Curriculum matters for all students? Understanding curriculum from the perspectives of disabled students and teacher aides

The experiences of disabled students and the teacher aides who support them in accessing the New Zealand curriculum form the focus of this article, which begins with an overview of the legislative and policy context regarding students’ educational rights. Participants’ experiences are conceptualised as a continuum, in which students may have (a) full and meaningful participation in the curriculum, (b) partial access and participation mediated by a teacher aide or (c) no access at all. Interpretation of findings in relation to extant research is followed by a discussion of implications that must be considered if curriculum is to matter for all students.