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Inclusion in Northern Ireland: cracking the code.

Article Excerpt
Abstract

Teachers in Northern Ireland are faced with the introduction of new legislation relating to the identification, assessment, and provision for, children with special needs. In line with the United Kingdom and Europe, teachers are increasingly finding themselves under scrutiny. They are now expected to accept greater responsibility and accountability. The introduction of a new Code of Practice has had particular implications for how teachers work with pupils with special educational needs, and additionally, within a system which is placing increased budgetary constraints upon them.

Introduction

Since 1981, legislation within the United Kingdom has promoted the integration and inclusion of a wider range of children in mainstream settings (Chapman and Ware, 1999). In particular, the introduction of The Code of Practice (Department of Education Northern Ireland, 1998:2, 1.6) has addressed the issue of inclusion and integration in Northern Ireland by stating, "the needs of most pupils will be met in mainstream schools, and without a statutory assessment or a statement. Children with special educational needs, including those with statements, should, wherever appropriate and taking into account the wishes of their parents, be educated alongside their peers in mainstream schools" (a "statement" refers to a formal, and legally binding statement of a child's special educational needs and the resources required to meet these needs). According to the Code of Practice (DENI, 1998) 20% of children are likely to have a special educational need at some time in their school career but with only 2% of this group being taught in special schools. This, therefore, leaves a higher percentage of children with varying types of special educational needs being educated in mainstream schools. This has particular implications for teachers in Northern Ireland who have been used to a very traditional system of education, where the majority of children are prepared for the Transfer Examination, at around eleven years of age. Success in this examination facilitates entrance to grammar schools, which are popularly perceived to be highly academic. Competition for places in these schools can be considerable. Many teachers, therefore, can find themselves responding to enormous pressure from parents of children with special needs such as Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Attentional Deficit Disorder (ADD) to make early and accurate assessments of their children in order that they gain success and possible entrance to a grammar school.

New Challenges Facing Teachers

The Code of Practice (DENI, 1998) sets out a five-stage approach to identifying, assessing and providing for children with special educational needs. The first three stages are primarily the responsibility of the classroom teacher (and thus the school). This has important implications for the classroom teacher. Initially, prior to any decision being taken to place a child on Stage One of the Code, teachers...

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