Inclusion in Russian schools: Exploring parents' perspectives

Abstract

As schools in Russia become more inclusive for students with special educational needs (SEN), there is a scarcity of research on stakeholders' perspectives. Parents are one of the main actors in education, who possess valuable knowledge about their children and can represent their children's needs in a vicarious manner. This study gives voice to the parents of children with SEN and offers parents' perspectives on the liaison between families and schools. The article focuses on the experience of two families with children with special educational needs (namely, Autistic Spectrum Disorder and intellectual disability). Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and questionnaires and analysed using the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The main findings demonstrate that parents' expertise is sometimes neglected and marginalized for different reasons and the school system in Russia is rigid and not able to adjust its approaches to different learners as well as address and allay parents' concerns. Lack of direct interaction blocks the pathway for compromises and mutual understanding. In the parents' view, teachers act on their own assumptions which are oftentimes emotionally loaded and not clearly articulated for the parents. However, parents believe that all the actors of the educational process, that is, teachers, learners and parents, would benefit if teacher-parent relationships involved a more sensitive and attentive attitude towards each other's requirements and wishes, providing opportunities for negotiating and discussing arguable issues. The paper demonstrates two cases of misunderstanding between teachers and parents and offers implications for practice in teacher education, policy-making and social work.