Transformed Understanding or Enlightened Ableism? The Gap Between Policy and Practice for Children with Disabilities in Aotearoa New Zealand
Tóm tắt
The concept of inclusion in the New Zealand legislative and policy environment is articulated in a liberal human rights discourse intended to redress past practices of segregation and exclusion. Such discourse has provided the early childhood sector with new ways to speak about disability and inclusion. There is, however, a growing body of evidence to show that how teachers speak about inclusion is frequently not reflected in practices in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) settings. The emerging evidence reported in this article is drawn from an ongoing research project which, in part, examines the views of inclusion elicited through semi-structured interviews with teachers, owners and managers in long-day ECEC—the facilities designed to accommodate adults’ usual working hours. The larger study aims to examine tensions and complexities for teachers, owners and managers in long-day ECEC alongside the views and experiences of parents of children with disabilities. The concept of ‘enlightened ableism’ is introduced to frame an argument that teacher-speak, while overtly liberal, may be combining with a nervousness about disability and inclusion that raises challenges for progressing inclusive practice. Furthermore, current discursive contradictions between liberalism and neoliberalism in the sector appear to be contributing to some teachers’ uncertainty about ways to progress beyond the rhetoric of inclusion. The study is embedded in the Disability Studies literature and informed by Foucauldian theorising about discourse and power. This paper responds to the question: Has legislation and policy transformed understandings about disability and inclusion or merely provided an enlightened rhetoric, which serves to mask the continuation of ableist practices and thinking in the sector?
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