Principal Leadership for Inclusion: Supporting Positive Student Identity Development for Students with Disabilities

Abstract

Researchers in special education and educational leadership have engaged in collective efforts to highlight the critical role of the principal when it comes to creating inclusive schools for students with disabilities. Primarily, research and prescriptive writings have focused on a set of school improvement practices tailored to creating systems, interventions, and teaching practices that support inclusion. However, much of this scholarship has overlooked the importance of disability identity development. In this article, we review leadership practices that support inclusion with a focus on how principals can foster a school that supports positive disability identity development through a social model perspective.