Intentional Leadership for Effective Inclusion in Early Childhood Education and Care

Exploring Core Themes and Strategies

Mary Moloney, Eucharia McCarthy

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2018
• ISBN:
  9781351606424
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Intentional leadership can unite, motivate and empower all educators to work towards the common goal of creating a truly inclusive culture in which all children, with or without disabilities, are supported and enabled to fully participate in every aspect of daily life and learning.

This book recognises diverse manifestations of special educational needs, from communication difficulties and delays in learning, to social and physical disabilities, and considers the ways in which these needs might be embraced within inclusive mainstream settings. Key to this is robust and purposeful leadership that removes barriers to learning, changes existing attitudes and values, motivates staff and foregrounds holistic learning opportunities and experiences. Chapters draw on theoretical models, reflect on international and national policies, and consider topics including:

• 
  
  

• the image of the child

• 
  
  

• physical, aesthetic and temporal aspects of the learning environment

• 
  
  

• relational pedagogy

• 
  
  

• long-, medium- and short-term planning

• 
  
  

• the role of assessment

• 
  
  

• collaborative working with parents, families and other professionals.

In-depth descriptions of behaviours and leadership strategies, practice scenarios and activities support the reader's understanding. Intentional Leadership for Effective Inclusion in Early Childhood Education and Care is a comprehensive guide for students, teachers and practitioners involved in Early Childhood Education and Care, Social Care and Early Intervention programmes.

1

Introduction

Flowers are red young man

Green leaves are green

There’s no need to see flowers any other way

Than the way they always have been seen

But the little boy said

There are so many colours in the rainbow

So many colours in the morning sun

So many colours in the flower and I see every one

(Chapin, 1981)

Introduction

In this song, written by Harry Chapin, the little boy is full of wonder, he sees a world full of colour, and in his world, there are no limitations. He is a confident, competent and capable learner; he is full of potential. Of course, these lyrics can be interpreted in another way, the lyric ‘there are so many colours in the rainbow’ could just as easily refer to differences between children, the vastly different rates in their development and how their developmental and learning patterns can be episodic, uneven and rapid (Ackerman & Coley, 2012), as well as how they see, interpret, make sense of and, understand the world.

This book is concerned with the concept of intentional leadership for inclusion in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. Early childhood, the period from birth to six or eight years (depending on school starting age in individual countries) is a crucial period in a young child’s learning and development. It presents a vital window of opportunity for supporting young children’s learning and development, for preventing potential developmental delays and/or supporting children who present with special educational needs and disabilities. Working with young children, with and without special educational needs and/or disabilities, is an enormous privilege, it is also a tremendous responsibility.

It is important at the outset, to discuss the dichotomy between special educational needs and disability. Special educational needs are discussed in Chapter 2: ‘Understanding special educational needs and disabilities’, in terms of the following four areas:

1.Communicating and interacting, where children with speech, language and communication difficulties find it difficult to make sense of language or to understand how to communicate effectively and appropriately with others (children and adults);

2.Cognition and learning, where children learn at a slower pace than others of the same age. Children have difficulty with understanding aspects of the curriculum, have difficulties with organisation and memory skills, or have a specific difficulty affecting one particular part of their learning performance, such as in literacy or numeracy;

3.Social, emotional and mental health difficulties, where children have difficulty in managing their relationships with other people, are withdrawn, or behave in ways that may hinder their own and other children’s learning, or that have an impact on their health and wellbeing;

4.Sensory and/or physical needs includes children with visual and/or hearing impairments, or a physical need that means they must have additional ongoing support and equipment.

As explained in Chapter 2, some children may have special educational needs (SEN) that cover more than one of these areas. Furthermore, children with SEN may also have a disability, i.e., ‘long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others’ (UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 2006, Article 1). Because children may present with both a special educational need and a disability, the term SEND, which derives from the Children and Families Act 2014, in England, seems appropriate. Throughout this book, both terms: special educational needs and disabilities that are inclusive of exceptionally able and talented children, are used.

There is no doubt, that in the 21st century, children with special educational needs and disabilities, are increasingly visible in society. However, this was not always the case. In the past, these children were marginalised members of society. They were isolated from mainstream educational provision. Why? Historically, their needs were seen as a medical rather than an educational issue. The predominant focus was upon children’s ‘impairments rather than their potential’ (Carpenter, Ashdown & Bovair, 1996, p.269), and there were limited expectations of children with special educational needs, either academically or socially.

Over time, isolation and segregation gave way to integration, where children with special educational needs were permitted physical access to mainstream classrooms. Overall, however, they were widely expected to adapt to the school, rather than the school adapting to accommodate a greater diversity of pupils. While integration resulted in children having a place in the school, they clearly did not belong. They had little or no interaction with the class teacher or the other children. They did not participate in the general curriculum, or in regular classroom activities, and they were unable to make friends. They were seen as, and treated as different, as other.

Various legislative enactments and policy initiatives, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989); the Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Education Needs (2004); the UNESCO Guidelines for Inclusion (2005, 2009) and the UN Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD, 2006), coupled with increasing awareness of the benefits of early intervention, means that children with SEN are now increasingly visible in society; in early childhood settings, schools, universities, employment and in the wider community.

Article 23 of the UNCRC stipulates that children with disabilities should have:

effective access to and receive education, training, health care services, rehabilitation services, preparation for employment and recreation opportunities in a manner conducive to the child’s achieving the fullest possible social integration and individual development, including his/her cultural and spiritual development

Inclusion and participation are therefore ‘essential to human dignity and to the enjoyment and exercise of human rights’ (UNESCO, 1994, p.11).

Initiatives including the UNCRC (1989), UNESCO (2009), and the UNCRPD (2006) clearly envisage inclusion as an ongoing process, concerned with respecting diversity and eliminating discrimination. Although inclusive education was historically associated solely with children with special educational needs, today, it has a broader focus, encompassing all children, including those from ethnic and linguistic minorities, children with HIV, nomadic children, children living in poverty, refugee children, rural populations, children with disabilities and any at-risk children (UNESCO, 2009). As observed by Devarakonda (2013, p.12) inclusive education ‘is increasingly seen as an approach for all disadvantaged groups, as well as migrants and minorities and even pupils who are identified as gifted or talented’.

While mindful of the broader inclusion discourse, this book is concerned with inclusion as it relates to children with SEND, including exceptionally able and gifted children, in the context of early childhood education and care. Although it is beyond the scope of this book to address inclusion more broadly, it is important to note that when we establish and maintain an inclusive culture and remove barriers to learning within the ECEC setting, we enhance learning opportunities and experiences for all children.

Locating inclusion within a positive construct, UNESCO (2005, p.12) describe it as ‘a dynamic approach of responding positively to pupil diversity and of seeing individual differences not as problems, but as opportunities for enriching learning’. Furthermore, the UNCRC (1989) and the UNCRPD (2006) together provide a framework for a rights-based approach for all children, ensuring the rights of children with special educational needs, in particular, are not marginalised or forgotten.

Inclusive education offers the best educational opportunities for children with disabilities (UNCRPD, 2006, Article 24). It is an overarching concept directed towards developing children’s ‘personality, talents and creativity, as well as their mental and physical abilities, to their fullest potential, [and] enabling [them] to participate effectively in a free society’ (Article 24). This definition in particular, embraces the notion of holistic child development, affording equal importance to the child’s personality, talents and creativity, physical and academic development. It challenges attitudes, values and beliefs, how we view children with special educational needs and disabilities and, critically, it contests our understanding of the purpose of education.

Crucially, the UNCRPD sees inclusion as a legal right for all children that requires:

A change in an educational culture where, rather than focusing on individual support (usually based upon a medical diagnosis), the system provides support to schools to increase their capability to respond to learners’ diverse needs without the need to categorise or label them.

(Meijer & Watkins, 2016, p.6)

From a rights perspective, the fundamental principle of inclusion is that all children should learn together, regardless of differences or difficulties within mainstream settings.

A recurring theme throughout this book relates to how attitudes, values and beliefs are central to establishing an inclusive culture, which ultimately enables all children to feel respected and valued, and able to fully participate in all activities and routines within the ECEC setting. This is not as easy as it sounds. In fact, because inclusion is so firmly embedded in everyday parlance, it is at risk of being taken for granted, on the basis that everybody is mindful of, knowledgeable about and capable of establishing and maintaining inclusive practice. However, inclusion is a process that involves ‘improving inputs, processes and environments to foster learning at the level of the learner in his/her learning environment as well as at the level of the system which supports the learning experience’ (UNESCO, 2005, p.16). It is about overcoming a range of obstacles including:

•prevailing attitudes, values and beliefs;

•image of the child;

•understanding holistic development and learning;

•knowledge and skills;

•resources.

Responsibility for overcoming these various challenges is a joint endeavour involving government macro-level and setting micro level responses. The simple fact is that inclusion cannot be left to chance. Policy initiatives alone are not a guarantor of inclusion, neither is physical access to an early childhood setting. Consequently, this book is premised upon the need for intentional leadership for meaningful inclusion within early childhood education and care.

What is intentional leadership? To be intentional is to be deliberate and purposeful in everything you do. When applied to the concept of inclusion, being deliberate and purposeful is critical. It means that inclusion is not left to chance, that somebody – or a number of people within the setting (see Chapter 4) – takes responsibility for inclusion, ensuring that children are not just physically present, but that all children with and without disabilities, are supported and enabled to fully participate in every aspect of daily life within the setting.

Drawing upon Underwood and Frankel (2012) and Underwood (2013), inclusive early childhood settings are underpinned by six key components:

1.Accessible to all children and their families;

2.Designed, and implemented with consideration for the unique needs, and abilities of each child;

3.Include ongoing evaluation of programmes to ensure children’s full participation;

4.Policies that promote inclusion;

5.Leadership that supports inclusion;

6.Staff who believe in inclusion.

Meaningful inclusion is therefore dependent upon two critical but interrelated factors: staff who understand, believe in and are committed to inclusion, and leadership that supports inclusion. In relation to the latter, this book reinforces the idea that leadership for inclusion is paramount. Accordingly, when it comes to inclusion, robust, intentional leadership is essential to progress from tokenistic to meaningful and effective inclusion. Intentional leadership is therefore the unifying thread throughout each chapter in this book.

Meet the children

Various practice scenarios are interspersed throughout the chapters of this book. They are used to support your understanding, and reflective practice as you read each chapter. These practice scenarios include children with a specific diagnosis, as well as children who do not have a diagnosis but whose behaviour and development gives rise to particular concerns. Throughout the book, therefore, you will meet the following children: four-year-old Antonio from Poland who has recently had corrective surgery for tongue tie, Arielle who has been diagnosed with autism, Jacob, a four-year-old wheelchair user, as well as four-year-old Rebecca who has retinitis pigmentosa feature in Chapter 2; while Amelia, a two-year-old, with Apert syndrome is introduced in Chapter 3, where you will also meet Anshul, a 3½-year-old boy with autism.

Chapter 5 introduces Jawad, who is three years old. Although his mother describes him as chatty, stating that he talks to her and his siblings at home all the time, he has not spoken to anybody in ECEC setting since he started attending six months ago. Five-year-old Naomi, who is now quadriplegic following an accident in a swimming pool, also features in Chapter 5.

Sahar and Adham (both five years old) make their debut in Chapter 6, where four-year-old Jack also makes an appearance. In Chapt...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Acknowledgements
• List of abbreviations
• 1 Introduction
• 2 Understanding special educational needs and disabilities
• 3 Attitudes, values and beliefs
• 4 Leading and sustaining an inclusive culture
• 5 Leading, building and maintaining an inclusive learning environment
• 6 Leading and maintaining an emotionally safe environment
• 7 Leadership in planning an inclusive and responsive curriculum
• 8 Leading assessment for learning to support inclusion
• 9 Leading collaborative working
• 10 Intentional Leadership for Inclusion: Final Thoughts
• References
• Index