Abstract
Current research suggests that the meaning of inclusion and social justice is still widely contested despite the seeming global acceptance of these educational reforms in most nations. While inclusion and social justice policies are now prevalent in many countries, these concepts bear discussion because they remain elusive and thus subject to numerous interpretations. This chapter reports on conceptualizations of inclusion and social justice in the South African context by authors who live and work in South Africa. They critically examine the concept of inclusion using American critical theorist-feminist Nancy Fraser’s social justice framework. The authors demonstrate how this substantive theory of justice usefully provides conceptual tools for understanding inequalities and inequities in education. An analysis is presented of inclusion as social justice and demonstrates what it looks like in the real-life practice of a South African case. Educators will find conceptual tools aimed at creating meaningful interventions in the areas of inclusion, equity, and social justice that support diverse learners with wide-ranging needs.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Amin, N., & Ramrathan, P. (2009). Preparing students to teach in and for diverse contexts a learning to teach approach. Perspectives in Education, 27, 69–77.
Armstrong, F., & Barton, L. (2007). Policy, experience and change and the challenge of inclusive education: The case of England. In L. Barton & F. Armstrong (Eds.), Policy, experience and change: Cross-cultural reflections on inclusive education (pp. 5–18). Dordrecht: Springer.
Armstrong, C., & Thompson, S. (2011). Parity of participation and the politics of status. European Journal of Political Theory, 8, 108–122.
Artiles, A. J., & Kozleski, E. B. (2007). Beyond convictions: Interrogating culture, history, and power in inclusive education. Journal of Language Arts, 84(4), 351–358.
Baglieri, S., Bejoian, L. M., Broderick, A. A., Connor, D. J., & Valle, J. (2011). (Re)claiming “inclusive education” toward cohesion in educational reform: Disability studies unravels the myth of the normal child. Teachers College Record, 113(10), 2122–2154.
Bell, L. A. (2013). Theoretical foundations for social justice education. In M. Adams, L. A. Bell, & P. Griffin (Eds.), Teaching for diversity and social justice (pp. 1–14). New York: Routledge.
Boughey, C., & McKenna, S. (2016). Academic literacy and the decontextualized learner. Critical Studies in Teaching and Learning, 4(2), 1–9.
Bozalek, V., Carolissen, R., & Leibowitz, B. (2013). A pedagogy of critical hope in South African higher education. In V. Bozalek, B. Leibowitz, R. Carolissen, & M. Boler (Eds.), Discerning critical hope in educational practices (pp. 40–54). Abingdon: Routledge.
Carlisle, L. R., Jackson, B. W., & George, A. (2006). Principles of social justice education: The social justice education in schools project. Equity & Excellence in Education, 39, 55–64.
Cho, H. (2017). Navigating the meanings of social justice, teaching for social justice, and multicultural education. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 19(2), 1–19.
Cochran-Smith, M. (2010). Toward a theory of teacher education for social justice. In A. Hargreaves, A. Lieberman, M. Fullan, & D. Hopkins (Eds.), Second international handbook of educational change, 23 (pp. 445–467). Dordrecht: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2660-6_27.
Cribb, A., & Gewirtz, S. (2003). Towards a sociology of just practices: An analysis of plural conceptions of justice. In C. Vincent (Ed.), Social justice, education and identity (pp. 15–30). Milton Park: RoutledgeFalmer.
Fasting, R. (2013). Adapted education: The Norwegian pathway to inclusive and efficient education. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 17(3), 263–276.
Florian, L., & Linklater, H. (2010). Preparing teachers for inclusive education: Using inclusive pedagogy to enhance teaching and learning for all. Cambridge Journal of Education, 4(4), 369–386.
Foley, A. (2004). Language policy for higher education in South Africa: Implications and complications. South African Journal of Higher Education, 18(1), 57–71. https://doi.org/10.4314/sajhe.v18i1.25428.
Francisa, B., Mills, M., & Lupton, R. (2017). Towards social justice in education: Contradictions and dilemmas. Journal of Education Policy, 32(4), 414–431.
Fraser, N. (2005). Reframing justice in a globalizing world. New Left Review, 36, 69–88.
Fraser, N. (2008). Scales of justice: Reimagining political space in a globalizing world. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Gale, T., & Tranter, D. (2011). Social justice in Australian higher education policy: An historical and conceptual account of student participation. Critical Studies in Education, 52(1), 29–46.
Gewirtz, S. (2006). Towards a contextualised analysis of social justice in education. Educational Philosophy and Theory: Incorporating Access, 38(1), 69–81.
Goldfarb, K. P., & Grinberg, J. (2002). Leadership for social justice: Authentic participation in the case of a community center in Caracas, Venezuela. Journal of School Leadership, 12, 157–173.
Goodlad, J. (2002). A place called school. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Grant, C. A., & Agosto, V. (2008). Teacher capacity and social justice in teacher education. In M. Cochran-Smith, S. Feiman-Nemser, D. J. McIntyre, & K. E. Demers (Eds.), Handbook of research on teacher education: Enduring questions and changing contexts (3rd ed., pp. 175–200). New York: Routledge.
Grant, C., Quinn, L., & Vorster, J. (2018). An exploratory study of heads of departments’ responses to student calls for decolonised higher education. Journal of Education, 72, 73–88. Retrieved from http://www.scielo.org.za/pdf/jed/n72/06.pdf
Hackman, H. W. (2005). Five essential components for social justice education. Equity & Excellence in Education, 38, 103–109. Retrieved from http://ci563sum09.pbworks.com/f/hackman.pdf
Hendricks, C. (2018). Decolonising universities in South Africa: Rigged spaces? International Journal of African Renaissance Studies-Multi-, Inter- and Transdisciplinary, 13(1), 16–38.
Higgs, P. (2016). The African renaissance and the transformation of the higher education curriculum in South Africa. African Education Review, 13(1), 87–101.
Idol, L. (2006). Toward inclusion of special education students in general education. Remedial and Special Education, 27(2), 77–94.
Kamwendo, G. H. (2011). Internationalization of the language curriculum at the University of Botswana: Current trends. Journal of Social Development in Africa, 26(1), 107–133.
Keddie, A. (2012). Schooling and social justice through the lenses of Nancy Fraser. Critical Studies in Education, 53(3), 263–279.
Luckett, T., & Mzobe, D. (2016). #OutsourcingMustFall: The role of workers in the 2015 protest wave at South African universities. Global Labour Journal, 7(1), 94–99. https://doi.org/10.15173/glj.v7i1.2839.
McLaren, P. (2003). Life in schools: An introduction to critical pedagogy in the foundations of education (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Murrell, P. (2006). Toward social justice in urban education: A model of collaborative cultural understanding education for social justice cultural inquiry in urban schools. Equity & Excellence in Education, 39(1), 81–90.
Musara, E. (2020). A comparative study of conceptualizations and practices of inclusion as an aspect of social justice in three teacher education institutions in Canada, South Africa and Zimbabwe. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation).
Nkosi, Z. P. (2014). Postgraduate students’ experiences and attitudes towards isiZulu as a medium of instruction at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Current Issues in Language Planning, 15(3), 245–264.
North, C. E. (2008). What is all this talk about “social justice”? Mapping the terrain of education’s latest catchphrase. Teachers College Record, 110(6), 1182–1206.
Qvortrup, A., & Qvortrup, L. (2018). Inclusion: Dimensions of inclusion in education. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 22(7), 803–817.
Rawls, J. (1972). A theory of justice. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Rizvi, F., & Lingard, B. (2011). Social equity and the assemblage of values in Australian higher education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 41(1), 5–22.
Rodriguez, G. M. (2013). Power and agency in education: Exploring the pedagogical dimensions of funds of knowledge. Review of Research in Education, 37(1), 87–120.
Shaddock, A., MacDonald, N., Hook, J., Giorcelli, L., & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2009). Disability, diversity and tides that lift all boats: Review of special education in the ACT. Chiswick: Services Initiatives. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265494993
Shriberg, D., & Clinton, A. (2016). The application of social justice principles to global school psychology practice. School Psychology International, 37(4), 323–339.
Shyman, E. (2015). Toward a globally sensitive definition of inclusive education based in social justice. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 62(4), 351–362.
Sleeter, C. (2014). An invitation to support diverse students through teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 59(3), 212–219.
Smith, D. M. (1994). Geography and social justice. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2009). Policy guidelines on inclusion in education. Retrieved from https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000177849
Unterhalter, E. (2007). Gender, schooling and global social justice. London, UK: Routledge.
Waitoller, F. R., & Kozleski, E. B. (2013). No stone left unturned: Exploring the convergence of new capitalism in inclusive education in the U.S. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 23(37), 1–33. Retrieved from https://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view/1779/1577
Weaver, H. N. (2014). Indigenous struggles for justice: Restoring balance within the context of Anglo settler societies. New York: Routledge.
Young, I. M. (1990). Justice and the politics of differences. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Musara, E., Grant, C.(., Vorster, JA. (2021). Inclusion as Social Justice: Nancy Fraser’s Theory in the South African Context. In: Mullen, C.A. (eds) Handbook of Social Justice Interventions in Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35858-7_107
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35858-7_107
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-35857-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-35858-7
eBook Packages: EducationReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Education