Initial teacher training within the framework of an inclusive school constitutes a fundamental challenge in order to meet the needs of 21st century society. The 2030 agenda establishes in the target of goal four the need for well-qualified teachers, capable of developing inclusive educational responses to the diversity of the needs of the students enrolled in their centres. The objective of this article is to analyse the perception of the school community regarding the initial training of future teachers in providing an inclusive and quality educational response for all students. The design was qualitative, non-experimental and descriptive. The participants were 78 people involved in teacher training and the educational exclusion–inclusion processes in the region of Murcia (Spain). The information collection techniques were 39 semi-structured interviews and 10 focus groups. The analysis of the information was carried out through an inductive categorization process, classifying the information into different analysis codes with the Atlas.Ti program (V. 8). The results of the work indicate that with regard to inclusive education, there is a clear shortfall in the initial training of teachers, a limitation in the acquisition of competences regarding attention to diversity, the presence of theoretical learning which has limited relevance to practical intervention, and a training approach anchored in models from the past which refers to student deficiencies. This work has the value of providing an insight into the barriers present in initial training from the perspective of all the educational actors involved in the educational system, which has not been sufficiently investigated in this field of study.

The presence of unaccompanied migrant minors (MENAS) in our country is increasing, being a topical issue due, among other things, to the magnitude and importance that it has reached as a social phenomenon. Thus, it is one of the most important issues throughout Europe, and inescapably, in Mediterranean countries, as is the case of Spain. The general objective of this article is to analyse the situation of unaccompanied foreign minors in the Region of Murcia. The design of this study follows a quantitative, descriptive, and non-experimental approach. This has been carried out in two centers for minors managed by Fundación Diagrama, in which 46 unaccompanied minors live. The instrument used was a questionnaire designed ad-hoc. The results have shown that it is not a homogeneous group in relation to its socio-educational profile, origin, interests, migratory reasons, or levels of support, so each of the specific problems must be addressed. In conclusion, knowledge of the language, lack of support or low training are highlighted as key factors to achieve the inclusion of these minors in host societies. La presencia de menores migrantes no acompañados (MENAS) en nuestro país es cada vez mayor, siendo un tema de actualidad debido, entre otras cosas, a la magnitud y trascendencia que ha alcanzado como fenómeno social. Así, se trata de unas de las temáticas de mayor trascendencia en toda Europa, y de forma ineludible, en países del Mediterráneo, como es el caso de España. El objetivo general de este artículo es analizar la situación de los menores extranjeros no acompañados en la Región de Murcia. El diseño de este estudio sigue un enfoque cuantitativo, descriptivo y no experimental. Este se ha realizado en dos centros de menores gestionados por Fundación Diagrama, en los que conviven 46 menores no acompañados. El instrumento empleado ha sido un cuestionario diseñado ad-hoc. Los resultados han mostrado que no se trata de un grupo homogéneo en relación a su perfil socio-educativo, procedencia, intereses, motivos migratorios o niveles de apoyo, por lo que se debe atender a cada una de las problemáticas específicas. Como conclusión, se resalta el conocimiento del idioma, la falta de apoyos o la baja formación, como factores clave para lograr la inclusión de estos menores en las sociedades de acogida.

Estudio de las Aulas Abiertas Especializadas como Medida Específica de Atención a la Diversidad

After the declaration of the State of Emergency in Spain in 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic, essential services were paralysed, including education. This change brought about consequences in the quality of education, especially in the support of students with hearing impairment. The general objective is to analyse the barriers to learning for students with hearing impairments at a Spanish university due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative descriptive study is presented in which 6 semi-structured interviews were conducted -four with hearing impaired university students, one with a Spanish Sign Language Interpreter and another with a technician from the university’s diversity service. The results show students with hearing impaired became vulnerable students, suffering processes of educational exclusion. The Coronavirus and the consequences arising from its appearance have had a great impact on the academic and social lives of the participants. This research identifies which specific barriers were experienced by the group with hearing impaired, different from those found by the rest of the groups. The conclusions show that barriers to communication increased significantly due to the use of masks, the delivery of classes in a digital format and the lack of preparation of the faculty members regarding online teaching.

Achieving inclusive education is a primary challenge for the educational community. Inclusion refers to equal access to education—to the presence, participation and learning of all students. Offering an inclusive education requires all students to share time and space together in the mainstream classroom, that the educational community manifests a positive attitude towards diversity, and that educational centers plan to welcome diversity in their classrooms. The general objective of this study was to evaluate the inclusion of students with SEN enrolled in SOCs in mainstream schools based on their presence, the attitudes of the educational community and the planning processes developed. This was a descriptive study with a dominant status mixed design (QUAN-Qual). The population investigated in this research included the total number of SOCs of the Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia (Spain) (n = 108). The sample obtained comprised 3.891 people belonging to 88 SOCs from 68 educational centers, which implies a confidence interval of 99% (Z = 2.576) and a margin of error of less than 5%. The data collection instruments used included seven questionnaires, adapted for the purposes of the study, for the quantitative phase, and semi-structured interviews, focus groups and discussion groups for the qualitative phase. The study results indicated that the attitudes of the educational community were the main determinant of inclusion. There is a need to reflect on and undertake actions to eliminate existing barriers to the operation of SOCs, since the involvement of students with SEN in the academic and social life of educational centers, and in mainstream classrooms, is not guaranteed.

The existing confusion around the meaning of inclusive education is one of the main barriers to the progress of this educational model. The general objective of this research is to analyze the meanings that different educational agents involved in the educational community of the Region of Murcia (Spain) attribute to the concept of inclusive education. This research is part of a comprehensive qualitative descriptive study. 74 people involved in the educational response to the learning needs of students from early childhood, primary and secondary education centers (management teams and teachers), members of the educational administration, associations and postgraduate students have participated. Qualitative techniques were used to collect information: discussion groups, semi-structured interviews and discussion board. A qualitative content analysis process was followed through the ATLAS.ti V.8 software. The study shows that the concept of inclusive education is known by the participants, however, they attribute different meanings and approaches to it. This determines that it is an unclear and discussed notion among members of the educational community, which generates educational practices of very different kinds and often non-inclusive. La confusión existente en torno al significado de educación inclusiva supone una de las principales barreras para el progreso de este modelo educativo. El objetivo general de esta investigación es analizar los significados que diferentes agentes educativos implicados en la comunidad educativa de la Región de Murcia (España) atribuyen al concepto de educación inclusiva. Esta investigación se enmarca en un estudio descriptivo comprensivo de corte cualitativo. Han participado 74 personas involucradas en la respuesta educativa a las necesidades de aprendizaje del alumnado de centros de educación infantil, primaria y secundaria (equipos directivos y profesorado), miembros de la administración educativa, de asociaciones y estudiantes de postgrado. Para la recogida de información se emplearon técnicas cualitativas: grupos de discusión, entrevistas semiestructuradas y panel de debate. Se siguió un proceso de análisis cualitativo de contenido a través del software ATLAS.ti V.8. El estudio muestra que el concepto de educación inclusiva es conocido por los participantes, sin embargo, le atribuyen diferentes significados y enfoques. Esto determina que sea una noción poco clara y notablemente discutida entre los miembros de la comunidad educativa, lo que genera prácticas educativas de muy diferente índole y muchas veces no inclusivas.