“Diagnosing” the Need or in “Need” of a Diagnosis? Reconceptualizing Educational Need

Abstract

This chapter is based on compulsory school experiences of students diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and their parents in the educational context of Finland. Located in the theoretical framework of Disability Studies, the chapter aims to contribute to theory of inclusive education by initiating a new dialogue on conceptual foundations of inclusive schooling. In this regard, the chapter first deconstructs the concept of educational need that stems from the field of traditional special education as contradictory to the original ideals of inclusive education. It then moves on to reconstruct the concept of educational need in accordance with the foundational values of inclusion, that is celebration of human diversity and resistance to dichotomies of ab-/normality and dis-/ability and proposes an approach for future implementation of inclusive education. Keywords: ADHD, disability studies, inclusive schooling, ab/normality, dis/ability, discourse

Blivande lärares kunskap om neuropsykiatriska funktionsnedsättningar.

“…Från 1990-talet har återigen en psykologisk-medicinsk diskurs, kombinerat med en stark neuropsykiatrisk diskurs, ökat i betydelse (Hjörne 2016, s. 544-546), och vid slutet av 1990-talet genomgick skolan vad som beskrivits som en medikalisering (Solvang 1999). Utbildningspolitik i västerländska länder tar numera ofta stöd i ett medicinskt perspektiv på skolsvårigheter som handlar om att möta elevers individuella särskilda behov (Honkasilta 2017…”

“…Inom västerländsk utbildningspolitik uppfattas ofta diagnoser kunna ge pedagogiska ramar för att möta de behov som anses komma med den enskilda diagnosen (Honkasilta 2017). Samtidigt belyser pedagogisk forskning att diagnoser sällan pekar ut elevers specifika, individuella behov av stöd i skolmiljön eftersom de inte kan utrönas ur diagnoserna i sig (Arnfred & Langager 2015).…”

Rising to the Challenge of Creating Equitable, Inclusive, and Compassionate School Communities in the Recovery Phase of the Pandemic: The Role of Aspiring Headteachers

“…Slee [23,24], Mowat [1] and Riley [42] draw attention to scenarios where what has been euphemistically called the "inclusion room" (or other similar names) has been experienced by the YP as 'anything but.' Honkasilta [26] refers to exclusion as both a "social practice" (in which the pupil is excluded from the day-to-day interactions of the classroom) and a "discourse practice" (which acts to prevent the establishment of an environment that promotes diversity and acceptance of others and self). He stresses the importance of the nature of interaction between members of the school community as being at the heart of inclusion in education, recognising that needs take a variety of forms, such as the need for a sense of affinity and belonging, key themes which have emerged in this study.…”

Generations of the Community Perspective in Today’s Inclusive Education

“…Our documentary review has allowed us to evidence that the practices on which the community perspective of the first generation are based have been systematized in the scientific literature on inclusive education, while those corresponding to the second generation have been less studied. This could be due to the fact that the practices that are associated with this generation occurred during a period in which the concept of inclusive education itself was "more open" and not unequivocally linked to an educational response intended for the so-called students with "special educational needs" [7]. It is also true that practices that correspond to the first generation have been systematized in research works on inclusion, while those of the second generation are more closely linked to inclusive research, where the scientific production is more limited as it is also a developing model.…”

“…This objective, which is at the very core of inclusive education, is addressed differently by different perspectives and approaches. Thus, while other perspectives on inclusive education may be associated with the placement of students with disabilities into ordinary schools, the community perspective intends to transform the support model and the response to every student, since diversity is understood in a wider sense, according to the principles and foundations of inclusive education [7].…”