Inclusive Education at the Crossroads (Connecting Research with Practice in Special and Inclusive Education)

Inclusive Education at the Crossroads explores the short and long-term effectiveness of government plans to reform policy for special needs education, confronting difficult questions on policies about inclusion and suggesting alternative ways forward for achieving more effective education of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Inclusion has been a central concern for education systems globally for over three decades. However, has preoccupation with inclusion been at the expense of effective education for children with SEND? Where do policies for inclusion lead, and do they amount to the special education reform that is needed? What do the worldwide experiences of inclusion and special education reveal about how to improve the quality of education systems for all children in the future? How effective is provision for children with SEND today? Through this informative and topical book, Gordon-Gould and Hornby shine an interrogating spotlight on current provision for SEND and ask if current legislation and policy inadvertently reinforce problems; if they cause many children with SEND to fall short of their potential, as well as preventing many schools from improving their levels of overall academic attainment.

Inclusive Education at the Crossroads provides theory and research for teachers, school leaders, governors, policy makers, researchers, parents, post graduate students and anyone seeking practical solutions to meeting the needs of pupils with SEND in any global context. It will encourage open debate about the essence of educational inclusion in order to stimulate creative thinking among all stakeholders.

Philippa Gordon-Gould has worked as teacher and SENDCo with a special interest in dyslexia in primary and secondary schools in East Anglia, UK, and draws on her experience as a teacher in the United States and Europe.

Garry Hornby is a former mainstream school and special class teacher and educational psychologist. He is currently Emeritus Professor at the University of Plymouth in the UK and Associate Professor at the University of Silesia in Poland.