Matching Items (2)
Description
Inclusive education has become a global movement through the policies of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (e.g., Salamanca Statement). These policies led many developing nations to adopt these policies in their national policy agendas. Turkey has developed inclusive education policies that deal with the education of students with disabilities (SwD). However, although SwD are the largest group who are marginalized and excluded from educational opportunities, there are other groups (e.g., cultural-linguistic minorities) who experience educational inequities in access and participation in learning opportunities and deal with enduring marginalization in education. This study examined a) Turkish teachers’ and parents’ conceptualizations of inclusive education for diverse groups of students, namely SwD, Kurdish students (KS), and girls, who experience educational inequities, b) how their construction of students’ identities influenced students' educational experiences in relation to inclusive education, c) how their stories revealed identities, differences and power, and what role privilege played in marginalization, labeling, and exclusion of students within conceptualizations of inclusive education. I used cultural historical activity theory (Engeström, 1999) and figured worlds (Holland et al., 1998) to understand the teachers’ and parents’ interpretations and experiences about inclusive education. This qualitative study was conducted in four different schools in Maki, a small southwestern city in Turkey. A classroom photo, with a vignette written description, and a movie documentary were used as stimuli to generate focus group discussions and individual interviews. I conducted classroom observations to explore the context of schooling and how students were positioned within the classrooms. Classroom artifacts were additionally collected, and the data were analyzed using a constant-comparative method. The study findings demonstrated that students had different equity struggles in access, meaningful participation, and having equal outcomes in their education. The education activity system was not inclusive, but rather was exclusive by serving only certain students. SwD and girls had difficulty accessing education due to cultural-historical practices and institutional culture. On the other hand, Turkish-only language policy and practices created tensions for KS to participate fully in education activity systems. Although stakeholders advocated girls’ education, many of them constructed SwD’s and KS’ identities from deficit perspectives.
ContributorsKilinc, Sultan (Author) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Thesis advisor) / Kozleski, Elizabeth B. (Thesis advisor) / Swadener, Elizabeth Blue (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
According to UNESCO's 2010 survey results of 58 member countries, 34 of the countries had less than 1 percent of children enrolled in special education programs. Ten of these countries provided special education provision for less than .01 percent of children. However, the demand to educate students with disabilities in inclusive educational settings continues to grow. Thus, there are many national initiatives aimed at finding ways of creating forms of inclusive educational settings that can respond to children with special needs. In this study, the purpose was to better understand the processes of local adaptation and modification of UNESCO's inclusive education policies, the possible resistances to global forces in inclusive education in Turkey, and the consequences of the implications of those policies in Ankara, Turkey from local educators' views. With that goal in mind, recently adopted Turkish inclusive educational policies implemented after the Salamanca Statement in 1994 were reviewed on a selective basis. The discussion of the policy and document analysis section helped to make connections between the global inclusive education policy changes and local practices in the Turkish education system. In the second part of the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with local educators in Ankara (teachers, administrators, and academic advisors) and policy makers from the Ministry of National Education. An analysis of the interview data highlighted the various complexities, tensions, and inadequacies in the conceptualization of inclusive education in Turkish public primary schools that study participants have observed and experienced. In light of the findings, possible reasons behind the gap between theory and practice and the discrepancies between Western and Turkish interpretations of inclusive education in Turkey are discussed. In the current inclusive education system in Turkey, the challenge of modifying deeply held attitudes at both personal and institutional levels, providing clearly constructed inclusive education policies and approaches, offering appropriate training to key stakeholders, and making adequate resources available appear to be the primary issues for moving forward with full inclusion initiatives.
ContributorsCiyer, Aysegul (Author) / Swadener, Beth B (Thesis advisor) / Artiles, Alfredo (Committee member) / Tobin, Joseph (Committee member) / Mathur, Sarup (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010