Fear and Othering in the inclusive early childhood classroom: remnants from the past

Abstract

ABSTRACT Inclusive policies in early childhood classrooms have in recent decades become mainstream [UNESCO. 1994. The UNESCO Salamanca statement and framework for action on special educational needs. Paris: UNESCO]. Inclusive practices however are far from ideal [Slee, R. 2013. “How do we make inclusive education happen when exclusion is a political predisposition?” International Journal of Inclusive Education 17 (8): 895–907; Grace, R, G. Llewellyn, N. Wedgwood, M. Fenech, and D. McConnell. 2008. “Far From Ideal: Everyday Experiences of Mothers and Early Childhood Professionals Negotiating an Inclusive Early Childhood Experience in the Australian Context.” Topics in Early Childhood Special Education 28 (1): 18–31] and although children with disabilities are often welcomed into early childhood classrooms, the dominant discourses that circulate continue to position them as different and as Other [Watson, K. 2017. Inside the ‘inclusive’ early childhood classroom: The power of the 'normal’. New York: Peter Lang]. To build on our understanding of contemporary inclusive practices, an awareness of the complexities of the knowledge that informs practice is central. Some appreciation of the contribution made by historical discourses to the contemporary construction of disability in the classroom is necessary [Barnes, C. 2014. “A brief history of discrimination and disabled people.” http://repositoriocdpd.net:8080/bitstream/handle/123456789/495/CL_BarnesC_BriefHistoryDiscrimination_1991.pdf?sequence = 1]. This ethnographic research, employing observation and conversations among children, brings into focus how remnants from the past affect everyday encounters in the classroom as deeply embedded fears and anxieties continue to circulate around disability. Seldom made visible, rarely talked about or openly challenged, bygone relics permeate the way educators and children position children with a disability as a comparison to the norm, hindering inclusivity. This paper aims to bring into focus how fear affects the way disability is positioned in our early childhood classrooms, fear that leads to exclusions, separation, and Othering. Recognition of the past and scrutiny of the fear that lingers provides some promise for inclusive practice.