Summary
Aim and research question: The purpose of this study is to develop new knowledge about arts
education for students with special needs in primary, secondary and upper secondary education.
The research question posed is: What experiences and perspectives do teachers in primary,
secondary and upper secondary school have on teaching arts to students with intellectual
disabilities?
Theory: This study presents the political and ideological framework for inclusive education
and former research in the fields of art, special needs education and intellectual disability. The
study is based on theories about learning through relations and experience, and John Dewey’s
theoretical framework Arts as Experience.
Methods: Sociocultural theory is the fundament for the study. The study has a
phenomenological approach. The method used is semi-structural interviews with a purposive
sampling of six teachers from primary to upper secondary education.
Results: Arts education and education through the arts can support the development of the
students’ self-esteem, self-understanding and knowledge about themselves and others. The
aesthetic experiences of appreciation, perception and enjoyment are valuable in arts education.
The different arts disciplines are both practical and theoretical at the same time, and this is seen
as an advantage by the teachers’ perspectives. Arts education is seen as important for
developing competences in relation to knowledge, relations and social processes. The arts is
seen as an important tool for inclusion and for developing democratic competences.
If the potential within arts education is to be fully exploited the teachers’ skills and competences
are of major importance. The teachers’ competences are decisive to succeed in the arts for
students with intellectual disabilities. The interviewees in this study have competence in both
the arts and special needs education, but the study shows that it is difficult to find schools where
the arts is valuated and given priority in special needs education. The need for more research in
this field is in high demand.
Keywords: arts and cultural education, special needs education, intellectual disabilities,
primary, secondary and upper secondary education (grunnopplæring)
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