ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that before in-service training can make a contribution to progress in special education teachers have to be clear about what constitutes progress. Since progress can only be defined in terms of moral and political goals any particular initiatives have to be examined for their underlying philosophy and practical consequences so that a choice can be made between them. The chapter looks at the way the moral and political choices in education are obscured by the needs of educators to claim neutrality. It examines the 'new' approach to special education which has followed the Mary Warnock report and 1981 Education Act and is characterised by such slogans as 'Every teacher a teacher of special needs', ' A whole school approach', 'An expanded notion of special needs'. The chapter provides a conception of special education which is compatible with the enhancement of a 'comprehensive' non-selective education in primary and secondary schools.
