Re-envisioning spaces striving for inclusion through the theory of positive disintegration

Abstract

As the definition of inclusion broadens from supporting and accommodating for students with special needs to embracing the diversity and learning needs of all students, classrooms striving for inclusion are faced with mounting expectations of what it means to be inclusive. In this inquiry, students identified as gifted and learning support teachers explored Kazimierz Dabrowski’s theory of positive integration, to see whether it offered a new perspective on how they saw themselves and others within these spaces. Dabrowski’s theory revolves around the role of emotion in personality development and posits that some forms of psychoneurosis, including anxiety and depression, may in fact be signs of developmental potential and requiring support of a different kind. Using the 4D cycle of appreciative inquiry (discovery, dream, design, and destiny), participants explored possibilities for building and expanding on the strengths that already exist in our spaces striving for inclusion and designed potential pathways for individual and collective change that would enhance their own, and the experience of others within spaces striving for inclusion with their new understanding of the role of emotions in development. Increased opportunities for autonomy, flexibility, and creativity emerged as essential elements in supporting emotional expressions and their role in personality development.