What is the purpose? Reflections on inclusion and special education from a capability perspective

摘要

This article investigated what the capability approach developed by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum can contribute to the issue of inclusion as a new theoretical framework for special education. By posing the question: ‘What is the purpose of inclusion?’, I have proposed to answer this query by investigating how the capability approach is able to deal with the rationales for inclusion that are presented in the literature. In contemporary writings, the rationale for inclusion can be divided into at least three areas: (1) ethical and socio‐political; (2) ontological; and (3) epistemological. This article has argued that the enterprise of special education must be able to formulate a framework that takes into consideration all three rationales. Such a framework implies an adequate understanding both of disability and difference and of inclusion that can address the purpose of inclusion without neglecting core educational values.View full textDownload full textKeywordscapability approach, disability, inclusion, special educationRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08856250903450806