Doctoral defence: Tiina Kivirand “The meaning of inclusive education and supporting the implementation of inclusive education through in-service training course in the Estonian context”

On 6 September at 10:00 Tiina Kivirand will defend her doctoral thesis “The meaning of inclusive education and supporting the implementation of inclusive education through in-service training course in the Estonian context” for obtaining the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (in Education).

Supervisors:
Professor Äli Leijen, University of Tartu
Associate Professor Liina Lepp, University of Tartu

Opponent:
Associate Professor Dragica Pavlovic Babic, University of Belgrade (Serbia)

Summary
Inclusive education (IE) has been the basic principle in education systems both in Estonia and internationally during last few decades. However, its meaningful implementation in practice has proven to be complicated. Studies have shown that the reasons for this are different but primarily depend on the understanding of the meaning of IE, the preparation of teachers and the cooperation of the entire school staff, and the school's development activities. Teachers' and other school staff's understanding of the meaning of IE is influenced by professionals who train or advice schools in the implementation of IE. Therefore, one of the goals of this doctoral thesis was to investigate how these professionals themselves understand the meaning of IE. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 specialists. The results showed that interviewees understood the meaning of IE and the ways of its implementation in different ways. IE was operationalized as the study of students with special educational needs in their schools of residence in regular classes, study in special classes, and study in special schools. Secondly, it was explored how to support schools in the implementation of IE through in-service training course designed for school teams (teachers, support specialists, school managers) in the Estonian context. The overall aim of the long-term team in-service training course (10 ECTS) was to develop participants` skills and knowledge in regard to the concept and meaning of IE and its effective implementation through inclusive school development strategies. The study revealed that both cultural and structural changes were implemented in schools during the training. Herewith, leadership, commitment, cooperation, a system-wide approach, resources, and external expertise emerged as the most important factors influencing development activities on IE at the school level. Based on the results of the doctoral thesis, conclusions and implications can be drawn to strengthen the IE system in the Estonian context. First, it is important to pay more attention to the operational concept of IE and initiate social debates about who and why IE is important. Second, bring legislation into line with the principles of IE. This, in turn, requires that, both at the state and local government level, there would be a leadership with jointly defined targets and performance indicators that measure the effectiveness of meaningful inclusion.