Introduction

1. A comparative study (Republic of Ireland, Iceland and UK) of the involvement of pupils with special educational needs in their teaching and assessment procedures Challenging the conditions imposed upon the acceptance of children’s voices in the Icelandic education system EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

2. Introduction • Background • Requirements in legislation involving ALL pupils in democratic value based schools. • Policy on students’ rights • Reforms in educational policy – Reykjavík Education board reforms. • Voices • Reform policy and practice – “the model school”. • Contradictions and reform? • Conclusion EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

3. The modern education legislation Appropriate education for each and every child in integrated democratically orientated schools • The 1974 Compulsory School Act • The special education statutory regulation • The National Curriculum Guide EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

4. The education law reforms of the 1990’s • 1991 Iceland ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child • 1995 Compulsory Education Act • The Special Education Statutory Regulation • The National Curriculum Guide EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

5. Policy on Children’s Rights • 1995 – Ombudsman for Children. • “Children and youth lack opportunities to express their views in a systematic manner as is prescribed in article 12 of the UN Convention”. • “Children have the legal duty to attend school, but without having any formal way of affecting the internal working of the school”. (Ombudsman’s report 1998 ) EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

6. Voices • Ólafía: I find the class fun, good to get to know more friends...but I know these kids. We were always at the summer-camp together. The boys are boring, they are always teasing me and one boy hits me all the time.... [my old friends] they are here, but I never se them...when I see them, they must go. This is not right. I miss them. • Sólrún: I wanted to learn to speak English, but they [the teachers] said I had to wait. • Maria: You were not really allowed to try new things and get burnet. I was not allowed to make mistakes... I was treated like a china doll, and learnt to treat myself a little as if I was brittle...It is terribly bad that we are so overprotected. • Sigurður: I was really happy with this teaching, this extra teaching. I focused on my work – did not miss the others. This really pulled me through, I could concentrate as if nothing else mattered... I do not regret getting myself this extra teaching... EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

7. Reykjavík Educational Board policy reforms2002 • Fully inclusive, individualised and democratic schools... but parents can chose special or general education settings. • 18 months of inservice training for principals, administrators and teachers, for individualised teaching practices and heterogeneous group teaching. • Teams of advisors and problem solvers in every school. • 18 special classes closed down. • Approx 1. million additional Evros for the 4% of learners in general education schools - with the greatest needs, and new funding rules. • A Spec. Ed. director in each school, supervising its Spec. Ed. provision and advisory staff. • All schools must formulate a Spec. Ed. plan and embed it in the School Policy. EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

8. The “model -school” (2004-2007) • The goals: • The strengthening of democratic work methods and children’s rights to affect their work and learning environment. • Human rights education and the teaching of the UN Convention for the Rights of the Child, and its relevance for children. • To develop “a model school” for flexible individualised, democratic work and workmethods, and human rights and citizenship education - as a resource for all schools. • Create Student Boards for all age levels. The student representative of class 8-10th has full membership of the Parent Board. • All Reykjavík schools establish Student Boards by 2005, that can affect education and extracurricular school activities. • The “model school” is responsible for developing teaching materials for human rights education • The “model school” must integrate the teaching of students’ democracy, citizenship and human rights in all lessons. • A conference for all teachers and principals on student democracy and human rights education. EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

9. Voices • We got this into the open. I think that is wanderful. We have created a discussion which is important – and we have been able to impact many lives of kids for the better. I think it is fantastic that three 15 year old girls have managed to get such an important issue through. • Things are changing. At the pressent there is hardly any student democracy in our schools, because we [the kids] do not really know that we have that power... But slowly we will learn...Two years ago we lernt about the UN Convention on the Rights of Children... and we were told that we could have influence if we tried, and that it was our right... • But when we have to criticise or complain about matters that involve the teachers, we have problems getting heard... And the grown-ups kind of stick together... • It is not fair – we went to talk to kids in all these schools, we used lots of time on i t- noboddy offered to pay our bus tickets – and we got booked for skipping a class once.. Some teachers are the last straw.. That was not fair.. EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

10. Contradictions and reform • Schools are inherently bureaucratic and authoritarian institutions. • Rules and traditions of schools and of school culture do not coincide with more individualised learining in inclusive general education – democratic schools – and do frequently contradict that ideal. • There are contradictions in the law, in policy and practice – and within the practice. • Reforms for inclusive democratic schools will cost money, efforts to change the system both from bottom up and from the top down, and new emphasis in pre-service and in in-service teacher education. EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens

11. Conclusion • We need to improve schools both for students and teachers. • A flexible, cooperative team of educationalists, experts and school staff - coordinated administative structure and intelligent use of resources can do the trick. • A step towards change involves listening to children, and to parents, and to take their concerns seriously. • Programs work where people care and work cooperatively and flexibly together with all school staff, experts within and outside the schools, and with parents and students. EECR- 2004 Dr.philos D.S. Bjarnason and A. Morthens