Syndroming: When difference becomes diagnosis

Abstract

In this article, I examine ‘syndroming’: the expansion and institutionalisation of diagnostic framings of school difficulty in contemporary education systems. Drawing on accounts of classification and critiques of medicalisation and mental health discourse, I argue that current policy arrangements in England—particularly those associated with Education Health and Care Plans and tribunal processes—create incentives to describe children's difficulties in clinical terms. In such contexts, complex and context‐dependent experiences are translated into recognised categories that function as gateways to support. I contextualise the local case in the international circulation of diagnostic frameworks and their role in shaping local practices. I conclude that while diagnostic categories have an important place, their expanding use risks narrowing how difficulty is understood, with implications for inclusive education.