Research Approaches to Supporting Students on the Autism Spectrum in Inclusive Schools

Outcomes, Challenges and Impact

Suzanne Carrington, Beth Saggers, Keely Harper-Hill, Michael Whelan

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN: 9780367501877
• eBook ISBN: 9781000376944
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

This book will support researchers in the field of education disability by outlining inclusive research approaches and their challenges, outcomes, and impact. Each chapter reports on school/university-based research supporting inclusion for young people on the autism spectrum. This research has been developed in Australian schools with students, families, teachers, and specialists. The intent of this approach is to mobilise new knowledge to the benefit of all students, including students on the autism spectrum, their families, teachers, and school communities. This book showcases how research can be more inclusive with a move to collaborative, participatory, and co-produced research that will impact on young people, families, and educators. The authors highlight the complex challenges and the positive outcomes of conducting research in inclusive ways and provide detailed practical strategies for researchers.

Inclusive education is socially, emotionally, and academically beneficial for all students and positively impacts on respectful attitudes to difference. This book provides a groundbreaking approach to research that by design is inclusive and therefore provides an invaluable opportunity for building the foundations of an inclusive society for all. This book will be invaluable to researchers, educators, and professional learning in schools.

Part 1
Introduction

My Helping Hands (by Sarah Harding, aged nine years)

‘This shows how I think a lot about my friends and how I can help them and others.’

1
An introduction to research in inclusive education

Empirical evidence for supporting an inclusive approach for students on the autism spectrum

Suzanne Carrington and Beth Saggers

This chapter sets the agenda for this book by introducing the research supporting inclusive education. Inclusive education leads to positive academic and social emotional outcomes for all students, with and without disabilities. An inclusive approach was a focus of the research in the Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (Autism CRC) and our researchers worked with educators, families, and students in classrooms and schools to establish evidence to inform inclusive practice. The research reported in this chapter is an important starting point for this book and will influence how education systems, schools, and teachers commit to inclusive education in the future. This chapter defines inclusive education and describes the difference between inclusive education and special education. We suggest that it is important to understand the difference before we consider how we can support advocacy and promote change in policy and practice. The chapter presents research to support short-term and long-term benefits of an inclusive approach. Further to this discussion, the chapter will specifically present an overview of the evidence drawn from international research that focuses on inclusive education for students on the autism spectrum. This chapter provides evidence to support future policy and planning for improved inclusive education programs and builds a shared understanding that inclusive education is a global movement to support equitable and quality education. The research reported in this book highlights how the social and cultural context of education communities is important and that educators, families, and students need to work together in respectful ways to support inclusion and a sense of belonging for all.

Inclusive education is now viewed as a human right where all students, whether they have a disability or not, have the right to access, be successful, and participate at their local school (United Nations, 2006). The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) was published in 2006 and ratified by more than 180 countries, making inclusive education a legally binding obligation for countries such as Australia under Article 24. This is reinforced through the companion document, General Comment 4, released in 2016, which now provides a clear definition of inclusion:

Inclusion involves a process of systemic reform embodying changes and modifications in content, teaching methods, approaches, structures and strategies in education to overcome barriers with a vision serving to provide all students of the relevant age range with an equitable and participatory learning experience and environment that best corresponds to their requirements and preferences.

(United Nations, 2016, p. 4)

Inclusive education is also a goal in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).¹ The signing of international declarations such as the CRPD by countries around the world means that inclusive education at local mainstream schools is the expected approach for students with disabilities and that special education should be phased out over time (UNESCO, 2017; United Nations, 2006). The research reported in this book aims to support educators to include autistic students in their local schools, transition to life after school, and to participate meaningfully in their community. The authors share their research approaches and outcomes of working in respectful and inclusive ways to support the development of culture, policy, and practice for inclusion.

…all students, whether they have a disability or not, have the right to access, be successful, and participate at their local school

What is the difference between inclusive education and special education?

It is important to understand the difference between inclusive education and special education before we consider how we can support advocacy and promote change in policy and practice. Special education is often considered as an approach to inclusive education in countries such as Australia where there is an array of special educatio...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Cover Art
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Figures and tables
• Foreword
• Acknowledgements
• Contributors
• Part 1: Introduction
• Part 2: Outcomes of an inclusive research approach
• Part 3: Knowledge translation and research impact
• Part 4: Conclusion
• Index