Lives in classrooms described as inclusive: From the stand-point of equity-based inclusive education

Abstract

This dissertation study aimed to understand the roles educators play in designing and supporting inclusive classroom communities and the degree to which students have participatory parity in classrooms described as inclusive. This study was framed within the lens of sociocultural historical activity and decolonial theories. The multifaceted classroom activity arenas were examined against the three pillars of equity-based inclusive education, i.e. recognition, redistribution, and representation. The study found that educators and students were subjected to the imposed system that governed teacher work and students’ learning. Thus, rather than classrooms designed to address the full range of student capacity, educators spent much of their time ensuring that they were conforming to a set of time-limited instructional routines, prescribed learning objectives, and behavior expectations that required certain types of student response and teacher performance.