Leadership for Inclusion

PREFACE
will allow leaders to proactively support teachers in their schools as never before.
As of this writing, there is nothing for educational leaders that compares to the
work contained in this volume.
The overarching thrust of this collection of writings from a group of respected
multi-national experts in special education and educational administration/leadership,
is that leaders enhance school effectiveness by influencing the capacities and
motivations of teachers. Each of the contributions, most of which are multiauthored,
has gone to great lengths to make administrative and pedagogical
suggestions for principals that will have practical and meaningful impacts on
teachers lives. The intended results of this manuscript are to heighten the awareness
of inclusion for educational leaders so that they can explicitly facilitate inclusion
for teachers and, by extension, improve the educational and social outcomes of
students with special needs. This book does not address inclusive pedagogy per se,
however, some of the chapters address actions that leaders can take to further
enhance teachers’ specialized methods and programs where appropriate.
There is no question that the advent of inclusion has dramatically changed the
way schooling is currently practiced - it has changed the lives of the teachers who
enact it and the lives of the students who receive it. Thus, educational leaders have
to support teachers by demonstrating that the problems they encounter while
changing inclusive practices will be taken seriously and that administrative help
and support will be provided (Louis, Toole, & Hargreaves, 1999).
REFERENCES
De Jong, T. (2005). A framework of principles and best practice for managing student behaviour in the
Australian education context. School Psychology International, 26, 353–370.
Edmunds, A. L. (2003a). The inclusive classroom: Can teachers keep up? A comparison of Nova Scotia
and Newfoundland & Labrador perspectives. Exceptionality Education Canada, 13(1), 29–48.
Edmunds, A. L. (2003b). Preparing Canadian teachers for inclusion. Exceptionality Education Canada,
13(1), 5–7.
Edmunds, A. L. (1999). Classroom teachers are not prepared for the inclusive classroom. Exceptionality
Education Canada, 8(2), 27–40.
Edmunds, A. L., & Edmunds, G. A. (2008). Special education in Canada. Toronto, ON: McGraw-Hill
Ryerson.
Edmunds, A. L., Macmillan, R. B., Nowicki, E., Specht, J., & Edmunds, G. A. (in press). Principals and
inclusive schools: Insight into practice. The Journal of Educational Administration and
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Firestone, W. A., & Riehl, C. (Eds.). (2005). A new agenda for research in educational leadership.
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Fullan, M. (2001). The new meaning of educational change (3rd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.
Halpin, T. (2006, May 17). Mainstream schools can’t manage special needs pupils, say teachers. The
Times [retrieved from http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-2-2184133-2,00.html]
King, W., & Edmunds, A. L. (2001). Teachers’ perceived needs for more effective inclusive practice:
A single school study. Exceptionality Education Canada, 10(3), 3–23.
Leithwood, K. A., & Riehl, C. (2005). What do we already know about educational leadership? In
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New York: Teachers College Press.
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