action of this group resides in promoting inclusive education based on the analysis of the educational reality and the development of participatory action research processes.

In Spain, a variety of schooling modalities are available for students with special educational needs (SEN), which include those requiring "extensive and generalised support, in addition to significant curricular adaptation and constant and individualised assistance" (Decree 359/2009, p. 576:24). These provisions are available throughout the educational career of the student. Among these are the special education classrooms, whose purpose is to educate these students in special education centres or in regular centres following their psycho-pedagogical evaluation (LOMLOE, 2020). In the Region of Murcia, where this study was conducted, this type of schooling is designated Specialized Open Classrooms (Aulas Abiertas Especializadas, AAE).

A focus on the International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN, 2006) and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (UNESCO, 2015) reveals that both documents establish the purpose of ensuring inclusive education for all students throughout their lives. This prompts the question of whether educational institutions, including special education centres and regular schools for students with special educational needs (SEN), are fulfilling their obligation to provide inclusive, equitable and quality education. In addition, the role of these centres and classrooms in the development of more inclusive educational systems must be examined (Ainscow, 2024; Arnaiz and Escarbajal, 2021; Collet et al. 2022; Echeita and Simón, 2020). As Waitoller (2021) observes, "open classrooms are largely superficial arrangements that fail to facilitate the transformational change required to ensure that the regular classroom becomes the classroom for all, rather than merely some" (p. 20). This selective inclusion masks inclusion, as it includes, while at the same time excludes, following the indicated author.

The aforementioned approaches, associated with the paradigm of inclusion, stand in contrast to the perception of management teams and even teachers, who consider the existence of both special education centres and specialised classrooms to be of great utility. The insistence on these considerations stems from the difficulty they experience in attending to students with such significant SEN in regular classrooms (Friesen, & Cunning, 2020).

In this sense, the general objective of the current study aims to analyze the perception that the management teams of special education centres have about the purpose and persistence of specialized open classrooms in regular centres.  From this objective, the following specific objectives have been derived:

1. To examine the purpose that the management teams attribute to the specialized open classrooms as a schooling modality for students with special educational needs.
2. To determine the causes that contribute to the persistence of the specialized open classrooms according to the management teams. 

Design: A qualitative design of phenomenological and descriptive type was followed, in order to know the perception of the participants about the modalities of special education in regular centres. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Murcia (Spain). Participants: The population consists of the members of the management teams of all the special education centres (13 centres) that exist in the Region of Murcia (Spain) during the academic year 2023-2024. The sample consists of 29 participants from the 13 centres, 8 public and 5 private. These correspond to three professional figures: head teacher (13 participants), director of studies (13 participants) and secretary (3 participants). Access was granted to 100% of the population of the selected group. Information gathering technique: Semi-structured individual interviews were used with the following script: a) what is the purpose of specialised open classrooms as a form of schooling for pupils with special educational needs; b) what are the reasons for the continuation of these classrooms? This script was validated by a group of experts before the interviews were conducted. Research development: The research was carried out during the academic year 2023-2024. It began with a bibliographical review of the state of the art in the field. The participating centres were visited to explain the research to be carried out and to ask for the participation of the management teams, which were obtained from all the special education centres in the region. Interviews were conducted with the management teams, the information was transcribed verbatim and analysed using the qualitative programme ATLAS.ti. Data analysis: The interviews were transcribed literally and a content analysis was carried out, following an inductive model that allowed us to establish categories that were classified into different grouping codes (Miles & Huberman, 1994). The software used for data processing and analysis was ATLAS.ti version 9 for Windows.

The first category of analysis, on the purpose that school management teams attribute to specialised open classrooms as a form of schooling, was associated with the following codes: on the one hand, the profile of the target group (code 1) and, on the other hand, the functions of these classrooms (code 2). In addition, code 1 was divided into two sub-codes: profile of learners with SEN who require extensive and generalised support (subcode 1.1); and profile of learners who can benefit from regular settings in specialised classrooms (subcode 1.2). Code 2 was divided into three sub-codes: functioning as a palliative measure in regular settings (subcode 2.1); functioning as a transitional resource in regular settings (subcode 2.2); and functioning as a measure for learners with SEN requiring extensive and generalised support (subcode 2.3). For its part, the second category of analysis, on the reasons favouring the continuation of specialised open classrooms, was divided into the following codes: the characteristics of pupils who have difficulty adapting to regular classrooms (code 1); business reasons in private or subsidised schools (code 2); increase in the number of pupils with special educational needs (code 3); and a more inclusive modality than the special education centre, as is the case in regular schools (code 4). Three sub-codes were also defined for code 2, which refers to business reasons in private or grant-aided institutions: expanding training provision (sub-code 2.1); increasing enrolments (sub-code 2.2); and obtaining funding from government (sub-code 2.3). Therefore, several reasons are perceived by management teams for the persistence of SLE in mainstream schools. In conclusion, specialised open classrooms avoid schooling in special schools, although they cannot be considered as inclusive classrooms. This evidence should be the subject of an in-depth analysis of the future role of schooling modalities in advancing the inclusion paradigm.

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