The approach taken by nurture groups emphasises that difficult early experiences can be modified through creating opportunities to develop security and attachment from alternative sources other than parents. Despite previous research indicating the positive impact parental involvement can have on both parents and children, research into parental…

This article traces the evolution of special education in Malaysia across four chronological stages: before and during the early colonial period (before 1900), pre-independence (1900-1957), post-independence (1957-1990) and modern Malaysia (1990 to the present), through document analysis. By placing current issues and trends within a historical…

Oral narrative is a critical skill for school achievement, for personal relationships and for social participation. However, it is downgraded in current and proposed National Curriculum frameworks, which fail to recognise its significance in development. Schools have flexibility to address the issue, which is of particular importance to pupils…

The purpose of this research was to study the content of the work of two special education professions in Sweden, special teachers and special pedagogues. In addition, we compare their work to the work of Finnish special teachers. The Swedish participants were 74 special educators: 27 special teachers and 47 special pedagogues. The Finnish data…

This article aims to throw light on how the intentions behind inclusive and individually adapted education in Norwegian compulsory schools are followed up in practice with regard to central aspects of the roles of headteachers, teachers and curriculum planning. The study was carried out as a postal survey of compulsory school teachers in two…

This study examines the concept of inclusion and the degree to which it is being practiced in Swedish municipality schools and tries to draw some conclusions about the nature of pedagogy practiced in Sweden. This is a qualitative case study where primary data are collected from only five facilitators of children of special needs in one school in…

Educating students with disabilities in an inclusive general education setting has been shown to increase academic achievement, increase peer acceptance, increase self esteem, create a richer friendship network, and have positive lifetime benefits (higher salaried jobs, independent living). In addition, inclusion can have benefits for students…

It is now 15 years since the signing of the 1998 Belfast (or "Good Friday") Peace Agreement which committed all participants to exclusively democratic and peaceful means of resolving differences, and towards a shared and inclusive society defined by the principles of respect for diversity, equality and the interdependence of people. In…

This article, by Sheila Riddell and Elisabet Weedon of the Centre for Research in Education Inclusion and Diversity, University of Edinburgh, analyses recent policy developments and outcomes in the field of additional support needs in Scotland in the context of devolution and austerity, drawing on a critical analysis of policy and administrative…

This article, by Brahm Norwich of the Graduate School of Education, University of Exeter, sets the recent legislative changes in the special education system in England, the Children and Families Act (2014), in the context of wider changes in the school system, such as changes in curriculum-assessment, the governance of schools and inspection…

Every school system has to deal with children with Learning Disabilities (LD). However, the concepts of LD, the assessment procedures, the diagnostic criteria as well as their interpretation vary widely from country to country. What they usually have in common is that general cognitive abilities, as measured by standardized IQ tests, are seen as…

This study examined the concerns of regular secondary school teachers in Delhi, India in order to work with students with disabilities in inclusive education settings. A total of 470 teachers responded to a two-part questionnaire. Part-one of the questionnaire collected information related to personal and professional characteristics of the…

Previous research on home-school relationships and blame has concentrated on the experiences of parents with children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD). This has led to the voices of educational practitioners, as well as parents of children with other special educational needs, being neglected. This article, by Karen…

This article, by Jon Olav Myklebust from Volda University, Norway, presents analyses of social security dependence among students with special educational needs in Norway who at the start of upper secondary school had various disabilities--of a somatic, psychological and/or social nature. They were all educated in ordinary schools, in special or…

This study, by Fuk-chuen Ho of the Hong Kong Institute of Education and Michael Arthur-Kelly of the University of Newcastle, aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a professional development programme for in-service teachers in Hong Kong special schools. The goal of the programme was to deliver a field-based mode of training for teachers in…