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This chapter guides readers into deeper consideration of the issues and conflicts involved in both leading and implementing successful inclusive education. It explores approaches and outlines steps that educational leaders can take, using systems thinking, to understand the complexity of education and the school system and create genuine collaboration to support those we seek to help and empower.

Chapters 1– 4 presented theories and models of systems thinking, systems leadership, the social system and the philosophy of Education For All. Now it is time for you to put all of these into practice. This chapter provides an illustration of a systems design methodology to enable you to lead a change from the traditional teacher-led classroom to a future-oriented, student-led learning pedagogy.

The concept of giftedness varies in different countries and different school systems. Gifted students have unique learning needs, which require modified and tailored learning strategies. If unidentified and unsupported, giftedness can become a problem. This chapter begins by defining what giftedness is and describes some of the characteristics of gifted students. It moves on to discuss some of the common challenges faced by gifted students.

This chapter focuses on one key element of the third layer of the environmental systems in Bronfenbrenner’s theory—the exosystem. The exosystem describes connections and processes that indirectly influence the child/ student. This chapter narrows its focus on school leadership. It discusses the need to reconceptualise school leadership to meet the complex demands of today’s schools. It introduces a School Leadership Pipeline Model to guide systemic and holistic leadership development and enable teachers and senior school leaders to work in collaboration and exercise collective leadership both as a core group, and as individual leaders to meet different demands.

This chapter describes the different types of Attention Deficit and Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and explains how the condition is classified medically. It introduces theories and models on understanding ADHD and discusses the controversy and debates about the treatment of children with ADHD. It highlights parental and familial factors associated with ADHD and encourages the involvement of parents and family members to establish a collaborative approach in helping these students at school and at home.

Bronfenbrenner’s theory of ecological systems (1979) is widely used in the social sciences to understand the impact of the environment on the individual. The first layer of this model is the microsystem, which includes the individual (the student) and the people who have a direct influence on them. The second layer of the system is the mesosystem. This examines the individual’s interactions and interconnections with the people in the microsystem to further understand their impact on the individual’s development.

Dyslexia is a condition associated with difficulties in reading and writing. There are numerous causes and variations of Dyslexia. Medical professionals and educational scholars are still researching different causes of Dyslexia. In the last three decades, as teachers know more about Dyslexia and the learning difficulties that students face, support strategies have been used to help these students to learn more effectively. This chapter presents the causes, signs and symptoms of Dyslexia, and diagnostic assessments of Dyslexia.

Students with Emotional and Behavioural Disorder (EBD) have constant problems with their self-control. In the past, many schools have ‘abandoned’ them by using punitive measures such as school suspension or even expulsion. Thanks to school leaders and teachers who care, many students with EBD have learnt the needed self-regulation strategies and social skills to establish friendships and improve their focus on academic learning.

Students with vision impairments, those with low vision and those who are totally blind, have been included in mainstream education for over half a century in many parts of the world. Most of these students are supported with additional services, such as extra support from specialist teachers, some of them known as Itinerant Support Teacher Vision (ISTV). This chapter gives a general overview of what vision impairment entails and some foundational knowledge about visual acuity, visual fields and functional vision.

Systems thinking gives us the ability to understand the relationships, effects, delays and barriers between information and problems by understanding people, events, departments and systems. Through systems thinking, collective decision-making and problem-solving can emerge, making it a vital skill for leaders to not only employ themselves but also encourage their staff.

Education is a system within a larger system—the social system. To become a systems thinker, it is therefore necessary to dissect the anatomy of your society and explore how its different elements become parts of a social system. This chapter explains both how education is a part of a social system and why it is important to understand the interactive elements within a social system in order to understand how education works.