Barriers to Inclusion: Special Education in the United States and Germany

Providing an in-depth comparative and historical account, Barriers to Inclusion charts the rise of special education over the twentieth century in the United States and Germany. This institutional analysis demonstrates how professional groups, social movements, and education and social policies shaped the schooling of children and youth with disabilities. It traces continuity and change in special education classification and categorical boundaries, explores the growth of special education organizations, and examines students’ learning opportunities and educational attainments. Highlighting cross-national differences over time, this book investigates demographic and geographic variability within the federal democracies, especially in segregation and inclusion rates of disabled and disadvantaged children. Germany’s elaborate system of segregated special school types contrasts with diverse American special education classrooms mainly within regular schools. Joining historical case studies with empirical indicators, this book reveals persistent barriers to school integration as well as factors that facilitate inclusive education reform in both societies.