The role of special education teachers in primary schools in Greece

Abstract

Over the last 20 years special education teachers have emerged as a distinct but heterogeneous occupational group in Greece. This paper looks at how special education teachers perceive their job and their role. I explore how teachers give meaning to their experiences and how these experiences influence their practice. The different discourses and ambiguities over inclusion, integration and special education indicate the complexity of this area and of teachers’ roles. The uncertainty over their role, the tensions with other professionals and the changing policy context and policy shifts create significant inconsistencies. This paper reveals that teachers are part of a network of professionals with contested interests in the field, and that there are numerous controversies and paradoxes in special education in Greek primary schools. I argue that teachers’ voices can contribute to the current debate about inclusion, and that it could possibly facilitate a change in the nature of debate in Greece.