The Framework

Decolonizing Systems. Further analysis is needed to explore possible reasons for disproportionate representation, and what might be done to address it.  The research questions that guide Decolonizing Disability are:

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• How can a decolonizing perspective help us better understand why Indigenous students are disproportionately represented in special education?​

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• How might special education systems and inclusive classroom teaching practices in provincial schools be (re)imagined to address the needs of Indigenous students?

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We rely on literature first to describe the educational experience of Indigenous students and their teachers, and then to provide a framework for understanding colonialism and decolonizing possibilities. 

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We apply these perspectives to construct a critical understanding of special education as it applies to Indigenous students, and then engage with Indigenous and decolonizing perspectives to begin (re)imagining possibilities within the field.

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We selected literature for this analysis based on its prominence within Indigenous scholarship, its compatibility with our objectives, and in consideration of local indigenous cultures.  This is a first step in understanding how to support Indigenous and all students through special education programming, and to enact what we see as our responsibilities to truth and reconciliation.