After 30 years in education, I thought I had a good grasp on inclusion. I was wrong. A few years ago, our Trust (Discovery) made a deliberate decision to bring special schools into our fold. This move has transformed how we think…
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‘How do we define success in a world obsessed with performance?’
An Explanation with Help from Two Famous Dylan’s (Dylan Wiliam & Dylan Thomas) At our recent Golden Thread-Inclusion & SEND conference, keynote speaker Phil Leaney grappled with the topic of inclusive leadership in a meritocratic system, posing the question: ‘How…
What is inclusion?
If you ask a room full of teachers ‘what is inclusion?’ you will undoubtedly get answers that follow a similar theme… ‘everyone included’. It’s not wrong. It’s just not accurate. It’s also not very helpful. When we test this definition…
Ask the ‘Expert’- The Parent Voice- Steph and Rob Hayden, Undiagnosed Children’s Day 2023
To raise awareness of Undiagnosed Children’s Day (28th April 2023), Hannah O’ Mara- Assistant Head from Birch Wood is joined by Rob and Steph Hayden for the second ‘Ask the Expert’ podcast. They candidly share the challenges and joys of…
Inclusive Special Education: A Summary
This blog is a summary of some of the key points in Garry Hornby’s 2015 article ‘Inclusive Special Education: Development of a new theory for the education of children with special educational needs and disabilities’. I have not included everything…
Could special schools be problematic for real inclusion? – Q: What is real inclusion, how do we get there?
I often ask myself what is the role of special schools in supporting an inclusive education system, when by definition attendance at a special school means a child or young person is being separated from other children. In many ways…
Inclusion: The Stockdale Paradox of Education
In Jim Collin’s book, Good to Great, he describes the story of a naval office, James Stockdale who was a Vietnam prisoner of war. Stockdale found a way to survive his imprisonment by embracing both the harshness of his situation…
The Fear
‘I’ve been worrying…’ (in the words of that great Ben Howard song) about many things in education, but the question of inclusion is the one that seems to run through most of the scenarios I come across as a special…
Inclusive Education – A radical vision for school admissions
Those responsible for school admissions are the gatekeepers to inclusion Carline Barlow and Simon Smith outline the current landscape for inclusion in mainstream schools and, because of its accuracy, it makes for uncomfortable reading… This views I actually echoed by…
‘We’ve done everything on the list. Can we have some support now?’
This is my first test post on the new blog