How disability type, gender, and home language influence students’ placement in inclusive or separate class settings

Although educating students with and without disabilities in one classroom is not proof of an inclusive school system, it is at least a significant first step towards inclusive education and improved student participation. This study focuses on the allocation of inclusive or separate class settings for students with various types of disabilities. It also evaluates to what extent gender and home language are connected to type of schooling. A survey of all students with special educational needs (SEN) in Austria (N = 26,102) was conducted, of which for some analyses a partial sample (n = 20,120) was used. Types of disabilities covered were: (1) students with behavioural difficulties, (2) students with behavioural difficulties and intellectual disability, (3) students with autism spectrum disorder and (4) students with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability. Results indicated that all four groups are more frequently enrolled in separate class settings. Furthermore, female students with autism spectrum disorder and students with autism spectrum disorder speaking a different home language than the language of instruction show a lower likelihood of attending an inclusive class setting. The results indicate that decisions regarding student class allocation are somewhat arbitrary and thus need to be closely questioned.