Special educational needs across two decades: survey evidence from english primary schools

Abstract

The article considers the perceived prevalence of special educational needs in English primary schools and changes in this prevalence over two decades and relates these to issues in education policy, teacher practice and the concept of special educational needs. The studies considered are two major surveys of schools and teachers, the first conducted in 1981 and the second conducted in the same schools in 1998. Important features of both studies were their scale and the exceptionally high response rates achieved. Two central findings were the perception of teachers that special educational needs were widespread and of an increase in special educational needs over time: perceived levels of special educational needs were one in five children in 1981, which had risen to one in four children in 1998. Learning difficulties were by far the most common aspects of special educational needs but many children had multiple difficulties, and behavioural difficulties were seen by teachers as the main barriers to inclusion. The very high figures for prevalence raise questions about the continued usefulness of the concept of special educational need distinct from broader issues of achievement.

The influence of child, family, home factors and pre‐school education on the identification of special educational needs at age 10

“…English as an additional language, giftedness and high ability are not included within the definition of SEN. More than 30 years ago the Warnock Report (Department of Education and Science, 1978) suggested that about 20% of children would at some stage in their school career experience special needs of some kind, acknowledging the fluid nature of SEN for many children who might move into or out of SEN status during their time in school. Croll and Moses (2003) conducted two survey studies of schools and teachers in 1981 and in 1998, which give a detailed picture of changes over nearly two decades with regard to the identification and definition of SEN in England. Croll and Moses (2003) conducted two survey studies of schools and teachers in 1981 and in 1998, which give a detailed picture of changes over nearly two decades with regard to the identification and definition of SEN in England.…”

“…There has been much debate about this figure, which was largely based on teachers' estimates and drew in particular on seminal research in the Isle of Wight Study (Rutter et al, 1970), but it still reflects current levels of SEN identification in England. Croll and Moses (2003) conducted two survey studies of schools and teachers in 1981 and in 1998, which give a detailed picture of changes over nearly two decades with regard to the identification and definition of SEN in England. Two central findings were the high proportion of teachers who believed that special educational needs were fairly widespread among children in mainstream schools and an increase in their reported incidence over time.…”

A Little Learning is a Dangerous Thing: Factors Influencing the Increased Identification of Special Educational Needs from the Perspective of Education Policy-makers and School Practitioners

“…(Alexander Pope, 1688-1744Pope, 2002) The aim of the inclusion movement was to bring about more inclusive schools by dismantling barriers to access and participation through deep change to school cultures, structures, practices, and curriculum (Armstrong, Armstrong, & Spandagou, 2010;Carrington, 1999). Yet, despite promising achievements in the 1980s, international trends now point to significant growth in special educational needs categorisation (Croll & Moses, 2003;Florian & McLaughlin, 2008;Graham & Jahnukainen, 2011). Yet, despite promising achievements in the 1980s, international trends now point to significant growth in special educational needs categorisation (Croll & Moses, 2003;Florian & McLaughlin, 2008;Graham & Jahnukainen, 2011).…”

“…An explicit aim was to reduce stigma and exclusion (Booth, 1996). For example, Croll and Moses (2003) found that substantial increases in the reported level of special educational needs in England between 1981 and 1998 could not be accounted for by movement from segregated to mainstream settings. A common presumption is that the "inclusion" of students previously educated in separate special educational settings is the main contributing factor, but research has indicated that this is not necessarily the case.…”

Doing good while performing well at Flemish universities: benchmarking higher education institutions in terms of social inclusion and market performance

“…Moreover, there has been an international commitment to inclusive education (UNESCO 1994) and as Banks, Frawley, and McCoy (2015, 1) note, 'if a country advocates inclusion, then legislation and especially financial regulations have to be adapted to this goal' (Meijer 1999(Meijer , 2003. Many countries report increases in the proportions of students found eligible for special education services (Parrish and Chambers 1996;Croll and Moses 2003;Ahearn 2010;Banks and McCoy 2011).…”