Abstract
The purpose of this article is to describe and analyse the state of the art of research on special needs education (SNE) in the context of the Nordic countries’ vocational education and training (VET) systems during the period January 2010 to September 2018. Twenty studies remained after the search procedure and thematic analysis, 15 of which deal with the practice level and five with the organisation level. No studies were identified as belonging to the policy level. The following themes were found at the practice level: teachers’ work and role, teaching and learning, student transition and student dropout. Themes identified at the organisation level were changes to vocational policy documents and educational practices, and school organisation and its implementation. Finland dominates in terms of number of studies. Furthermore, the review shows that there were few studies in the area of SNE in VET. The results show that further studies are needed to acquire more knowledge about SNE in vocational education.
Highlights
The Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden are widely known for educational policies, which promote equal and accessible education for all
We agree with Ahlberg (2009) on the fruitfulness of combining previously unrelated knowledge and study objects (SNE and VET). Such fusions can, according to Ahlberg, have a strong potential to develop practice as well as theory in the field. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to describe and analyse Nordic research on special needs education (SNE) in the context of the Nordic countries’ vocational education and training (VET) systems published between January 2010 and September 2018
The purpose of this review was to describe and analyse Nordic research on special needs education (SNE) in the context of the Nordic countries’ vocational education and training (VET) systems published between January 2010 and September 2018
Summary
The Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden are widely known for educational policies, which promote equal and accessible education for all. The Nordic VET systems are balancing between being a part of a school for all, characterised by egalitarian and inclusive values, and providing the labour market with skilled workers (Lundahl, 2016) These goals may seem contradictory, but Helms Jørgensen (2018) points out that VET has the double responsibility of educating a skilled labour force and supporting disadvantaged young people and learners who encounter barriers to learning, in other words, learners with special educational needs (SEN). Fischbein and Österberg (2003) argue that if students do not receive appropriate support, the risk is high that they will have frequent experiences of failure, which, in the long run, can affect their self-esteem and future plans negatively This assumption brings special needs education within VET to the fore. We attempt to shed light on how special needs education is depicted in Nordic VET research
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