Who is considered to be in need of special education: why, how and by whom?

Hegarty has pleaded for more precise definitions of target groups for special education. In Sweden recent research shows that one-third of all students receive some form of special needs teaching while, at the same time, many students with very similar preconditions do not receive such support. The aim of this study is to investigate the processes of defining target groups and what kinds of aims and whose interests steer procedures and decisions. This is done here by document analyses and taped interviews of principals and teachers in a sample of Swedish schools. Results indicate that the motives for special education measures are typically bound to characteristics of individual impairments or pathologies. Individual difficulties in coping with demands of the school are the most important reason for being defined as in need of special support. Some interviewees express opinions about risks of wasting resources on very slow-learning students. Individual educational plans (IEPs) were rare and most often thought of as useless. Special education often works as a self-contained body of practice which has a heavy impact on target-group definitions. Conclusions drawn from interview responses are that target groups are defined as another kind of problematic individuals with certain needs for training by specialists, but most often such target-group definitions are made by two persons: a regular and a special education teacher. Taking into account the inter- and intravariability between preconditions and resource allocation policies between and within schools, a plausible interpretation may be that target groups for special needs education are decided for a wide range of different reasons in the Swedish school system. Such a conclusion needs to be investigated further.