Sustainable Leadership in Special and Inclusive Education: A Theoretical Review of Accessibility, Teacher Capacity, and Environmental Support

Abstract

In the special and inclusive education context, sustainability has come into the spotlight, as institutions need to ensure that learning disabled learners are supported equitably, accessibly and continuously. Sustainable leadership, sustainability leadership, and environmental leadership are subjects that have been explored in the organizational and educational literature, but there is a lack of integration of these three concepts in the field of special education. The purpose of this conceptual review is to discuss these three leadership paradigms in the context of special schools, inclusive mainstream settings, disability-support settings and multi-disciplinary educational systems. It believes that sustainability in special education is not just about the environment or about using resources efficiently. It also features the long-term sustainability of inclusive pedagogy, accessibility, teacher capacity, assistive support, family engagement, ethical governance, and continuity of services. The article presents an integrated framework of sustainable leadership in special and inclusive education based on literature from inclusive education, disability rights, educational leadership and sustainability leadership. The framework connects leadership behaviors with the culture, teacher and staff capacity, accessibility, collaboration amongst stakeholders and ongoing improvement of the school. The article has contributed to putting sustainability right at the heart of disability and inclusive educational quality.