Drawing from the experience of three international projects focussing on the educational realms of persons with disabilities, this round table aims at sharing insights into international research practice and challenges in the field of special needs and inclusive education. Central issues will focus on experiences made in the course of field research and cooperations in different countries.

The three projects aim at depicting different factors that affect education of persons with disabilities around the globe. The following short descriptions of the three projects are to clarify the special focus of each of them:

The comparative project CLASDISA (funded by means of the Austrian Science Fund) focuses on the identification and description of factors that affect children with disabilities’ educational environments in the capitals of Austria, Ethiopia and Thailand. Employing a Grounded Theory Approach, children with disabilities between 8 and 12 years, their parents and teachers, as well as additional educational experts were (repeatedly) interviewed in the course of different phases of field research.

RESPOND-HER (funded by the Austrian Development Agency) investigates the educational and employment situation of university students and graduates with disabilities in Ethiopia. It establishes high quality research on disability and facilitating students’ access to higher education. This joint project of the University of Vienna, Austria and Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia aims on creating an inclusive educational environment within higher education as well as increasing the employability of graduates with disabilities in Ethiopa.

The Comparative Analysis of teachers’ Roles in Inclusive Education project aims to develop a knowledge base on the development of inclusive education from teachers’ perspectives in different countries including China, Finland, South Africa, Slovenia, Lithuania and England.

Despite their differing research interests, all three projects share the involvement of researchers and/or participants from different cultures. These intercultural settings lead to several challenges stemming from comparable roots. Special modes of exchange, cooperation and communication become necessary between researchers from different countries and varied research socialisation processes. Therefore, it becomes essential to make communication processes transparent and to discuss the different approaches people might have towards certain topics.

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