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Policies and legislation for inclusive education
An essay on inclusive education
Policies and legislation promoting inclusive education
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“The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Introduction
On June 24, 2009, The Ontario Ministry of Education introduced Policy/Program Memorandum (PPM) No. 119, titled Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools. Throughout this paper I am going to take a critical look at this policy using a combination of policy analysis approaches. Through my analysis I am hoping to examine, both the intended and unintended effects that may or might have resulted from the introduction and implementation of PPM 119. When I read this document when it first came out, I was very excited about the prospects of what it might mean to education in Ontario. The combination of time and the knowledge that I have gained through this course have allowed me to reflect upon my initial thoughts about PPM 119. Understanding the identified issue being addressed by the policy is the first step, examining how this policy fits into the historical / political context of policy development in the province of Ontario, recognizing the how this educational policy impacts Canada on the global stage, and looking at how this policy was developed and introduced to the public.
The Context: The Political Backdrop to PPM 119
Understanding the political landscape of the time can help analyze the how and why surrounding the creation, implementation and impact of PPM 119. In the past 20 years the provincial leadership has moved from the ‘left’ (Bob Rae, NDP) to the ‘right’ (Mike Harris, Conservatives) and finally moving towards the ‘center’ (Dalton McGuinty, Liberal). The drastic change in leadership and political agendas has left behind a wide range of educational policies, all of wh...
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...d Inclusive Education in Ontario Schools: Guidelines for Policy Development and Implementation . Toronto, Ont.: Ontario Ministry of Education.
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/policyfunding/inclusiveguide.pdf
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Thomas, S. (2004). Reconfiguring the Public Sphere: Implications for Analyses of Educational Policy. British Journal of Educational Studies, 52(3), 228-248.
Torres, C. (1996). State and Education Revisited Why Educational Researchers Should Think Politically About Education. Review of Research in Education: 1995-1996 (pp. 255-331). .: AERA.
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The issue of equality in education is not a new problem. In 1787, our federal government required all territories petitioning for statehood to provide free education for all citizens. As part of this requirement, every state constitution included, “an education clause, which typically called for a “thorough and efficient” or “uniform” system of public schools” (School Funding 6). Despite this requirement, a “uniform” system of schools has yet to be achieved in this country for a variety of reasons, many of which I will discuss later on. During the early part of th...
de Broucker, Patrice. 2005b. Without a Paddle: What to do About Canada's Young Drop-Outs. CPRN Research Report. Ottawa: Canadian Policy Research Networks. October.
Labaree, D. F. (1997). Public goods, Private goods: The American struggle over educational goals. American Educational Research Journal, 34(1), 39-81.
In the text, The Death and Life of the Great American School System, author Diane Ravitch explores her ideological shift on school reform and the empirical evidence that caused this shift. Once a proponent and contributor of testing, accountability, choice, and market reforms, Ravitch’s support began to diminish as she realized that these current reforms were not viable options. She came to realize that the new school reforms focused entirely on structural and managerial adjustments and that no focus was given to actual learning.
Betts, Julian. Getting choice right: ensuring equity and efficiency in education policy. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2005.
Laurence, L (1967). Politics in Education. New York, NY: The Center for Applied Research in
The assumptions that everyone can learn, and that schools have the potential to transform a country with a tradition of hatred and an unequal distribution of wealth, extend from the vision of education as a democratic practice where there is "a struggle for both change and the freedom to change" (Irwin, p. 51, 1991). The change is about transforming an exclusive, often oppressive and disempowering system into a more inclusive, equal, and equitable one that is accessible to children from ...
Quiram, Jacquelyn, Mei Ling Rein, and Nancy Jacobs, eds. Education--Reflecting Our Society. Wylie: Information Plus, 1998.
Slee (2001) argues that inclusive schooling demands schools to recognise all types of difference from disabilities, ethnicity, gender, class and sexuality. Furthermore, he challenges schools to accept difference, to encourage and promote flexibility thus benefiting not only the curriculum and pedagogy, but the community and students themselves (Slee, 2001).
Many conclusions resurrected upon my reflection regarding the critical issues facing the ED population. The fundamental conclusion I see is the need for advocacy in the ED population. I believe being a voice for the voiceless for the ED population is about solidifying the relationship of ideas to one another; this paradigm is about creating a capacity for awareness, caring, collaboration, equity, and social justice. Through the process of my own discovery, bolstered by the context of this assignment my learning needs have blossomed requiring further inquiry regarding the ED population and policy. I am now left to ponder; do these polices regarding the ED population need to be understood as ideologically and politically constructed entities, rather than policies that have emerged out of educational research on best practices?
...Elkins, J. (2008). Education for Inclusion and Diversity Third Edition. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.
The first four weeks of CR510 have prompted this student to reflect on her years of teaching in the public school setting. Having experienced many similar complexities to the ones in the text, this student is sympathetic to the challenges facing those in the education system and is eager to find opportunities to offer a better solution for all involved. CR510 has strengthened this student's belief that a third party neutral can provide valuable benefits to educational systems at all levels.
This book, Dare The School Build a New Social Order by George Counts, is an examination of teachers, the Progressive Education Movement, democracy and his idea on how to reform the American economy. The book is divided into 5 different sections. The first section is all about the Progressive Education Movement. Through this, George Counts points out many downsides and weaknesses of this ideal. He also talks about how he wants teachers to lead society instead of following it. In the second section, he examines 10 widespread fallacies. These fallacies were that man is born free, that children are born free, they live in a separate world of their own, education remains unchanged, education should have no bias, the object of education is to produce professors, school is an all-powerful educational agency, ignorance rather than knowledge is the way of wisdom, and education is made to prepare an individual for social change.
Public schooling is the most utilized form of education in Canada. It is the most accessible, and is regarded as the most affordable form of education for Canadian students, however there are drawbacks that come with this. Teachers are the primary resource responsible for the delivery of education. In some cases, they may work in partnership with other professionals. However, class sizes are often too large in regard to the student-to-teacher ratio. This does not allow for enough time for students to have access to the educational resources that they require. Due to lack of government resources in some provinces, students who require assistance from a Teacher’s
The future of public education and genuine democracy is intertwined. If democracy is going to have a future, let alone a global one, it depends on everyone 's capacity to access critical education, develop a sense of agency, form collective networks, and generate a new public culture that can resist the domination of market-driven neoliberal