Who is in focus? A scoping review of themes and consistency in inclusive education for all

Abstract

ABSTRACT This review addresses the current knowledge on inclusive education suggesting that many studies focus on predetermined groups of disadvantaged learners . This review aims 1) to map the research on inclusive education for all (IEFA) and 2) to assess the consistency of studies in their approach to inclusive education (IE), research methodology and research results/discussions regarding the concept of IEFA. The analysis of 26 studies (out of 2,780 original datasets) revealed two main results: First, they represent three overarching themes of inclusion – values, practices and school development. They illustrate that beliefs about inclusive education and beliefs about practices are not always aligned. Second, the review highlights the challenges researchers face in describing a student population that includes representatives with diverse needs. While some researchers aim to describe students in detail, they often end up focusing only on those with common characteristics, usually disability. Consequently, the sample sections do not reflect the actual diversity of students addressed by IEFA. Only 46% of the studies are consistent in their approach, meaning, they conceptualise the broader concept of inclusion in theoretical approach, focus on it in methodology and interpret it in the results/discussions.