Unsettling the Present: Multigenerational, Interdisciplinary Dialogues on the Past, Present, and Futures of Inclusive Education

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

This symposium engages multigenerational and interdisciplinary scholars in critical dialogue on the past, present, and futures of inclusive education. Presenters examine how historical legacies and present systemic contradictions continue to reproduce exclusion, particularly for multilingual learners, students of color, and those with significant disabilities. The five papers interrogate equity gaps in reading research and instruction, parental advocacy experiences, higher education access, teacher preparation, and state policy guidance for multilingual learners with disabilities. Drawing on critical, historical, and future-oriented lenses, the session challenges technocratic reform models and instead frames inclusion as a site of collective struggle requiring historical consciousness, expansive imagination, and ethical commitment to intersectional justice. The symposium offers new conceptual, empirical, and policy insights for reimagining inclusive education.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Special and Inclusive Education Research

Chairs

• Audrey M. Sorrells, Texas Christian University

• Dosun Ko, Santa Clara University

Papers

• Expanding the Science of Reading: Addressing Gaps in Equity and Inclusion - Endia J. Lindo, Texas Christian University

• Narratives of Experience from Parents of Color of Youth with Disabilities - Tammy Ellis-Robinson, University at Albany - SUNY; Elizabeth Slusarz, University at Albany - SUNY

• Unpacking Disability Inclusion in U.S. Higher Education: Critical Discourse Analysis for Shaping the Future - Elizabeth Harkins, William Paterson University; Audrey M. Sorrells, Texas Christian University

• Beyond Legacy: Interrogating Special Education's Contradictions to Forge Inclusive Futures - Allison Turner Gunter, Winston-Salem State University

• Excavating Borders, Envisioning Futures: Reimagining State Policy Guidance for Multilingual Learners with Disabilities - Lingyu Li, Lehman College - CUNY; Yehyang Lee, Syracuse University; Inna Stepaniuk, Simon Fraser University; Dian Mawene, University of Wisconsin - Madison; Dosun Ko, Santa Clara University

Session Organizer

• Audrey M. Sorrells, Texas Christian University

Discussant

• Aydin Bal, University of Wisconsin - Madison