Using a combined bio-ecological and capability perspective to understand inclusive education in South Africa

Abstract

Inclusive educational practices have been adopted worldwide to address inequalities endemic to education systems. In South Africa, the process toward inclusion commenced in October 1996 and was realized in 2001 with the Education White Paper 6. However, the implementation of inclusion in South Africa has been marred by challenges. These challenges have largely been examined through an ecosystemic theoretical lens offering insight into the contextual challenges facing inclusion but does not adequately explore the role that the person involved in the implementation and their specific dispositions play in the enactment of inclusion. This article argues that, to better understand the challenges individuals face with implementing inclusion, a broader lens integrating bio-ecological theory and the capability approach is needed. This integration highlights the need to look at a complexity of issues to understand what is valued, as competing values, and the choices between these will influence the implementation of inclusion.