Still not inclusive? A critical analysis of changing the SENCO policy in a Chinese school community

ABSTRACT

Little research has been conducted to gain deeper understandings of policy change of piloting special educational need coordinators (SENCO) in a Chinese education community. In response to the change in policy towards regularisation of the SENCO, we examined a trajectory of policymaking for SEN support in Hong Kong’s integrated education. Critical discourse analysis as a discursive method of analysing the local SEN practices in relation to the international policy development was adopted. The key questions are: What is the difference between this Chinese integrated education and international policy development for inclusion? What effects of the pilot SENCO have emerged in the policy and media texts in the Chinese integrated education? What recommendations can be derived to inform the regularisation of SENCOs in ordinary public schools? The findings shed light on the conceptual discrepancy between integrated and inclusive education in the policymaking. The economic considerations and administration accountability of the pilot SENCO affected the regularisation. As reflected in this Chinese integrated education, we also discuss the implications of changing the SENCO policy for quality SEN support in schools.

KEYWORDS:

• Chinese school community
• critical discourse analysis
• inclusion
• integration
• SENCO

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Dr Elson Szeto is the Assistant Professor, Co-Director of Centre for Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Education and Research Fellow of the Asia Pacific Centre for Leadership and Change at the Education University of Hong Kong, HKSAR, China. His research interests include educational leadership, education policy and school improvement, and inclusive education.

Dr Annie Y.N. Cheng is the Assistant Professor and Research Fellow of the Asia Pacific Centre for Leadership and Change at the Education University of Hong Kong, HKSAR, China. Her research interests include educational leadership, teacher development, and education policy.

Professor Kenneth K.F. Sin is the Director of Centre for Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Education and Professor of the Department of Special Education and Counselling at the Education University of Hong Kong. His research interest is special educational needs, teacher professional development, and inclusive education.

ORCID

Elson Szeto http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8616-1221

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by The Education University of Hong Kong [RG19/17-18R-R3867].