Values of the Parents of Pupils with Special Educational Needs due to Sociocultural Background

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate the values behind the nature and behaviour of parents with children who have Special Educational Needs, and the way they approach their children´s schooling. The views of two hundred and sixty-eight parents living in a socially and culturally disadvantaged area, were evaluated using the Hall-Tonna Inventory of Values. The results showed that there are differences in the parents’ hierarchy of values according to whether the school they have chosen for their children is inside or outside the area. The principle differences are in the content of some of the priority values selected by each group, and/or in the priority that each group gives to some of the values common to both groups. The implications of how the parents prioritise the values are discussed with regard to their own personal development and the education of their children.