Meeting the challenge : integration, inclusive education and children with special educational needs in Cyprus

Abstract

At the dawn of the 21St century, Cyprus is at a crossroads regarding an educational philosophy concerning children with special needs. After 70 years of history in the field, it has now-since 1992-a brand new University to train its mainstream school teachers. What is the preferable line to follow when introducing the topic to future teachers? What is the best option for policy development in the field and what messages should the University send in this direction? Given the limited local research tradition in the area and the historical links between Cyprus and Britain, the paper draws on the UK paradigm to highlight the dilemma facing teacher trainers and policy makers in the country. It considers two prominent philosophies in the area of special needs and it discusses their advantages and disadvantages. It finally indicates a preference for one of the two and makes some brief suggestions about how this could be implemented.