Opinion

Special classes not best option for students with disabilities

It is important to examine what an appropriate education placement means and whether the solution lies in continued expansion of special classes

Although special classes have been in existence in Ireland since the mid-1970s, their numbers have increased dramatically over the last decade. File photograph: Getty Images
Although special classes have been in existence in Ireland since the mid-1970s, their numbers have increased dramatically over the last decade. File photograph: Getty Images
Joanne Banks
Fri Jul 01 2022 - 05:00

A lack of school places for students with special educational needs has been the focus of much media and public attention in recent weeks. The Minister of State with responsibility for special education, Josepha Madigan, has come under renewed pressure in recent days with a report by Ombudsman for Children’s Office further highlighting inadequate planning by Government to ensure that every child has access to ‘an education appropriate to their needs’.

On Tuesday the Cabinet approved the Education (Provision in Respect of Children with Special Educational Needs) Bill 2022, which aims to compel schools to open special classes within six to eight weeks. The existing process can take up to 18 months.

There is a now big push from parents, disability advocacy groups and politicians to create school places but there is a lack of informed debate and understanding about special education placements, and in particular, special classes.

Global experts on inclusive education state that the social and academic outcomes for students with disabilities placed in mainstream education are better than those in special education settings. Many suggest that students with disabilities in mainstream classes are more likely to achieve better academic results and qualifications compared to those in special class settings and this affects their chances of gaining access to employment or entering further or higher education when they leave school. Students with disabilities who are educated in mainstream classes gain important social skills necessary in their professional and social life after school. Research stresses the benefits of targeted, additionally resourced mainstream classes for students with disabilities compared to full-time placement in special classes.

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Growth of special classes

Although special classes have been in existence in Ireland since the mid-1970s, their numbers have increased dramatically over the last decade from more than 500 in 2011 to over 2,000 this year. These developments have taken place in the context of research, by the Economic and Social Research Institute and more recently the Department of Education and Skills (DES) Inspectorate, which show little evidence that students in these classes benefit from such placements.

There are issues around the lack of inclusion of students placed in some special classes with their peers in mainstream classes. Many students attend special classes on a full-time basis and tend to stay in this setting for their entire school career. At second level, students placed in special classes can experience stigma and lowered expectations and, in some instances, students placed in these settings do not have a disability.

The impact of this on school leaders and teachers has been significant, with particular issues around teacher placement in special classes and the need for qualifications and experience to effectively teach in these settings.

Since Ireland’s ratification of the United Nations Convention for People with Disabilities in 2018, it has become clear that the current operation of special classes is at odds with our obligations which state that we must “ensure that children can access an inclusive, quality and free education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live”. The UN committee that monitors implementation of the convention has already advised that having a separate special education system operating in parallel with a mainstream education system is not compatible with the provisions of the convention.

The path forward

Ireland is at a crucial point in its inclusive education reform journey. An increasingly diverse school population requires a big cultural shift around how we perceive difference and respond to student variability in our schools. While it is important to forward plan for students with disabilities to ensure they receive an appropriate education, it is essential that we address what a “school place” means and distinguish if we mean placement in a separate special class setting or a mainstream class.

It is now the time to identify the problems at system and school level regarding special education. We need to examine possible solutions with a focus on how we can universally design our education system to respond to an increasingly diverse student population where the “one size fits all” curriculum simply does not work. Despite the varied opinions among parents and education stakeholders, all agree that we want children and young people to be meaningfully included and have a sense of belonging in their local school. There is an abundance of Irish and international research and expertise on how this can be done. Let’s allow this to inform the path forward.

  • Dr Joanne Banks is a lecturer in the School of Education at Trinity College Dublin and creator of the Inclusion Dialogue podcast. She is author of The Inclusion Dialogue: Debating issues, challenges and tension with global experts which will be published with Routledge Education later this year.