An investigation into the effects of the Warnock Report and the associated documentation on the organisation and provision for pupils with special educational needs in the mainstream secondary school

An investigation into the effects of the Warnock Report and the associated documentation on the organisation and provision for pupils with special educational needs in the mainstream secondary school.The initial thinking on this piece of research was based on the view that the Warnock Report (1978) can be regarded as not only a milestone in the thinking on special education in this country, but also as a stepping stone in the continuing development of provision for pupils with special educational needs in the mainstream secondary school. The literature survey takes this into account in an analysis which is based on five key themes which have been identified as central to the development of provision. These are:(1) the development of methods to identify and categorise pupils needing extra help(2) the varying arrangements which have been made to meet the needs of such pupils(3) the development of a national network of provision(4) a growing desire and pressure from a variety of sources for an integrated system of provision for pupils with special needs into the mainstream school(5) the widening role of the teacher in the mainstream school to cope with the circumstances outlined above.The second part of this study concentrated on a survey, undertaken in three Local Education Authorities, in the north of England to ascertain the nature and type of developments which had occurred since the publication of the Warnock Report (op cit).This survey was conducted in two phases:(1) a postal survey of some one hundred and seventy mainstream secondary schools(2) in-depth interviews with a number of schools, chosen at random, and with an officer of one of the L.E.A.'sA number of hypotheses, drawn up as a result of the five point analysis outlined above were statistically tested as part of this study.Conclusions based on the findings of the literature survey, the small scale study and the statistical analysis were drawn and recommendations based on these were made.