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How diversity influences teaching
How diversity influences teaching
Inclusion in todays classrooms
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Special Education and Inclusion
Many people seem to look past how learning-disabled students would feel to be placed in a mainstream classroom which includes students without disabilities rather than go to class in a segregated/special education classroom with only other students who also have learning disabilities. There are many researches constantly going on studying the effects of inclusion in classrooms to see if learning-disabled students achieve better in mainstream classes. Students with learning disabilities feel better about themselves when they are included in classes with their peers who don’t have learning disabilities.
Some terms regarding inclusion education should be clarified so that a person who is not knowledgeable about special education will have a better understanding. Inclusion and mainstreaming in class rooms can be switched around to mean the same thing. Essentially, these terms mean the process of putting students with special learning needs into “regular” classes with non-disabled peers. Resource classes, which used in a typical educational setting for learning disabled students, are classes that are for special needs students only. Just like inclusion and mainstreaming, learning disabled and special needs can be used interchangeably.
Students with disabilities have educational rights under a special law called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) which mandates that students with disabilities have a free and appropriate education (Curry School of Education, n/d). The law requires that special needs students should also be placed in the least restrictive environment (LRE) suitable for their needs(Curry School of Education, n/d). The LRE for some students is often the g...
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...ed/resource classrooms and express their opinions on this matter.
L., Peter and John (1994). Learning Disabilities. Retrieved April 24, 2003, from http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu
States different legal requirements such as the IDEA and LRE laws, and percentages of learning-disabled students in mainstream classrooms.
Meyer, Luanna (2001, March). International Journal of Disability, Development and Education. Vol.48, Issue 1.
Studied different disabilities and inclusion classes.
Wolfe, P., & Hall, T. (2003, March) Teaching Exceptional Children Vol. 35, Issue 4.
Suggestions to teachers/parents that provides appropriate education for all children.
(2001, November 5). Educational Issues Series. Retrieved April 25, 2003, from http://www.weac.org
Definitions and laws for inclusion in education are mentioned here along with different court cases.
This means that children with all different types of a disability are accessible to public education and learning through professional educators and through their peers. Another important legislation that has been established in 1975 is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that includes all ages of children and their rights to learn. Both of these movements helped shape what special education is today and assisted in bringing inclusion into the classroom. They both made it possible for students with disabilities to be integrated into general education classrooms, while getting the assistance they need as well. These acts are what made it possible into what my field of study is and I intend to push the boundaries of getting my future students in these general education classrooms and making them feel apart of something
Students with disabilities have several delivery models that are made available to them. These students that have been identified as having a disability are to be given an equal opportunity to be the recipients of a fair and public education just as their non-disabled classmates. It is a legal requirement that the students are placed in an LRE (Least Restrictive Environment). The needs of the students and the resources available to them play an important factor in the placement of those individuals who has been identified as disabled. The following information was derived through classroom
All three countries acknowledge the need for inclusion and have laws and regulations in place in order to ensure that disabled students receive an equal education. In Italy, in 1977, Italian National Law 517 outlined specific guidelines for including students with disabilities in general education classrooms (Gabel & Danforth, 2008, p. 42). In the United States, the Education of All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 stipulated that eligibility for services and placement would be made on the basis of the clinical evaluation of the disabled student (Powell, 2012, p. 42). In New Zealand, children in compulsory education in New Zealand have their rights to inclusion protected by the Education Act (1989), which gives children the right to be educated in their neighborhood school, and this right is further protected under the Human Rights Act (1993) (Powell, 2012, p.
The Individuals with Disabilities Act, 2004 (IDEA), has 14 different categories of disabilities (IDEA Partnership, 2012). Students with disabilities can be placed into two more distinct groups which are high incidence disabilities or HID and low incidence disabilities or LID. IDEA defines low incidence disabilities as those students with visual, hearing or significant cognitive impairment (Outcome Data, 2006). These students need personal that are highly trained in specialized skill and knowledge to provide early interventions and education. Those with LID account for less than one percent of the school population (Outcome Data, 2006). Students that fall into this category are usually educated outside of the general education classroom for part of the school day.
In order for inclusion to be implemented properly it is important that teachers, parents, and administrators to know the definition of inclusion. An inclusion program means that the student spends all or most of their school time in the general education classroom rather than a self-contained classroom. However, the students will still receive the support and interventions they would have received in a self-contained classroom. There are different types of inclusive classrooms where different types of teaching occur. There is co-teaching where there is both a general education teacher and a special education teacher that co teach. Both will work with students that have an individualized education plan (IEP) and the student will receive more support. In addition, an inclusive classroom can have a general education teacher but has the special education teacher as a resource or aid, which qualifies as a collaborative model of inclusion.
The children who benefit from the Special Education program are learning disabled. The National Center for Learning Disabilities states that children with learning disabilities have a “neurological disorder that affects the brain’s ability to receive process, store and respond to information.” There has been a long running debate on the best way to educate children with learning disabilities or LD. Some feel inclusion is the most beneficial method for educating children with LD. As defined by Jean B. Crockett and James M. Kauffman in The Least Restrictive Environment, inclusion is where children with disabilities are placed in regular education classes for the entire school day and are accompanied by special education teachers or aides for subjects where they need extra help (1). Others feel mainstreaming is the best option for students with LD.
Law and ethics didn’t always play a role in education, specifically in inclusive education. The first law pertaining to inclusive education, more precisely regarding children with disabilities, were not established until the late 1900s. In fact “until the 1970s, children with disabilities were often excluded from schools” (Rapp and Arndt,2012,pg.25). There has been a variety of laws that have been added and developed in special education that has played a role in creating a more inclusive education that benefits a wide range of student. In 1989 NAEYC adopted a code of ethical conduct that show ethical responsibilities to multiple stakeholder (NAEYC, History). Many factors need to be taken under consideration when making decisions
Inclusion classrooms are rewarding to all children. Numerous school systems today implementing inclusion classrooms, or include students with disabilities into the general education classroom, because of the numerous benefits associated with inclusion. Even though inclusion may not be for all students with disabilities, there are countless benefits of inclusion to consider. In 1975, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was passed to guarantee that children with disabilities be given the opportunity to receive a public education ("A Brief History of the Disability Rights Movement", n.d.,). In 1990, 1997, and 2004, reauthorizations of this Act were held, and the law came to be known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA mandates that not only should individuals with disabilities be offered a public education, they also have the right to learn in the least restricted environment. Therefore students with disabilities, both in public and in private schools, are to be educated to the maximum extent possible, and in classrooms together with students with no disabilities. Children with disabilities are most importantly children. Inclusion supplies opportunities for socializing and for friendships to grow. It offers a feeling of belonging and the appropriate encouragement of social, behavioral, and academic skills (Karagiannis, Stainback, and Stainback 28). Including children with disabilities in general education classes generates acceptance of diversity. It teaches children how to connect with others of different capabilities. Inclusion continues to be a debatable idea in education as it pertains to educational and social values, as well as to the sense of individual worth. There are supporters on ...
Some students may not be able reach their full potential if left in a full inclusion setting. This would be an injustice for this student 's education. Full inclusion is not a “one size fits all” and LRE should guide schools to make the determination if a student with disabilities would benefit best from full inclusion or self-contained classroom. While it is possible for all students with disabilities to benefit from social interaction with non-disabled students, it is not possible for all students with disabilities to be in a full inclusion general
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.
Those who support an inclusion model for all students take the stand that students with disabilities should be placed in and inclusion setting with the idea that all special education students will benefit from an inclusion setting with their general education peers. An inclusion setting will provide academic growth and social growth. The placement of special education students in a general education classroom would also benefit students to respect and accept those students who are different. Students should be placed in an inclusion setting whenever possible (Noll, 2013).
The idea of inclusion within a classroom tends to breed controversy from many people. Currently there is no clear consensus on a definition of inclusion (Heward, 2006). There are many different views on how students with disabilities should be handled. Those views ranged from students being fully included, partially included, or not included at all in mainstream schooling. Different descriptions of inclusion tend to reflect the person's own opinions towards it. People who feel students should not be included in the classroom focus on the negative characteristics of inclusion, such as the challenges of developing plans for students as well as the hard work it requires to incorporate those plans. However, studies show that full inclusion has many benefits to the students, for both students with disabilities as well as students without them. Inclusion has shown to improve the student's social skills, encourage communication, inspire laws and regulations, and improve the overall schooling experience (Gargiulo, 2012). Although it will take longer then some would like or have the patience for, full inclusion can be done in the classroom, with its benefits outweighing the hard work that it requires.
Special education has undergone immense changes through the years. Research and studies on the debate of whether or not inclusion is appropriate for special education students is just beginning to cultivate. The question has always been, what is best for these students? Schools and teachers are becoming leaders in the exploration of new paths, in search of new teaching styles and techniques. Mainstreaming or inclusion at the middle school and high school level, which is educating students with special needs in regular classes with their non-disabled peers, has proven to be beneficial for the special education students cognitive and social developmental needs. It can not only benefit the handicapped student but all students in the classroom.
Inclusion does not only benefit the student, but the parents, teachers, school and the community. It is about understanding additional needs rather than ignoring them and allowing the student every chance that students without difficulties/disabilities have available to them
Students with disabilities are far too frequently isolated and separated from the education system (Johnson). They are often provided a diluted, inferior education and denied meaningful opportunities to learn. There are many education rights for children with disabilities to protect them from discrimination, giving them a chance for equal opportunity to learn what other students are expected to learn.... ... middle of paper ... ...