“It’s a matter of finding the right key...” : Teachers’ perceptions of teaching and the dilemmas for inclusion of pupils in special schools who have extra need of special support

The aim of this thesis is to clarify the contradictions in teaching practice that are reflected in teachers' statements about the education of pupils in need of special support at the government-run special schools in Sweden, especially from the perspective of inclusion. The contradictions are explored using Engeström’s model of Activity Systems. The following questions are addressed: 1) What aspects are highlighted by teachers as essential in the instruction of pupils in need of special support? 2) What opportunities and barriers to inclusive education can be seen in the teachers' statements? 3) How does a teacher of pupils with multiple disabilities collaborate with other teachers in the team? Sixteen teachers from all five regional special schools for the deaf and hard-of-hearing were interviewed. The theoretical insights of cultural-historical activity theory were utilized to analyze the transcriptions. The study shows that there are several contradictions in the Activity System model. Some specific findings are as follows: Communication with some pupils requires teachers to use several modalities, and teachers who do not have every day contact with these pupils, feel awkward in interaction. A consequence of this will be that teachers do not readily substitute for one another or divide labor equally as much as expected. More time is needed for lesson planning in cooperation with other teachers and assistants. It becomes necessary to modify materials for teaching which was time consuming. Special education groups are sometimes forgotten in plans of common activities by other school personnel. Key conclusions are: There needs to be a greater variation and flexibility in teaching methods for all students to make it easier for pupils in extra need of special support within special schools to be better included. There needs to be more interactions with those pupils and with personnel other than their teachers in order to decrease exclusion