Abstract

In this article it is argued that inclusive education can be construed as a response to the crisis of modern democracy and its school project. Such a response consists, in part, in the production of a new school normativity, in the light of the ideals of participative democracy. The argument tackles the origins of schooling after the democratic revolutions that took place during the 18th and 19th centuries, presents the main features of participative democracy, and shows the connections between the latter and the inclusive project in education. These considerations are expected to clarify the concept of inclusive education, given the current lack of agreement about it.