Title:
|
'That's tricky' : exploring SENCO's accounts of their relationships with parents
|
In the past 15 years educational literature and policy have highlighted the importance
of parent-school relationships in the attainment and life achievements of all children and
young people, in particular those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SENID).
Recent changes in legislation relating to SENID promote 'person-centred' approaches to
working with children, young people and their families, and recommend that they are fully
involved in decisions made about support, aspirations and achievement (Dill, 2015).
This study adopted a Foucauldian approach to analyse semi-structured interview data
from three Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) employed in maintained
primary schools within a large London Borough, where the researcher was a Trainee
Educational Psychologist (TEP).
The study sought to add to the growing body of literature exploring the barriers and
facilitators to parent-school relationships. It explored constructions of the 'relationship'
present in the accounts given by SENCOs with a view to deconstructing and analysing
embedded assumptions or discourses that may perpetuate unbalanced power relations. It
explored the positioning of parents and SENCOs within these discourses and subsequent
implications for action and subjective experience.
The results imply that conflicting discourses within educational rhetoric make it
difficult for SENCOs to adopt partnership relationships with parents and that wider changes
may be necessary to create a more equitable climate. Implications for professional practice
are considered and it is proposed that through their work with parents, schools and SENCOs,
EPs are well placed to promote reflexive practices and person-centred, collaborative
approaches to working with children, young people and their families.
|