BSc Education / Course details

This unit provides students with knowledge about the historical, cultural, and policy perspectives on the development of inclusive education, both nationally and internationally. It includes an examination of a range of threats to inclusive educational practice (such as gender discrimination in primary education, sexuality, race, racism, masculinity and popular culture) and how these shape educational experiences.

The unit also scrutinises the dynamics of inclusion in post-compulsory education, with a particular focus on the identity and sense of belonging of international students and the impact of policies and practices which shape inclusivity within higher education. In addition to exploring formal educational settings, the unit includes content on informal, community-based, parent-led supplementary education. In this way, students are provided with a broad and multifaceted exploration of inclusive educational environments, as well as critiques of educational policies and practices which exclude particular groups of students. Students have the opportunity to develop a holistic understanding of inclusive education, which will equip them to navigate the complex debates on inclusivity in formal and informal education and in the media, and so be able to make meaningful and well-informed contributions to the development of inclusive practices in educational settings.

The unit aims to:

Introduce students to current discourses, policies, and issues in inclusive education, highlighting its historical evolution and key principles, nationally and internationally.

Familiarise students with educational policies and strategies which support diverse groups of learners, (with varied abilities and backgrounds) in a range of cultural contexts.

Provide students with the opportunity to explore a range of frameworks for the development and implementation of inclusive education in a diverse range of country contexts.

History and discourses of inclusive education in the UK and internationally

Gender and sexuality in primary education

Race, masculinity and popular culture in education 
Identity and belonging of international students in post-compulsory education

Informal community-based, supplementary education

The course will use a combination of lectures, seminars and tutorials

• Discuss and debate the key historical and global discourses/ perspectives/ factors that shape inclusive education.
• Analyse the impact of gender, sexuality, race and culture in shaping learning experiences in a range of educational settings, including early years, primary, secondary, higher education and lifelong learning in diverse contexts
• Critically engage with policies, practices, and community-based approaches shaping inclusivity at various levels.

• Apply critical thinking and analysis to complex issues around policy and practice in inclusive education.
• Synthesise literature from diverse sources together with students’ own experiences in inclusive education.

• Apply theoretical knowledge to practical scenarios by reflecting on personal experiences in a particular area of inclusion.
• Articulate the key elements of an inclusive environment
• Design an inclusive education poster  to convey complex information.

• Navigate diverse perspectives in inclusive education debates and developing intercultural competence.
• Distinguish personal values and responsibilities in inclusive education, cultivating ethical awareness for promoting inclusivity in educational settings.
• Communicate complex ideas, inclusive values, and advocate for change in an effective way to a broad audience.

Written feedback is provided on Turnitin

Ainscow, M. (2016) Struggles for equity in education: The selected works of Mel Ainscow. London: Routledge (World Library of Educationalists series)

Akyeampong, K. (2017). Teacher Educators’ Practice and Vision of Good Teaching in Teacher Education Reform Context in Ghana. Educational Researcher, 46(4), 194–203. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X17711907

Alves, I. (2019) International inspiration and national aspirations: inclusive education in Portugal. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(7-8), pp. 862-875. (doi: 10.1080/13603116.2019.1624846)

Benjamin, S. (2002) The Micropolitics of Inclusive Education, OUP.

Bray, M. and Kwo, O. 2014. Regulating Private Tutoring for Public Good: Policy Options for Supplementary Education in Asia. CERC Monograph Series in Comparative and International Education and Development, No. 10. Comparative Education Research Center, University of Hong Kong. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000227026

Burman, E. & Miles, S. Deconstructing supplementary education: From the pedagogy of the supplement to the unsettling of the mainstream, Educational Review, 72 (1), p3-22

Cole, B. (2004) Mother-Teachers: Insights into Inclusion, David Fulton.

Greenstein, A. (2015) Radical Inclusive Education. Disability, teaching and struggles for liberation. London: Routledge

Lingard, B., & Mills, M. (2007). Pedagogies making a difference: Issues of social justice and inclusion. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 11(3), 233–244. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603110701237472.

Messiou, K. (2019). The missing voices: Students as a catalyst for promoting inclusive education. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(7–8), 768–781. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2019.1623326.

Nutbrown, C. and Clough, P. (2006) Inclusion in the Early Years, Sage.

Sadia, H. Prevett, P. Whitworth, D. Gaus, N. (2022). The transition of Female Pakistani Students to both the UK and Postgraduate Education Context: Constructing Hybrid Identities through a modicum of control, Research in Post-Compulsory Education, 27 (1), pp 24-47, https://doi.org/10.1080/13596748.2021.2011504.

Walton, E. (2018). Decolonising (through) inclusive education? Educational Research