An international trend and expectation exist regarding the effective education and inclusion of all learners in mainstream schools, regardless of disability or SEN (Ainscow, 2020). Research shows this approach has a positive impact upon many children with low support needs (eetsma et al., 2001). However, a general position and related practice continues regarding the segregated placement of children with high support needs in special schools (Loreman et al., 2007; Lozano et al, 2021).

There are contrasting views about the placement of children with special needs in segregated settings. Some research argues that placement of learners with special needs in specialist settings could be counterproductive to them (e.g. Mann et al, 2023). However, other researchers argue that special schools are much better equipped to meet the needs of learners with high support needs and believe that such settings should remain available for their education. The missing elements from much of this literature are parents' and carers’ views, experiences and perspectives about their child’s education. This symposium was assembled to approach this desideratum.

All contributions originate from a common global study of 9 countries exploring parental/carer preferences and experiences relating to their children’s current school placement along with their perception about how inclusive and effective the current school is for their child.  In this symposium, we will share comparative international parental views, to better inform future inclusive education practices and outcomes.

Theoretical Framework: Drawing on the conceptual framework of Urhahne and Wijnia (2023), “Theories of Motivation in Education: an Integrative Framework”, our data explores the whys and processes of parental choice, their decision-making, experiences, knowledge and insights with regard to the current practice. The data for this study is being collected from Australia, Canada, China, Germany, India, Italy, Norway, United Kingdom and United Arabian Emirates. This symposium presents cross-country comparisons and individual country data about parents’ views on inclusive education choice and school climate.

The first paper in this symposium shows an interesting global trend, in almost all 9 countries, parents of children who were attending special schools had more positive perceptions of their child’s education compared to parents of children who were attending mainstream schools. The second paper addresses the question of what an inclusive school climate and culture is, as understood and experienced by parents in an Asian context, and the final paper shares insights from parents in 4 countries on how and where their views have been prioritized alongside their experiences of school choice. The implications of the research for practitioners, leaders, researchers, policymakers and families or carers of children with disabilities will be discussed, with an aim to determine how parental perspectives could be used in providing high quality inclusive education to learners with disabilities globally.

Ainscow, M. (2020). Promoting inclusion and equity in education: lessons from international experiences. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, 6(1), 7-16. Loreman, T., Forlin, C., & Sharma, U. (2007). An international comparison of pre-service teacherattitudes towards inclusive education. Disability Studies Quarterly, 27(4), Fall Edition. Peetsma, T., Vergeer, M., Roeleveld, J., & Karsten, S. (2001). Inclusion in Education: Comparing pupils’ development in special and regular education. Educational Review, 53(2), 125–135. Sahli Lozano, C., Sharma, U., & Wüthrich, S. (2021). A comparison of Australian and Swiss secondary school teachers’ attitudes, concerns, self-efficacy, and intentions to teach in inclusive classrooms: does the context matter? International Journal of Inclusive Education, 28(7), 1205–1223.