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Exploratory essay on inclusion education
Inclusion in education
Inclusion education exploratory essay
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Purpose and Hypotheses of Study
The study by Berry (2008) had a purpose of fostering acceptance of needs-based fairness for inclusion students in future classrooms of teacher education students. An open-ended question guiding the study sought to find out novice teachers views about fairness (Berry, 2008). The goal of the study involved seeking understanding of a situation and examining the teachers’ views regarding fairness. Fairness is investigated because it holds implications for teachers’ ideals and pedagogy of inclusion.
Sample
Participants in the study by Berry (2008) comprised a subset of 47 of the 89 graduate students enrolled in six sections of a special education survey course at a major university in the United States. The subset of 47 graduate students included 20 preservice teachers and 17 inservice teachers; 27 early childhood/elementary teachers, 20 middle/high school teachers. Of the 47 participants, 38 were females and 9 males. Ethnic breakdown of the participants were as follows: 41 European Americans, 4 Asian Americans, and 2 other/unknown ethnicity.
Methods and Procedures
The subset of 47 participants, 38 females and 9 males, were enrolled at a major university that knew they were participating in a longitudinal study of attitudes about inclusion (Berry, 2008). The courses in which the students were enrolled emphasized the use of instructional techniques benefiting all students and advocated differentiation with regard to needs-based fairness as necessary to inclusive teaching. In this study coursework included optional readings concerning grading, student concerns about fairness, an activity based on Blanchard’s definitions of fairness, and LaVoie’s comments on fairness contained in a workshop ...
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...sed fairness, teachers can then focus on instructional practices that are effective for all students. This will, in turn, increase teachers’ confidence in inclusive teaching and willingness to teach students with disabilities. Fifth, teachers who have successfully taught in inclusive settings will reap the benefits of personal satisfaction gained from helping students with greater needs, an increased ability to teach students with varying needs and abilities, and being regarded by their colleagues as an effective teacher and role model.
As a final note, Berry (2008) assumes that these findings on fairness have implications outside the context of the classroom suggesting they also apply at the societal level.
Works Cited
Berry, R. A. W. (2008). Novice teachers’ conceptions of fairness in inclusion classrooms. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(5). 1149-1159.
Richard Lavoie’s definition of fairness (1989), as “receiving what he or she needs, not receiving the same”, is an accurate definition of this concept. The main point of this definition is that students with learning disabilities, or any other disabilities, simply have different educational needs that their classmates who are regular students. For the student with disabilities, there are some tasks that are difficult to achieve, and some skills that are difficult to learn; for this reason, the school experience is very important to facilitate the learning process of students with disabilities. It is of great importance that the teacher, who is in direct contact with the student, knows the student, and is able to modify and adapt the curriculum to better support the student. This support is ...
The movement for inclusion in education has advanced since the years of special schools for children with disabilities. Although there have been significant changes to the laws protecting the rights of children with disabilities there remains an underlying debate as to whether these children should be in main stream classes. Most states and territories in Australia practice inclusive education, however this remains a contentious topic with differing attitudes. It is evident whilst many challenges remain, schools should implement and deliver quality programs that reflect best practice policies. Positive teacher attitudes, promoting diversity, modelling inclusion in the classroom and developing a sense of community by working in partnerships
Peterson, J. Michael and Hittie, Marie Michael. Inclusive Teaching : Creating Effective Schools for All Learners. Pearson Publishing. (2003)
... problem of disproportionate minority representation in special education. The Journal of Special Education, 32(48), 48-51.
Special education is a large part of the education system, which includes the mentally retarded, people with learning disabilities, the emotionally disturbed, hearing impaired, visually impaired, etc. Many people fail to include this system as one that can possibly involve discrimination, but those enrolled in special education has increased among all racial classifications. Between 1980 and 1990, the entire population enlisted in special education has increased. European American increased by 6%, African Americans increased by 13%, Hispanic Americans increased by 53%, and Asian Americans/Pacific Americans increased by 107.8% (Ford, Obiakor, p. 8). In the end, it is these students who ultimately experience low rates of employment, low income, and growing rates of incarceration. Another survey indicates t...
Sharpe, M. N., & York, J. L. (1994). Effects of inclusion on the academic performance of
Inclusion in the classroom is a topic that I did not fully understand when I first became a special education teacher. Studying inclusion and all the aspect that it encompasses has enlighten me to the complexities of inclusion in the classroom. Inclusion has expanded to every facet of school activities outside the classroom. I am going on my fifth year of being a special education teacher and continuously find the need for additional education and training among the staff and administration. I feel having a comprehensive understanding has made me a better educator and advocate for children with disabilities.
Shor, I. (1986, November). Equality is excellence: Transforming teacher education and the learning process. Harvard Review, 36(4), 406-426.
Inclusion in classrooms is defined as combining students with disabilities and students without disabilities together in an educational environment. It provides all students with a better sense of belonging. They will enable friendships and evolve feelings of being a member of a diverse community (Bronson, 1999). Inclusion benefits students without disabilities by developing a sense of helping others and respecting other diverse people. By this, the students will build up an appreciation that everyone has unique yet wonderful abilities and personalities (Bronson, 1999). This will enhance their communication skills later in life. Inclusive classrooms provide students with disabilities a better education on the same level as their peers. Since all students would be in the same educational environment, they would follow the same curriculum and not separate ones based on their disability. The main element to a successful inclusive classroom, is the teachers effort to plan the curriculum to fit all students needs. Teachers must make sure that they are making the material challenging enough for students without special needs and understandable to students with special needs. Inclusive classrooms are beneficial to students with and without special needs.
A significant problem of practice in education is teacher bias. Teacher bias has implications around race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and socioeconomic status. Teachers must be willing to examine their beliefs, acknowledge and overcome their biases. Teachers need to evaluate their practices in relation to their ideals as well as recognize and assess the position of power they hold in their classrooms in order to be true Social Justice Educators (Cooper, 2003).
middle of paper ... ... Several teachers do not know how to receive the support they need. Diversity in classrooms is both positive and negative. However, if teachers are provided with the right resources and keep an open mind, their students can become successful civil human beings.
Stainback, S., & Stainback, W. (1996). Inclusion: A guide for educators. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.
In first being able to define inclusive education, it is necessary to understand the diversity of the student population. Disability comes in my varying forms and can be physical, sensory, intellectual, mental health and emotional, developmental, and non-visible (e.g. asthma). If disability was the only agent to consider in the diversity scenario things would be easier for teachers but there are a number of other classifications of students to consider: Gifted or talented; English as a second language (ESL); Indigenous students; and many other classifications which fall under the societal/family/personal heading (Ashman & Elkin, 2012).
Inclusion is a basic human right for all students and differences are what make us unique. These differences should be embraced, not shunned. A student with extra educational needs may very well be capable of great things, but only if we, the educators, allow them the chance to be. Inclusion is the way forward
Promoting fairness in the classroom not only gives the teacher respect but also gives the students a sense of safeness and trust within the classroom. Creating an environment that revolves around fairness, trust and respect will be beneficial to all of the children in the class. The terms respect and trust are pretty straightforward. There doesn’t need to be a debate on what those two mean, but the same cannot be said for fairness. When one usually hears the word “fair” it is often looked at as synonymous to the term “equal” but the two are not the same, especially in a classroom setting. The term fairness on the classroom level means that the individual students are given what he or she may need in order to be successful; fairness does not