This article focuses on the perspectives of primary school teachers on the current provision for students with dyslexia in the mainstream classroom. Five themes emerged from this research and these were (1) Diagnosis, (2) Inclusion, (3) Effective classroom practice, (4) Difficulties encountered in the classroom and (5) Teacher education. The focus…

Amidst changing sociocultural and political climates, limited economic resources and shifting educational policies, classroom teachers continue to hold a significant responsibility in educating an increasingly diverse student population. Balancing the requirement to support student variability within perceived everchanging contexts can be…

The Special Needs Assistant (SNA) scheme has been in existence in Ireland, in various different iterations, since 1979. This article presents a critical policy analysis of two iterations of the scheme, operational between 1998 and 2014, using a hybrid analytical framework. It highlights the contextual factors influencing those iterations, presents…

This study investigated the perceived Teacher Self-Efficacy (TSE) of primary school teachers in Ireland who are working in special classes for students with autism. Furthermore, it sought to examine whether these perceptions of TSE were related to special class teaching experience, their engagement in professional development pertaining to autism,…

Young people who are either at risk of disengaging or disengaged from mainstream education in Ireland are often supported by what is termed 'out-of-school' or the 'alternative education' sector. A recent review of out-of-school education provision (Department of Education. 2022. "Review of Out-of-School Educational Provision." Dublin:…

Ireland's system of special education has undergone unprecedented change over the last three decades. Following major policy developments in the mid-2000s which emphasised inclusive education, there have been changes to special education school personnel and funding structures which seek to include greater numbers of students with disabilities in…

Leadership for inclusion is a contested concept with competing definitions suggested by many researchers and educationalists. While broad and narrow interpretations of 'inclusion' exist, this article focuses solely on the inclusion of learners with special educational needs (SEN) in Irish mainstream schools. A critical literature review of various…

Forty deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children aged between seven and 13 were tested using two reading assessments selected to separately measure the skills of phonological decoding and reading comprehension. The Nonword Reading Test and the Edinburgh Reading Test, respectively, were used. All of the children were enrolled in full mainstream…

Key word signing, an unaided augmentative, and alternative communication (AAC) system is commonly used by children with Down syndrome who attend mainstream primary schools. To ensure the successful use of key word signing within a mainstream environment, a meaningful, contextually appropriate sign vocabulary must be available to all communication…

The establishment of educational policies both nationally and internationally has led to an increased awareness of inclusion for children with special educational needs. In Ireland, the development of the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) in 2016 is a government initiative to introduce a comprehensive support system for the early years sector. This…

In Irish classrooms, one option for educating children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) involves placement in a special class co-located in a mainstream primary school. This study surveyed 125 primary school teachers who taught in these classes. An evaluative framework of teachers' professional development was used to analyse primary teachers'…

A significant increase in the paraprofessional workforce has occurred internationally, aimed at facilitating inclusive education. Within Ireland, this is evidenced in the SNA scheme for pupils with significant care needs. This paper focuses on the constructs of SNA support and pupil independence, as based on large-scale research across 20 Irish…

A study was conducted to explore the impact of professional development related to the individual education plan (IEP) process on teachers' understanding and practices in the Republic of Ireland (RoI). This paper reports on part of that research, focusing on teachers' collaborative practices in the IEP process. In the RoI, teachers working as…

The focus of this paper is on the organisation of inclusive educational provision for pupils with disabilities and special educational needs in mainstream schools. In relation to theoretical context, it outlines the challenges of defining inclusive education, it explores the ideological tensions that characterise the area, including those evident…

Background: Lámh is a key word signing approach used in Ireland, which can support the communication needs of children with Down syndrome. However, the success of this approach in mainstream schools relies heavily on the attitudes of those within the school environment. To date, two studies have explored the attitudes of teaching staff towards the…