石田 祥代, 水谷 由美, 柳本 雄次
特殊教育学研究 38(6) 129-141 2001年
This paper has the following themes: 1) to divide the development of special education for children with physical disabilities into three historical periods and re-examine the historical significance of each period, 2) to study the characteristics of educational institutions/special schools for children with physical disabilities before and after the enactment of compulsory education for such children, and 3) to examine the effects of political measures with regard to integration and the changes in special education during the historic periods. The following findings about the divergence between special education for students with physical disabilities in Sweden and Japan were obtained: 1) The first divergence occurred starting at the end of the 1950's and continued to the beginning of the 1960's. The fundamental measures of education for students with physical disabilities were directed toward integration of the special population into mainstream schools in Sweden. In contrast, regulations were enacted in Japan to establish special schools throughout the whole country. 2) The second divergence was observed during the 1970's. Classes for students with severe physical disabilities were established by prefecture plans instead of special schools for children with physical disabilities, and integration of those children was further promoted in Sweden. In Japan, special schools for students with physical disabilities in every prefecture continued to provide educational exchanges between special schools and ordinary schools for children with physical disabilities.