Teachers as Mighty Stakeholders? (Dis)empowering Moments during Advancement of ‘Inclusion’ Policies in Education

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to describe factors which empower or disempower teachers to take an active role in shaping and implementing educational policies on the example of policy guidelines on inclusion in education. The paper is based on qualitative research conducted through in-depth interviews with different stakeholders in education. In the first part of the article, I will elaborate on theoretical discussions concerning the concept of empowerment and the role of teachers in educational politics (including their role in drafting and implementation of policies). It will be argued that the most suitable definition of empowerment stems from Freire’s conscientização. Moreover, the text will also argue that the main factors which empower or disempower teachers to take an active role in shaping and implementing policy guidelines on inclusion in education are the following: team leadership, team cohesion, common values, school reputation, trust (internal and external) among different stakeholders, the role of parents, fear of white flight (segregation) and clarity (or lack thereof) regarding the role of teachers. Teachers and schools very often perceive each other as competitors, and their unclear duties and responsibilities lead to limited transparency in educational policy and therefore limited access of teachers to decision-making. All those factors undermine teachers’ empowerment and limit their ability to take an active part in the decision-making process.

Keywords

• agenda
• stakeholders
• empowerment
• educational (inclusion) policies