Confessions of an RTLB: How Inclusive am I Really?

Inclusion. It's a word that I passionately spoke about in my interview to become a Resource Teacher: Learning and Behaviour (RTLB). Five years into this role, I’m still grappling with the question: How inclusive am I, really?

In my work I strive to apply an inclusive lens, especially when it comes to Early Intervention (EI) transitions. At its core there is often an enormity to the move from early childhood settings to primary school. It’s like moving to another country. Every case is different, but I always find these transitions challenging, particularly when it came to navigating the complexity of need, the number of professionals involved, and, most importantly, my concern for the whānau. How do they perceive this major step for their child? And is our educational setting truly inclusive for every child?

I love a good meeting – I really do. I love being part of a group of people coming together to create a positive pathway forward for learners and their whānau. However, what I saw at many of these meetings was how uncomfortable so many whānau seemed. They would walk into their child’s new school with an Early Intervention teacher, meet a SENCo, maybe there was a Speech Therapist from the MoE, a liaison RTLB. I’ve watched them try to work out what we all do with our long job titles and the way acronyms roll off our tongues so easily, listening to meetings filled with jargon, discussions around support and funding, maybe negotiations around start dates and hours.

After years of running through how I could be a more useful part of EI transitions, I enrolled in the Early Intervention and Complex Education Needs Additional Areas papers through Massey University’s Master of Specialist Teaching. This was a game changer for me.

The Medical vs. Social Model of Disability: A Reflection

Let’s zoom out. Grenier (2010) refers to the difference between a medical and a social model. The medical model can lead to an overemphasis on a learner’s impairments rather than on how the environment or system might be adapted. While the social model advocates for inclusive practices, it can sometimes be challenging to implement fully due to systemic barriers and entrenched attitudes. It requires a significant shift in how educators and institutions perceive and support diversity. Lightbulb moment. It was at this point that I began to reflect on the history of inclusion in Aotearoa New Zealand. Understanding the past is vital because it has shaped the systems we operate in today.

As the whakataukī says, Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua - I walk backwards into the future with my eyes fixed on my past.

A Sobering History of Exclusion in NZ

Our country’s history with disability services is both confronting and crucial to our understanding of inclusion today. For many decades, the State had immense control over the lives of individuals with disabilities and their whānau. Decisions about schooling, care, and even the basic rights of disabled individuals were often made without their input. The policies in place were underpinned by dehumanising language and attitudes, with terms like “imbecile” and “feeble-minded” commonly used up until the early 20th century to describe disabled people. These attitudes reflected the broader belief that individuals with disabilities were inferior, which led to their segregation into special schools and institutions.

One example of these discriminatory attitudes was the 1924-1925 Committee of Inquiry into Mental Defectives and Sexual Offenders, which referred to disabled children as "feeble-minded" and advocated for action to prevent the proliferation of such individuals, seeing them as a threat to the New Zealand population. Such views were shaped by the eugenics movement, which aimed to "improve" the population by preventing the reproduction of those deemed inferior (Committee of Inquiry into Mental Defectives and Sexual Offenders,1925).

Deinstitutionalisation: A Step Forward, But Not Far Enough

The 1960s and 1970s saw a shift toward deinstitutionalisation, influenced by global movements and social reforms. Large state-run institutions began to close, and there was a push toward community-based services. Yet, the recent Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry (2024) revealed harrowing stories of neglect and abuse in these institutions, reminding us of the long road still ahead.

Even today, disabled individuals can still face “institutionalisation” in more subtle ways - through systemic ableism, discriminatory practices, and a lack of genuine inclusion in educational settings. As Richard Martin from People First (2010) pointed out, while physical institutions have closed, institutionalisation lives on through the decisions we make and the attitudes we perpetuate. True inclusion means dismantling these structures, not just integrating these learners into classrooms.

Are We Truly Inclusive?

So, are we inclusive in our RTLB practice? When I consider our nation’s history, I realise that inclusion goes far beyond simply placing students in classrooms. It’s about dismantling long-standing systems of oppression, challenging ableism, and creating spaces where every learner feels valued, respected, and supported.

As Hilary Stace (2019) argues, ableism needs to be challenged wherever it exists, whether in state policies, service provision, or community attitudes. We must create an education system that doesn’t just tolerate differences but actively celebrates and includes all learners. This is the work that we, as RTLB, are called to do every day. The journey towards true inclusion isn’t over yet, and we have an important part to play.

Let’s continue walking backwards into the future with our eyes wide open to the lessons of the past—because that’s where we’ll find the foundation for a more inclusive, empowering tomorrow.

References:

Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry. (2024). Whanaketia. Author. https://www.abuseincare.org.nz/reports/whanaketia/

Committee of Inquiry into Mental Defectives and Sexual Offenders. (1925). Mental defectives and sexual offenders: Report of the Committee of Inquiry appointed by the Hon. Sir Maui Pomare, K.B.E., C.M.G., Minister of Health. (Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1925 Session I, H-31a). New Zealand Government Printer.

Grenier, M. (2010). Moving to inclusion: a socio-cultural analysis of practice. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 14(4), 287-400. doi:10.1080/13603110802504598

People First New Zealand. (2010). A place of our own: living with the legacy of institutionalisation. People First NZ: Wellington.

Stace, H. (2019). Statement of Hilary Stace to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care and in the Care of Faith-Based Institutions: Contextual Public Hearing, October/November 2019. https://www.abuseincare.org.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Public-Hearings/Contextual/12.-Hilary-Stace.pdf