Swedish schools shift disability support burden to families, study finds
A new study of children with autism, ADHD, and intellectual disabilities in Sweden reveals that schools routinely fail to provide consistent support, forcing parents into exhausting advocacy roles. The findings expose systemic gaps that undermine educational outcomes and signal a broader policy failure in delivering inclusive education.
Originaltitel: Ongoing struggles: children's and parents' perspectives on support gaps in Swedish schooling
<p>This study explores how children with intellectual disabilities, ADHD, or autism spectrum disorder, together with their parents, experience schooling shaped by persistent gaps in support. Drawing on interviews with eight children (aged 9–12) and their parents, the analysis draws on symbolic interactionism to explore how meaning is constructed in relation to everyday school practices. Findings reveal two overarching patterns were identified: (1) recurring struggles to access and maintain adequate support across schooling, and (2) insufficient disability-specific accommodations. These gaps undermine both educational and social inclusion, producing instability and shifting responsibility from schools to families. Children emphasised the need for predictable structures, comprehensible routines, and supportive teacher relationships, while parents describe continuous advocacy, emotional strain, and organisational barriers. The study highlights the importance of inclusive practices that are stable, responsive, and co-constructed through ongoing dialogue with families. By analysing these perspectives jointly, the study offers a relational understanding of how support gaps shape everyday school life and highlights the need for stable, responsive, and co‑constructed forms of support that are developed collaboratively with families.</p>