ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´

Contact

• workJubilee Campus
  Wollaton Road
  Nottingham
  NG8 1BB
  UK
• IMENE.Kassous1@nottingham.ac.uk

Biography

I am a teaching associate for the MA Special and Inclusive Education and the MA Education courses at the ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´. I am very well informed about research in social sciences, disability studies, ableism, inequality across different fields and critical disability studies. I have worked on both ableism, decolonising the concept of inclusive education, experiences of autistic females as well as engaging with human rights, social movements, equity versus equality and qualitative research in both my teaching and my current projects. I am presently involved in research in these areas in several languages including English, French and Arabic.

Expertise Summary

My research focuses on neurodiversity, autism, and inclusive education across cultural and multilingual contexts, with particular attention to the experiences of autistic children, young people, and families in the Global South and diaspora. I use qualitative, participatory, and arts‑based methods to examine knowledge construction of disability, educational access, and cross‑cultural understandings of disability, including through the UNESCO‑funded Amplifying Autistic Wellbeing project, which works with autistic youth with higher support needs. My work spans international collaborations in the UK, USA, Algeria, and China, and previous projects have explored the experiences of mothers of autistic girls in Algeria and discrimination among UK‑based MENA families ("Experiences of Mothers of autistic girls in Algeria."; "Double trouble: How UK based MENA families experience discrimination."). Across all projects, I aim to decolonise autism research and promote culturally and linguistically responsive approaches to inclusion.

Teaching Summary

Course Leader for the Online MA Special and Inclusive Education, overseeing programme delivery, assessment design, and pedagogical quality across digital learning environments.

The modules I teach are as fellow:

- Debating Special and Inclusive Education (Both online and in-person): This module explores key issues concerning the field of special and inclusive education such as definitions of special needs and inclusion; global perspectives on diversity and access to equality of educational opportunities; understanding theoretical approaches to special needs/inclusion and models of disability.

- Education for students on the autistic spectrum: This module explores key issues related to the education of students on the autism spectrum such as: what you need to know to teach and support individuals on the autism spectrum and their families' insider perspectives; neurodiversity and gender

- Understanding Educational and Pedagogical Research: The module introduces different approaches to conducting and evaluating research in a range of educational contexts, drawing on methodological literature as well as examples of educational research, and developing the foundations from which a student can begin to plan their own research project.

Research Summary

â–ª Kassous, I.K., et al., (exp 2026). Mental Health, Neurodiversity and Inclusive Education in Edited Book: Exploring Mental Health in Education: Key Debates and Critical Issues (Accepted with minor… read more

Current Research

â–ª Kassous, I.K., et al., (exp 2026). Mental Health, Neurodiversity and Inclusive Education in Edited Book: Exploring Mental Health in Education: Key Debates and Critical Issues (Accepted with minor corrections).

â–ª Kassous, I. Z., (2025) Exploring the Inclusivity of Disability Related Language in a Multilingual Research Context: Case ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´ of the Algerian Context ( اإلعاقة ؟ذو يأشخاص / Personnes Handicapées?/ People with Disabilities?). In Disability in the Arab World: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Leuven University Press. https://lup.be/book/disability-in-the-arab-world/

▪ Srinivasan, H….. Kassous, I.K., et al. (2025). Inclusion Must Be Global, Decolonised, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse, and Anti-Normative. Journal of Social Issues, 81(4), DOI:10.1111/josi.70045.

â–ª Kassous, I.Z and Evangelista, Z. (2024). International Students ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´ing a non-UK Context using UK-based Standards/Protocols. In CohenMiller, A. Transformative moments in qualitative research. Routledge.

â–ª Elliot, D. L. , Lido, C. , Evangelista, Z. , Kassous, I. Z., Al Najim, A. and Alves, I. (2024) Mind the gap! International doctoral scholars' and supervisors' perspectives of wellbeing and help-seeking behaviour. In: Hammond, K. and Lemon, N. (eds.) Navigating Tensions and Transitions in Higher Education: Effective Skills for Maintaining Wellbeing and Self-care. Series: Wellbeing and self-care in higher education. Routledge: London, pp. 216-229. ISBN 9781032698588 (doi: 10.4324/9781032701349-21)

â–ª Kassous, I. Z. & Allouch, F. (2022). "We were like a bird who had gotten its freedom but did not know how to fly" Recollections of a Woman Born during the Algerian Independence War. In Bahitat (Eds). Arab girls in the midst of wars and conflicts.

â–ª Kassous, I. Z. (2023). Researching autism in the Global South (MENA region): To what extent is Western autism research inclusive towards the Global South?. Women's Health, 19.

â–ª Kassous, I. Z., & Sarnou, H. (2021). Investigating the Effectiveness of Digital Storytelling in Developing Algerian Learners' Emotional Intelligence. Journal of Studies in Language, Culture, and Society (JSLCS), 1(4), 109-120. â–ª