An aspect of a teacher’s inclusive educational practice: scaffolding pupils through transitions

Abstract

Inclusive educational practice is a political vision in Norway as in several other Western countries. This article focuses on how the ideal of inclusive practice is realized in one particular classroom. As is the case for most Norwegian teachers, the practitioner in this study, Ann, has children with special needs in her class. Among these is a boy with behavioural problems. We know that inclusive practice is a complex field interwoven with a variety of activities. This article focuses on one aspect of the teacher’s inclusive practice; how she deals with transitions so that all her pupils, including this particular boy, can manage them. It also examines Ann’s reflections on transitions, and presents a narrative from her classroom to illustrate her practice. In the analysis her use of various scaffolding devices is presented.

Keywords:

• Classroom research
• Inclusive education
• Behavioural problems
• Scaffolding
• Transitions

Notes

1. All the proper names in this study are pseudonyms.

2. The support services is an organizational merger of the pedagogical‐psychological service and the child‐welfare services.

3. ‘The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education’ (UNESCO, 1994) states that: ‘The fundamental principle of the inclusive school is that all children should learn together, wherever possible, regardless of any difficulties or differences they may have. Inclusive schools must recognize and respond to the diverse needs of their pupils, accommodating both different styles and rates of learning and ensuring quality education to all through appropriate curricula, organizational arrangements, teaching strategies, resource use and partnerships with their communities. There should be a continuum of support and services to match the continuum of special needs encountered in every school’ (pp. 11–12).

4. Researchers focusing on inclusive education take a multitude of positions and address a wide variety of subjects, such as the historical and social development towards the ideology of inclusive education in, for instance, the United States (Steinmiller & Steinmiller, 1996), United Kingdom (Sugden, 1996) and Norway (Stangvik, 1997; Haug, 2000). Others focus on factors that may support or hinder inclusive education (Flem & Keller, 2000), on legislation, regulation and funding (Pijl & Meijer, 1997), on leadership in policy and implementation (Porter, 1997), on resources available for the implementation of inclusive education (Labon, 1997), on the organization of special education (Pijl & Meijer, 1997), on what kind of support is needed if inclusive practice is to be developed within schools (Dyson, 2000), on different versions of inclusiveness across various levels in the school educational system (Norwich, 2000) and on inclusive teaching and teacher education (Booth et al., 2003; Garm, 2003).

5. As stated in the introduction, Ann has been working at the same school since 1976. For many years, the school and its various principals have emphasized pupils’ heterogeneity and diversity and thus, inclusive education. It is within this context that Ann has developed her teacher practice.

6. When the pupils in Ann’s class sit with her in a semi‐circle facing her and the board, it is called the class circle.