Neoliberalism and Inclusive Education

In this brilliantly and beautifully researched and written book, Sylvia Mac traces the history of neoliberal reforms in education as running parallel, yet antithetical to the inclusive education movement. Fueled by disaster capitalism and the corporatization, Mac draws on DisCrit and critical disability studies to carefully and thoughtfully lay bare the illusion of school choice for minorized and disabled students. I can’t wait to teach this important and timely book. -- Beth A. Ferri, Ph.D. (Professor, Syracuse University)

In a time of increasing movement towards privatization of schools without critical examinations of the impact of that privatization (and the subsequent standardization of notions of “success” and “achievement”) on many subgroups of students, our field needs more thoughtful analyses that encourage deep interrogations of the impact of charter schools on our most vulnerable (and often most overlooked) groups of students. Dr. Sylvia Mac has written a beautiful ethnographic case study of a small charter school, exploring neoliberal ideologies as they intersect with notions of inclusivity and equity for disabled and neurodivergent students of color living in low-income situations. Her book provides important analyses of legacies of inequality throughout the histories of the school choice movement in education and the evolving frameworks for education of students with disabilities; leading to a deep analysis of ways in which ideals of equity and inclusion in a small charter school are irreconcilable with the realities of neoliberal ideas of success within a market of “choice.” Dr. Mac provides important recommendations for policy makers, teacher educators and researchers interested in best supporting historically marginalized students to truly more towards more egalitarian and supportive educational settings.

-- Betina Hsieh, Ph.D. (Associate Professor of Teacher Education, California State University, Long Beach)

Sylvia Mac debuts the intersection of disability, inclusive education and neoliberalism in a critical ethnographic portrayal of a small California charter school. Mac critically questions the concept of inclusion in this setting, showing that neoliberal values and inclusion are mutually exclusive. Inclusion conceals many social issues and neoliberal values, such as independence, profit accumulation and competition, which Mac unfolds as she shares her interviews, observations, and review of school documents. Mac deftly illustrates how free market reform has raised the ante for low income, especially non-native English-speaking children of color to succeed in an increasingly competitive and standardized schooling environment. We feel Santiago’s abandonment by special education staff in the study skills class when he says he’s “lost.” The general teachers are in a similar situation without help. In the end, children who need differentiated instruction instead become deficient, instead of the system that labels them as so. Neoliberalism and Inclusive Education provides a poignant account of charter schooling, revealing that neoliberal values are smokescreened with cost benefit analyses, strategic plans and educational outcomes, manufacturing failure for the disabled. 

-- Denise Blum, Ph.D. (Associate Professor, Oklahoma State University)

With her unfailingly trenchant analysis, Dr. Mac critiques the deployment of capital and power in the service of neoliberalism against vulnerable and under-represented populations. She brings a critical ethnographic lens on a charter school to address how neoliberal ideology and inclusive education discourses spectacularly fail poor students of color with disabilities, addressing key gaps in what we know about how inclusive education is experienced by underrepresented students.

-- Shabana Mir, Ph.D. (Associate Professor, American Islamic College, Chicago)