scholarly journals Diagnosing, special education, and ‘learnification’ in Danish schools

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bjørn Hamre

This article focuses on a discussion of diagnosing, special education, and ‘learnification’ in a Danish school context in which the increasing use of diagnosis is analysed as resulting from the ideas of normality that are associated with the construction of the pupil as a learner. I argue that diagnosis in schools can be seen as the shadow side of the articulation and management of learning through schools’ requirements for pupils. This article is based on my analysis of files produced by educational psychologists. Learning and diagnosis, I argue, constitute two different, but parallel, ways of looking at being a pupil in school, each of which represents conceptions of deviance and normality. The article’s methodological point of departure draws on a Foucauldian-influenced analysis of diagnosing and learning in education.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Gro Hellesdatter Jacobsen ◽  
Doris Overgaard Larsen ◽  
Ole Steen Nielsen

ResuméMed skolereformen fra 2014 har pædagoger fået en ny rolle i skolen, hvor de bl.a. varetager ”understøttende undervisning”. Det er dog stadig ikke helt klart, hvad pædagoger kan bidrage med i skolen, og hvordan deres bidrag forholder sig til lærernes. Med denne artikel præsenterer vi, med udgangspunkt i et almenpædagogisk perspektiv, et mere udfoldet bud på, hvad pædagoger kan bidrage med i skolen, og særligt hvordan de kan bidrage til at mindske marginalisering af børn. Vi argumenterer for, at pædagoger frem for at benytte sig af tydeligt instruerede aktiviteter, der minder om lærernes undervisning, med fordel kan benytte sig af arrangementet som en pædagogisk handlingsform, hvor den pædagogiske intention bevidst holdes svag for børnene. Hermed kan pædagoger bruge deres pædagogiske faglighed til at fremme børns medvirken i egne lærings- og dannelsesprocesser samt mindske marginalisering i skole og SFO. AbstractThe Danish school reform (2014) has given pedagogues (social educators) a new role in primary schools, where they among other things provide "supportive teaching". However, it is still not quite clear how pedagogues contribute and how their contribution relates to that of the teachers. Based on a general pedagogical theoretical perspective, we propose a more detailed description of pedagogues’ contribution in the school context, with a particular focus on reducing marginalization of children. We argue that pedagogues, rather than using clearly instructed activities similar to teachers' lessons, should make use of ”the pedagogical arrangement” as a form of action, in which the pedagogues’ intention is deliberately kept subtle. In this way, pedagogues may use their pedagogical expertise to promote children's involvement in their own learning and Bildung processes and to reduce marginalization in schools and school-based leisure time facilities.


2020 ◽  
pp. 104420732097054
Author(s):  
Rebecca A Cruz ◽  
Joon-Ho Lee ◽  
Alexandra G. Aylward ◽  
Catherine Kramarczuk Voulgarides

School finance reform has recently centered on providing schools with more equitable access to resources to reduce opportunity gaps for students. Although special education is often a prominent part of larger equity conversations, special education funding is commonly excluded from school funding reform initiatives. Given the costly nature of special education programs, it is imperative that scholars and policy makers understand the effects of funding changes on outcomes for these students. In this study, we examined the effect of California’s Local Control Funding Formula, in addition to school context and student compositional characteristics, to identify changes in special education students’ achievement rates. Using a combination of publicly available data sources and local district data, we assessed differences in academic outcomes (i.e., achievement scores) between elementary students with and without disabilities in both high- and low-poverty schools, given increases in spending for special education programs.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 248-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mildred Boveda ◽  
Brittany A. Aronson

Intersectional competence captures educators’ awareness of how sociocultural markers of difference simultaneously intersect within the P-12 school context. This article presents findings from a larger mixed-methods sequential exploratory study that established, in part, the theoretical and qualitative basis for validating the Intersectional Competence Measure. The questions asked during the qualitative phase were developed after a review of the literature on intersectionality in special education, collaborative teacher education, and existing measures of preservice teachers’ understanding of diversity. This analysis focuses on the responses of 12 culturally and linguistically diverse special education preservice teachers. When speaking about P-12 students, they tended to position themselves as special educators, privileging their emerging professional identities. They expressed the important role that teacher education played in developing an understanding of sociocultural differences. The participants discussed the complexities of intersecting identities when speaking about their own educational experiences and when considering discriminatory attitudes that persist within minoritized communities.


2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 323-336
Author(s):  
Else Lauridsen

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss how the use of information technology in schools can influence students’ democratic comprehension. Design/methodology/approach – First, two different ideas of democracy are introduced and how these ideas are linked to cognitivistic and social constructivistic learning theories, respectively, is illustrated. Next, a case study is described, where Engeström’s mediational triangle is used for analysing how the use of interactive whiteboards (IWB) influences the teaching of democracy in a fifth-grade school class. Findings – The paper lists a set of preconditions and recommendations for a use of IWB as support for students’ experience of democracy as a way of living. Research limitations/implications – As the paper focuses on research design and development of didactical designs, future research and articles can further study the effects of the didactical designs and the democratic comprehension supported hereby. The paper is set in a Danish school context. Practical implications – It is argued that the IWB can be used as support for developing the students’ democratic comprehension by focusing on and, if necessary, changing the elements of the activity system, e.g. the rules and the roles concerning the use of the IWB. Originality/value – The paper’s linkage of democratic ideas, learning theory and information technology is relevant for researchers. Teachers can use the paper, as it offers didactical principles for using information technology as support for students’ democratic comprehension.


2011 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 172-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary N. Siperstein ◽  
Andrew L. Wiley ◽  
Steven R. Forness

Lack of progress of children with emotional disturbance (ED) has begun to be documented in longitudinal school-based studies. Variability in these studies may be due to several factors, including widespread differences in academic, behavioral, and social functioning of these children, their special education status, and school contextual factors. In this study, 86 children were followed over a two-year period: children were drawn from three subgroups—children with ED receiving special education in low-income schools, children with ED receiving special education services in high-income schools, and children not receiving special education services but who were considered high risk for ED. Outcome measures included reading and math achievement along with ratings of behavioral progress. Despite initial differences in overall functioning, there was, almost without exception, no significant progress in any of the three subgroups over the course of a full academic year. This lack of progress was not related to the type of special education and related services that students received in self-contained or full inclusion programs. Results and implications are discussed regarding lack of response of children with or at risk for ED to intervention in both general and special education.


2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (173) ◽  
pp. 84-103
Author(s):  
Débora R. P. Nunes ◽  
Carlo Schmidt

Abstract In recent years, the literature has shown a significant increase in the enrollment of students with autism in regular classrooms. Among the essential teacher competencies to effectively deal with this demand is the knowledge on Evidence-Based Practices (EBP), conceived as scientifically effective intervention strategies. Knowledge produced by research centers about these practices is not disseminated and incorporated by teachers in the school context. In this scenario, this article aims: to revise the concept of EBP, in the scope of research in Special Education and autism; and identify factors that interfere with the transposition of the knowledge. As a complement, a theoretical-explanatory model of transposition of scientific knowledge beyond the walls of the academy is proposed.


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