Moving beyond placement: a comparison of special and mainstream school inclusiveness for deaf and hard-of-hearing students

Debates in the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students have shifted from questions of placement in mainstream or special schools toward achieving meaningful inclusion that supports holistic development. However, inclusion is often viewed as a unified concept, with limited attention to how its emotional, social, and academic dimensions interact with contextual factors such as student factors, family factors, and school setting. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory, this study examined the relationships between these factors and perceptions of inclusion in both mainstream and special settings. Data were collected from parents of 313 DHH students in Türkiye using a demographic form and the Inclusion Perception Questionnaire. Analyses indicated that, in mainstream schools, perceived inclusion was associated with student factors, such as age and degree of hearing loss, and family factors, including income, parental education, and household size. In special schools, family factors were not significantly associated with perceived inclusion, whereas student factors, particularly degree of hearing loss and additional needs, showed stronger associations. Results highlight the ecological dynamics shaping inclusion across educational contexts.