Disability and inclusion

Disability, stigma, and suffering in schools. Emerging narratives for the right to inclusive education (2024). Educación XX1 (Spain, Q2)
Based on the Social Model of Disability, this article aims to highlight the processes of stigmatization, discrimination, and suffering that occur in schools, as well as to review the socialization and education processes experienced by students, family members, professionals, and activists in educational institutions. At the same time, it addresses the lack of educational responses to diversity and the social and professional demands that it requires from an inclusive perspective. To this end, we present six in-depth life stories and thirteen autobiographical accounts of students, families, professionals, and activists developed through narrative research that analyzes their social and educational experiences based on three categories: the labeling process and its repercussions, the response of students, their families, and professionals, and the repercussions of discrimination on the individual and their environment. The results show their struggles to find support that will enable them to engage in activism and empowerment processes aimed at achieving a school that does not segregate students labeled as disabled into specific centers or classrooms and that takes them into account in pedagogical decision-making. In conclusion, the study highlights the need to place the voices of students and families at the center of the discourse on inclusion; to recognize them as activists with the capacity to demonstrate, through their own experiences, the need to challenge the labeling process; and to engage in research committed to educational and social change, which enables new vital cartographies and drives a social movement for the right to education.

Inclusion in higher education: A trend analysis from a bibliometric perspective (2023). Pedagogical Studies (Chile, Q3)
The objective of this article is to identify trends in scientific production related to inclusion in higher education both globally and in Chile. To this end, a bibliometric analysis of articles from journals indexed in Web of Science (2015-2020) was conducted. Bibliometrix was used for data analysis. The results show four main research topics, namely, inclusion in higher education of students 1) with special educational needs and disabilities, 2) from racial and ethnic backgrounds, and 3) from low-income backgrounds. Likewise, 4) the use of technology and online education to promote inclusive education systems is highlighted. In Chile, the findings reflect that studies focus mainly on students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. It is concluded that publications in the field are firmly anchored in the integration paradigm, as opposed to the inclusion paradigm.

Co-teaching and inclusion in schools: opportunities and limitations of a single model for diverse contexts (2023). Pedagogical Studies (Chile, Q3)
This article presents the results of an ethnographic study conducted in six public schools to observe how co-teaching is carried out in regular classrooms as a fundamental part of the policy of inclusion of students with special educational needs. Through excerpts from field notes and discussion groups, we found that each co-teaching pair puts inclusion into practice through multiple subjective, creative, and complex negotiations and adjustments, in constant correlation with the priorities established by each school. This combination has a direct impact on the results of school inclusion of functional and cognitive diversity, which are also affected by financial and administrative factors. Finally, we propose reflections for the development of public policies that respond to the diversity of contexts and actors that make up School Integration Programs.

For inclusive education free of ableism: the importance of otherness as a foundation (2023). Pedagogical Studies (Chile, Q3)
Today, in the field of education, there is a widespread tendency to defend inclusive education as the best way to address the differences we find inside and outside the school. This educational model is based on the principle that we are all equally diverse, so that a fair education should include and highlight the uniqueness of each person. However, our society, based on certain values of independence, autonomy, and ability, inevitably places some unique characteristics above others. This work, from a philosophical-educational perspective and, therefore, fundamentally through the critical analysis of texts, aims, on the one hand, to highlight the error of maintaining an inclusive education model focused exclusively on the training of singularities. On the other hand, as a counterpoint, it seeks to establish an inclusive education that substantially incorporates the idea of otherness.

Assessment as a matter of inclusion: a meta-ethnographic review of the assessment experiences of students with disabilities in higher education (2024). Educational Research Review (UK, Q1)
Assessment plays a crucial role in student learning in higher education. Until recently, the role of assessment in relation to inclusion had not been explored. In this study, we conducted a research synthesis of 42 studies published between 2010 and 2022, including 868 student participants, to map the assessment experiences of students with disabilities in higher education. Specifically, we conducted a meta-ethnographic review to synthesize qualitative studies and capture the assessment experiences lived by participants. Our analysis considers how these experiences reflect both inclusion and exclusion. We theorize these elusive terms through the ideas of access and participation. Most studies considered students' imminent physical, perceptual, and social access to assessment, such as inaccessible exam rooms or digital assessment systems. A smaller subset of studies considered inclusion/exclusion as a matter of students' social participation as fully accepted members of academia. In these studies, assessment was described as providing students with opportunities to belong to academia, while experiences of exclusion portrayed assessment as a mechanism of segregation and social discrimination. Overall, our review shows that assessment is a major barrier to the inclusion of students with disabilities in higher education. We propose that the prevailing discourse on inclusion in assessment should be broadened from considering immediate access to assessment to considering how assessment regulates the full participation of diverse students in higher education. We discuss the implications of assessment that is inaccessible to all students and suggest that, ultimately, both access and participation are matters of student identity. Our review has important practical implications for the design of inclusive assessment in current higher education contexts where student cohorts are becoming increasingly diverse.

Mapping educational pathways through focus groups: children and young people on the impact of inclusive socio-educational practices (2024). Psicotema (Spain, Q1)
As school became a primary instance of socialization and acculturation, and school education expanded to virtually every country in the world and reached virtually all children and young people, over an increasingly longer period of the life cycle, school failure and dropout emerged as cross-cutting factors. Cutting across educational and sociopolitical issues. However, the voices of those involved in initiatives aimed at overcoming school failure and dropout are rarely heard. The EDUPLACES Project (PTDC/MHC-CED/3775/2014) proposed to do just that, through interviews, questionnaires, and focus groups with parents/families, children/youth, teachers/other staff, and community representatives. This article explores the results of eight focus groups involving a total of 57 children/young people, with a special emphasis on the discourses that emerge from participants in Mediation and Study Support practices. As we discuss how initiatives aimed at overcoming school failure and dropout address issues such as inclusion, participation, learning, empowerment, and community development, focus groups emerge as a relevant tool for exploring the meaning of educational success.

Are specific learning disorders really specific? Are they disorders? (2019). Trends in Neuroscience and Education (Germany, Q1)
Specific learning disorders, such as dyslexia and dyscalculia, are frequently studied to help understand cognitive development, genetic mechanisms, and brain function. In this opinion paper, we discuss the limitations of this research approach, including the use of arbitrary criteria for selecting groups of children, heterogeneity within groups, and overlap between learning domains. Drawing on evidence from cognitive science, neuroscience, and genetics, we propose an alternative dimensional framework. We argue that we need to overcome the problems associated with a categorical approach by considering factors that interact at multiple levels of analysis that are associated with overlapping rather than completely distinct learning domains. We conclude that this research strategy will allow for a richer understanding of learning and development.