Raising achievement through inclusion

Abstract

In 2007, Swedish authorities introduced open publication of comparisons of students' results at the end of compulsory school. In this study, we investigated a municipality that had succeeded in breaking a negative trend from a bottom position in the ranking in 2007 to a top position in 2010, apparently through inclusive practices. The purpose of this study is to examine and isolate key elements that make a difference in schools and classrooms in the work with all students. Data were collected through interviews and classroom observations. Mary Douglas' cultural–cognitive perspective of institutional theory and the work of Ludwik Fleck are used to identify and analyse factors of importance to the increased goal fulfilment. The school's decision to end all segregated small group activities and to include all children in the normal classroom activity is examined. Moreover, the emphasis on teachers’ reading and discussing of national and international research and focusing on all children's right to succeed in the classroom is analysed. The analysis suggests that focusing on goal fulfilment through inclusion gave a wider definition to the concept of successful schooling and changed the traditional thought style of the school.

Keywords:

• inclusion
• goal fulfilment
• successful schools
• teacher work

Notes on contributor

Elisabeth Persson is a senior lecturer/PhD at the University of Borås. Her research in mathematics education has during the last years been more focused on how content and methods can be adapted to include all children.

Notes

1. During the autumn holiday, winter holiday, and Easter and summer holidays, students who need extra support can attend what they call ‘holiday school’. I will return to this later in the article.

2. It is worth mentioning that the so-called pulpit teaching is now mandatory in Sweden. The 2011 School Ordinance states: Students should through structured teaching be provided a consistent and active teacher support to the extent necessary to create conditions that students reach the proficiency requirements at least be reached and otherwise develop as far as possible within the framework of education (SFS 2011:185, Chapter 5, § 2).