摘要：A national curriculum for all students suggests curriculum design that can make a difference in academic opportunity for the 15-20% of the Australian school population verified with a disability (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations [DEEWR] 2013). The Australian Curriculum from its inception has been challenged for how it caters for the needs of students with disabilities. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) claim responsibility for designing the intended curriculum however responsibility for the enacted curriculum has been delegated to states and territories. It has been argued that how one teaches cannot be separated from what is being taught and learnt (Lusted 1989) with curriculum defined as what teachers enact in their classroom (Boomer 1991, 1999). It is timely to explore the Australian curricula in light of pedagogical justice, particularly for students with disabilities. In thinking about these issues, this paper argues that the capabilities approach of Amartya Sen (1985) and Martha Nussbaum (2003) provides a powerful theoretical framework for advancing curricula and pedagogical justice for students with disabilities. Nussbaum’s ten Central Human Capabilities are used as a lens to assess how the learning needs of students with disabilities are being met in relation to the literacy capability of the Australian Curriculum. These case studies analyse two teacher perspectives of their interpretation and understanding of the literacy capability across both special education and mainstream school settings located in Adelaide, South Australia. The paper concludes by proposing ways in which the Australian Curriculum can better ensure that education contributes to developing some or all of Nussbaum’s 10 central human capabilities: life; bodily health; bodily integrity; senses, imagination and thought; emotions; practical reasoning; affiliation; other species; play; and control over one’s emotions. These need to be developed at least up to a threshold level for students with disabilities and ultimately advance pedagogies for their inclusion in a national curriculum. Key words: Students with disabilities; national curriculum; central human capabilities; inclusive pedagogies; special education; teacher perspectives; literacy capability
其他摘要：A national curriculum for all students suggests curriculum design that can make a difference in academic opportunity for the 15-20% of the Australian school population verified with a disability (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations [DEEWR] 2013). The Australian Curriculum from its inception has been challenged for how it caters for the needs of students with disabilities. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) claim responsibility for designing the intended curriculum however responsibility for the enacted curriculum has been delegated to states and territories. It has been argued that how one teaches cannot be separated from what is being taught and learnt (Lusted 1989) with curriculum defined as what teachers enact in their classroom (Boomer 1991, 1999). It is timely to explore the Australian curricula in light of pedagogical justice, particularly for students with disabilities.
In thinking about these issues, this paper argues that the capabilities approach of Amartya Sen (1985) and Martha Nussbaum (2003) provides a powerful theoretical framework for advancing curricula and pedagogical justice for students with disabilities. Nussbaum’s ten Central Human Capabilities are used as a lens to assess how the learning needs of students with disabilities are being met in relation to the literacy capability of the Australian Curriculum. These case studies analyse two teacher perspectives of their interpretation and understanding of the literacy capability across both special education and mainstream school settings located in Adelaide, South Australia. The paper concludes by proposing ways in which the Australian Curriculum can better ensure that education contributes to developing some or all of Nussbaum’s 10 central human capabilities: life; bodily health; bodily integrity; senses, imagination and thought; emotions; practical reasoning; affiliation; other species; play; and control over one’s emotions. These need to be developed at least up to a threshold level for students with disabilities and ultimately advance pedagogies for their inclusion in a national curriculum.
Key words: Students with disabilities; national curriculum; central human capabilities; inclusive pedagogies; special education; teacher perspectives; literacy capability
