Education in segregated settings for pupils with intellectual disability (ID) has often been portrayed as a unified form of schooling. There is a risk of providing a simplified picture of these settings and of what pupils with ID need to learn. This is generally stipulated in policy documents, leaving room for staff in school to interpret curricula and form learning environments. The aim of this study is to explore how four different learning environments are constructed in segregated settings where pupils with ID are educated in Sweden. The study was conducted as a multiple case study, using observations and interviews with teachers and pupils in four special classes for pupils with ID (SCIDs). Drawing on curriculum theory, the four learning environments, in the results named as Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta class, respectively, appeared to be characterized by different ideas of schooling, labelled as knowledge-mediating, socializing, functional life skills and caring as well as teacher-centred classrooms. The study contributes to a deepened understanding of the complexity of education for pupils with ID in segregated settings.

Den här boken är tillägnad Kerstin Göransson, professor i specialpedagogik, som under 2023 avrundar sitt yrkesliv och sin tjänst vid Karlstads universitet, efter en lång och framgångsrik karriär i akademin. Kerstin har inte bara väntat på, utan genom sin forskning aktivt strävat mot en ökad inkludering av alla elever i skolan. Vi är många som har Kerstin att tacka för inspiration, vägledning och stöd i det arbetet. Vänner och kolleger från Karlstads universitet och flera andra lärosäten har bidragit med texter till boken där de både presenterar sin egen forskning och ger sina personliga glimtar om samarbete och vänskap under åren.

Though research on inclusive education makes up a considerable part of the special education research field, very few studies have explored how beliefs and ideas about inclusion and exclusion emerge in general media discourses of education and schooling. Using positioning theory as a theoretical framework, this paper explores public discourses on inclusionary/exclusionary schooling by analysing newspaper articles about a segregated type of school in Sweden for pupils with intellectual disability. Seventy-nine articles meeting the criteria for inclusion and published between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2018 were identified in the two national daily newspapers of Sweden. Four general storylines and associated positions were identified. The four storylines, together and in different ways, construct a rationale for a segregated school system based on notions such as equality, equity, justice, and democracy. We argue that this rationale is embedded within a discourse that we propose calling a discourse of 'segrequality'. Points of interest Education plays an important role in the development of an inclusive society and inclusive education is a goal supported by many countries and their school systems. Even so, the percentage of pupils educated in segregated settings have increased in many countries in Europe. This article explores how Swedish news media portrays education for pupils with intellectual disability. The research found a dominant rationale where segregated educational settings are seen as essential. Four main narratives were identified. All of them, in different ways, argue for the importance of segregated education in order to give every child an education based on notions such as equality, equity, justice, and democracy. Researchers of inclusion are suggested to take a more active part in a public discussion of education as well as in policy-making on both national and local levels.

Many pupils with disabilities receive schooling in segregated contexts, such as special classes or special schools. Furthermore, the percentage of pupils educated in segregated settings has increased in many European countries. Studies suggest that there is high commitment to the general ideology of inclusive education among teachers in 'regular' education in many countries. This survey study investigates the views of teachers in segregated types of school about education. A questionnaire was sent out, in 2016, to all Swedish teachers (N = 2871, response rate 57.7%) working full time in special classes for pupils with intellectual disability (ID). On a general level results show that there is a strong commitment to preserving a segregated school setting for pupils with ID, a limited desire to cooperate with colleagues from 'regular schools' and a view that schooling and teaching are not quite compatible with the idea of inclusive education. The results highlight the importance of investigating processes of resistance within segregated schools to the development of inclusive schools and education systems. We argue that, while research and debate about inclusive education are important, both are insufficient without analyses of existing types of segregated schooling.

The intersection of arts education and special education as a field has been described as lacking in unity, partly because the practices of its different stakeholders are embedded in either special education or arts education. This paper investigates how principals prioritise teachers' qualifications when organising arts education in compulsory school for pupils with intellectual disabilities (CSID) in Sweden, what they perceive the value of arts education in CSID to be and how they organise arts education in relation to cooperation between pupils from CSID and compulsory regular school (CRS). These questions were investigated using a questionnaire, which was answered by 124 principals. The results show that around three times as many principals prioritised specialised arts knowledge over competence in special education. However, the degree to which this occurred varied across arts subjects. A majority of the principals valued arts education for the opportunities it offers pupils to develop generic abilities, such as communication skills, creativity, and imagination. Cooperation between CSID and CRS for arts education appeared to depend on how school leadership was organised. The article concludes with suggestions on how the organisation of arts education could be improved in relation to the two areas of expertise and the idea of inclusion.

The inclusion agenda has influenced education systems around the world, resulting in better access to mainstream education for pupils with special educational needs (SEN). While numerous studies have compared outcomes of pupils with SEN in mainstream and special educational settings, research on the specific characteristics of these settings remains scarce. In this study a survey was conducted with teachers of pupils with an intellectual disability in mainstream (N?=?254) and special educational settings (N?=?392) in Sweden to investigate differences in instructional practices between these settings. The results showed that teachers? in the two settings devoted approximately similar amount of time to learner- centred and teacher-centred activities respectively, which slightly more focus on teacher-centred activities in both settings. The results of a Mann-Whitney U-test revealed that teachers in mainstream educational settings, in comparison with teachers in special educational settings, reported significantly higher expectations of pupils? performance but lower focus on supporting pupils? social participation. Support of pupils? social participation may be an important characteristic of special educational settings, and there is a need to further explore how knowledge of teacher practices in special educational settings may be used to support pupil?s social participation in mainstream settings.

Det övergripande syftet med denna artikel är att bidra till samtalet om handledning som form för yrkeskunnandets utveckling. Artikeln beskriver en studie vars huvudsakliga syfte var att pröva dialogseminarieformen som ett alternativ till handledning. Dialogseminariemetoden utvecklades vid KTH i Stockholm för att bidra till att fördjupa yrkeskunnande. I metoden är texter, både egna och andras, ett viktigt inslag. Texterna utgör underlag för reflekterande samtal.

Under ett halvårs tid genomfördes en serie på fyra dialogseminarier tillsammans med två grupper yrkesverksamma skolsköterskor. Studiens empiriska underlag består av texter producerade av deltagande skolsköterskor samt anteckningar (idéprotokoll) från genomförda dialogseminarier.

Vår slutsats är att dialogseminaret kan fungera väl som ett komplement till handledning. I resultatredovisningen beskrivs två sammansmältningsprocesser, en över tid och en mellan person och profession. Dialogseminariet ger möjlighet för deltagarna att bli berörda och beröra. Dialogseminariet kan utifrån vårt resultat beskrivas som ett tillåtande rum, där den styrda formen skapar trygga ramar för fria och fördjupande reflektioner.