Inclusion and Special Needs Education for Immigrant Students in the Nordic Countries


Book Description

Inclusion for immigrant students with special educational needs (SEN) is a neglected area of research. This edited volume addresses this problem, providing up-to-date insights into the provided support and special needs education (SNE) for immigrant students in different contexts of the Nordic countries. This important book explores the diversity of student experiences, addressing both compulsory schools and vocational education, and examines how different Nordic countries conceptualise and approach support and SNE for immigrant students. Readers will get an opportunity to read various studies that address gaps in the realisation of inclusion and special need education. This book initiates a dialogue on generating new knowledge, approaches, and methods to expand the flexibility necessary to implement a fully inclusive education. The book offers research that includes strong theoretical and practical frameworks, interviews, interventions, assessments, case studies as well as offers future directions for inclusive and special needs education. By exploring the process of inclusion and special needs education in the Nordic countries, this book is an essential read for those who intend to deepen their understanding and to enact inclusion, and the development of special needs education for immigrant students.




Equity, Equality and Diversity in the Nordic Model of Education


Book Description

Does the Nordic model of education still stand by its original principles and safeguard education for all? This Open Access volume is a carefully crafted collection of chapters that investigate the different aspects of equity, equality and diversity across the education systems in the Nordic countries. Based on data from various national and international large-scale assessments, the volume provides a better understanding of both the functions and foundations of the Nordic model, along with how the concepts mentioned above are enacted in practice. Across the chapters, data from different national and international large-scale assessment studies are used for cross- and single-country analyses on a variety of issues related to equity, equality and inequality in diverse educational settings. The investigations address different subject domains (i.e., mathematics, science, reading), age and grade groups, but also issues related to teachers and the schools themselves. In addition to these empirical chapters, the book addresses the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of the ideas and tools embedded in the phenomena of equity and equality and how they have met in the Nordic model of education.




Immigrant Student Achievement and Education Policy


Book Description

This book examines immigrant student achievement and education policy across a range of Western nations. It is divided into 3 sections: Part 1 introduces the topic of immigrant student achievement and the performance disadvantage that is consistently reported across a range of international jurisdictions. Part 2 then presents national profiles from scholars in ten countries (England, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Netherlands, Republic of Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand). These educational jurisdictions were selected because they represent a range of Western nations engaged in large-scale reform efforts geared towards enhancing their immigrant students’ achievement. Each of the national profiles provides a brief overview of the evolution of the cultural composition of their respective school-aged student population; explains the trajectory of achievement results in non-immigrant and immigrant student groups in relation to both national and international large-scale assessment measures; and discusses the effectiveness of policy responses that have been adopted to close the achievement gap between non-immigrant and immigrant student populations. It also examines the relationships between education policies and immigrant student achievement and discusses how education policies have evolved across various cultural contexts. In conclusion, Part 3 analyzes cross-cultural approaches designed to address the performance disadvantage of immigrant students and proposes future areas of inquiry stemming from the national profiles. The book offers insights into a diverse cross-section of nations and policy approaches to addressing the performance disadvantage.




Dialogues between Northern and Eastern Europe on the Development of Inclusion


Book Description

The concepts of inclusion and inclusive education for children with special education needs (SEN) have been widely accepted as imperative undertakings in the education spectrum. This book posits the practice of these ideas by scrutinizing the methodologies adopted by varied nations of the two regions towards inclusive education along with juxtaposing the dichotomous observations to enable a dialogue regarding the actualization of inclusive education. The book looks at the distinct approaches taken by Northern and Eastern European education systems to realize inclusive education for children with SEN and aims to enable a space for dialogue wherein the reader would be able to access the cultural context of each practice, expand their cognizance regarding the concept of inclusivity and develop a more nuanced and sensitive approach to inclusive education. In the act of exploring the myriad ways in which inclusivity is practiced in the two regions, the book thusly provides insights into the pluralities and significance of inclusion in the education sector across a global spectrum. The anthology will be of interest to a vast range of audience, videlicet, individuals, students, researchers, professionals, et al., invested in the education sector, special needs education and pedagogy. It further proposes appeal for individuals interested in performing scientific research on the subject. The book practically aims to be of interest for any individual invested in the discipline of education, development of community and the topics pertaining to education for children with SEN.




Learning Spaces for Inclusion and Social Justice


Book Description

This edited volume emanates from a Nordic research project which was conducted in Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden in 2013-2015. The main objective of the project was to draw lessons from success stories of individual immigrant students and whole school communities at different levels that have succeeded in developing learning contexts that are equitable and socially just, thus turning attention to good practices and what can be learnt from these. The book presents and discusses the main findings of the Learning Spaces project on the three school levels—pre-, compulsory and upper secondary—and contains chapters on research methodologies applied in the project, relevant educational policies, leadership and implementation of the project. While set in the Nordic context, this volume will serve to contribute to current global discussions around diversity and social justice in education. It will primarily appeal to educational practitioners and academics interested in issues of diversity in schools.




Encyclopedia of Special Education


Book Description

Offers a thoroughly revised, comprehensive A to Z compilation of authoritative information on the education of those with special needs.




Concise Encyclopedia of Special Education


Book Description

The Concise Encyclopedia of Special Education, Second Edition is a comprehensive resource for those working in the fields of special education research and practice. Featuring reviews of assessment instruments and teaching approaches, legal issues, overviews of specific learning disabilities, dozens of biographies, and more, this complete desk reference is an indispensable guide for professionals, academics, and students alike. Named an American Library Association Top 25 Reference of the Year in its First Edition, The Concise Encyclopedia serves as an important reference for the education of handicapped and other exceptional children. Written and edited by highly regarded and respected experts in the fields of special education and psychology, this authoritative resource guide provides a reference base for educators as well as professionals in the areas of psychology, neuropsychology, medicine, health care, social work and law. Additionally, this acclaimed reference work is essential for administrators, psychologists, diagnosticians, and school counselors, as well as parents of the handicapped themselves. What's new in this edition Comprehensive coverage of new legislation such as Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act Cultural competence in Special Education, including new material on culturally/linguistically diverse students Many new entries including notable biographies, new service delivery systems, special education laws, new assessment instruments, cross-cultural issues, neuropsychology, and use of the Internet in research and service delivery. Some of the topics covered Academic assessment Achievement tests Addictions Bilingual education Child and adolescent behavior management Counseling with individuals and families with disabilities Early childhood education Gifted education Intelligence tests Mathematics disabilities Psychoeducational methods Rehabilitation Socioeconomic status Special education parent and student rights Traumatic brain injury




Adapting Curriculum to Bridge Equity Gaps Towards an Inclusive Curriculum


Book Description

This report takes a pragmatic look at equality, equity and inclusion in curriculum. It examines how curriculum can be adapted to meet specific needs of diverse learners, particularly vulnerable students. It also features a range of strategies which countries use to design curriculum, so that no student will be left behind.




Immigration and Refugee Policy: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice


Book Description

Unstable social climates are causing the displacement of large numbers of people around the world. Thus, the issue of safe replacement arises, causing the need for examining and improving the policies and strategies regarding immigration and helping these individuals integrate into new societies. Immigration and Refugee Policy: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice is an authoritative resource for the latest research on the challenges, risks, and policies of current relocation and refugee flows and security problems, in relation to these aspects of immigration. Additionally, techniques for assimilating immigrants into important foundations of society, such as educational programs and healthcare systems, is examined. Highlighting a range of pertinent topics such as civil protection, humanitarian aid, and the refugee resettlement process, this publication is an ideal reference source for policymakers, managers, academicians, practitioners, and graduate-level students interested in current immigrant and refugee policies.




Teacher and Librarian Partnerships in Literacy Education in the 21st Century


Book Description

This volume explores teacher and librarian partnerships in literacy education, showing that such partnerships are essential to literacy education in 21st century. Teacher and librarian partnerships contribute significantly to the realization of the democratic mandate of the teaching and library profession. Partnerships respond to the educational challenges characterized by an unprecedented pace of knowledge development, digitalization, globalization and extensive transnational migration. The contributors reconceptualize literacy education based on teacher and librarian partnerships. Studies from Sweden, Norway and the U.K. analyze such partnerships as sociocultural and intercultural practices, documenting ways in which teacher and librarian partnerships in literacy education enhance reading literacy, learning, empowerment and social justice. The authors treat literacies as social practices, rather than as an autonomous skill, working with interdisciplinary perspectives that draw on educational research, New Literacy Studies, library and information science and interprofessional studies. Partnerships facilitate reading for pleasure and reading engagement in work with school subjects and curriculum goals, irrespective of socio-economic or cultural background or gender. The partnerships facilitate work with multimodal literacies and inquiry-based learning, both of which are essential in the 21st century. Equally important, the contributors show that the partnerships foster work with the multiple literacies of students and communities, and students’ attachment to the public and school library. The contributors also analyze tensions and contradictions in literacy education and in school library policy and practice, and attempts to deal with these challenges. Teacher and Librarian Partnerships in Literacy Education in the 21st Century brings together leading scholars in educational research and literacy studies, including Brian V. Street, Teresa Cremin, Joan Swann and Joron Pihl. The volume addresses scholars, and is relevant for students, teachers, librarians and politicians.