Inclusive Education and Teachers’ Perceptions of Lesson Planning and Lesson Work from a Student Inclusive Perspective

Abstract

This article discusses the multifaceted concept of inclusion referring to a study (Kotte, 2017). It aims to contribute with deeper knowledge of teachers’ perceptions of inclusive education regarding students’ diverse learning prerequisites. The methodology is a combination of a quantitative and qualitative data analysis related to teachers participating in a Swedish national research and school improvement program. The analysis is performed through Biesta’s dimensions of the aim of education, Uljens’ model for analyzing didactic action; Hedegaard-Sørensen’s situated professionalism and Tomlinson’s differentiation of teaching. Some main results show that teachers have a positive attitude to inclusion but they also understand it as a difficult task to carry through during lessons. They experience a dilemma between single students’ needs and the interests of the class as a whole. Further results indicate that collegial collaboration is regarded as a valuable aspect for the inclusive didactic lesson planning and lesson work to be successful.

Keywords

• collegial collaboration
• differentiated teaching
• lesson planning
• mainstream classroom
• teachers’ perceptions