Although no consensus exists about the definition of inclusion, it canusually be agreed upon that inclusion is a movement to merge regular andspecial education so that all students can be educated together in a generaleducation classroom. Because of the lack of consensus, inclusion is a hotlydebated topic in education today. Mainstreaming and Inclusion are usedinterchangably for many people. This is where the confusion may lie. Forthe purpose of this paper I will be using the term inclusion. I interpret thisto mean: “meeting the needs of the student with disabilities throughregular education classes, with the assistance of special education.” (Dover,section 1) Included in the definition of inclusion, it is important to note thatthere are a continuum of placement options for the child. I found the maindifference between mainstreaming and inclusion to be the approach takentowards each one. Mainstreaming asks the question: “WHERE can this childbe successful?” Whereas, inclusion asks: Where does this child or regularclassroom teacher need support?” The Individuals With Disabilities Act (IDEA), was signed into law in1975. IDEA requires that schools educate students with disabilities in theleast restrictive environment possible, and it also ensures to the maximumextent possible, children with disabilities be educated with those who arenondisabled. This implies that the least restrictive environment is thegeneral education classroom. Historically, we have separated exceptional children from the rest ofsociety. This act has served to reinforce society’s view that to beexceptinal is to be bad. The truth is, separate is not equal. In this paper I intend to address what complications surround thepractice of inclusion, and also to give examples of how inclusion has beenbeneficial to students. WHY NOT INCLUSION? Even for those that support inclusion philosophically, there arequestions and concerns about issues when inclusion is put into practice. Some schools interpret inclusion to mean that all students shall receivespecial education services in the regular classroom, without individualconsideration that such placement would meet the needs of that particularstudent with disabilities. The American Federation of Teachers (AFT)president, Albert Shanker, warned members against placement of alldisabled students in regular classrooms, for this very reason. (Aefsky, p.7)Other schools interpret inclusion to mean that when an individual student’sneeds can be met in the regular classroom, that is the most appropriateplacement. As a result, many school districts or individual schools arereducing the placement options available to students with disabilitiesbecause as they put more kids into the regular classrooms, they do not havethe personnel and resources available to provide the full continuum ofoptions! The existing staff is spread out to work in many schools withlimited time and resources to serve the students. Also along these lines iswhere opponents have brought up the issue of the setting. They believethat instructional techniques such as direct instruction, may be more easilyimplemented in specific rather than general settings. (Pearman, p.177) According to the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities, allchildren should NOT be served in the general education classroom. Theybelieve that full inclusion violates the rights of students. They see eachstudent as having unique needs, and should have a program tailored to themas an individual. NJCLD supports a continuum of services, but rejectsarbitrary placement of students in any one setting.(NJCLD, 63) Anotherissue that is brought up is that of time. With inclusion, the education ofstudents with disabilities is not solely the responsibility of special educationprofessionals. Shared responsibility means shared decision making; thistakes time that is not available during the work day. This point was affirmedwhen I conducted an interview with a third grade teacher, Julie Eygabroad. (interview, February 11, 1999) Julie has several students with disabilities inher classroom, and one specifically named John, is mentally retarded. Fromday to day he has no sense of what happened the day before. He is not ableto write, except for his name. He is a lovable child, but what he needs is tobe a place where someone can be with him one on one for at least half of theday. Julie has trouble finding the time outside of class to prepare separatelessons for the disabled children each day. Time is a big consideration forteachers when it comes to inclusion. Another issue that I became aware of, by taking Connie LambertsSPED 302 class, was that children in special education really enjoy being in aresource room because there are similar people there who are going throughsimilar experiences. The resource room teacher, or specialist is trained tohelp these kids get the most out of their education, therefore there is anunderstanding that exists between student and teacher. In the book,Inclusion Confusion, by Fern Aefsky, it is noted that special educationteachers are fearful that positions will be cut with the integration ofinclusion, While general education teachers fear they will not be able toteach effectively to students with disabilities. These issues that I havepresented are just a few of the concerns that opponents of inclusion havebrought up in their debate. INCLUSION…YES!!! While some oppose inclusion, there are many who support it. there are cases that have been documented to show the success that comeswith inclusion of students with special needs. First, we need to rememberthat it is the RIGHT of an individual to have an appropriate education, thisdoes not mean separate but equal. Many people wonder how inclusion willaffect the children who do not have a disability. They often believe thatinclusion will hinder these children’s progress. This has not been the caseaccording to research. In a study that was done to find out the attitudes ofnondisabled children regarding disabled classmates, typical children foundthat there were benefits that came with inclusion.(Peck, p.50) The resultsthat came back were very positive. Students felt they gained anunderstanding into human behavior and human differences, thereforecreating a tolerance for differences. There was a reduced fear of humandifferences among the typical students. They reported feeling relaxed withstudents with disabilities, saying they could just be themselves. Students inthis study that were placed with atypical students showed growth incognitive, social and personal areas. They felt good about helping studentswith disabilities, and also learned that differences are o.k. Everyone hasthem. In the book, Creating an Inclusive School, there are two reports thatgive examples of how we all benefit from inclusion. The first instance is ofa girl named Ro. Ro was not able to talk. Her parents worried about howother children would accept her, but time and time again, Ro’s classmatescelebrated her giftedness. Kids do not seem to have the hang-ups thatadults do. One of the classmates suffered from a stroke and was in a coma. When she came out of it she was not able to talk. Instead she used signlanguage,…sign language that she had learned from Ro earlier in the year. Children like to learn new and different things. To celebrate thesedifferences is where we can all learn new things. The second instance is of aboy named Bob. Bob was to be included into a general education classroom,and before he came the teachers and administration introduced the subjectof Bob to other typical students. Students became very involved in gettingready for Bob. Many wanted to be tutors, while others wanted to giveadvice for where Bob should hang out. By getting students involved it was apositive experience for Bob and others. Education for students withdisabilities is required by the law but it can have very positive effects forthose involved. It gives the disabled student a sense of belonging, socialinteraction, and a challenge. It creates tolerance and provides empathy fortypical students. The research that I have presented shows why there is such a debateabout the topic of inclusion. Both sides have points that are worth listeningto and talking about. There are several groups that have something at stakein this debate…the students (typical, and atypical), parents, teachers andschools.
MY THOUGHTS…
As I researched the topic of inclusion, I found myself agreeing withboth sides. I understand that all kids have a right to an equal education. Atthe same time I think that the setting for the education needs to dependupon the severity of the disability, or the type of disability. For a studentthat functions at a typical level academically, but has a behavior disorder,the regular classroom may be perfectly suited for this child. My feelingsare different regarding a child that is severely mentally retarded. I thinkmore time with a specialist, outside of the classroom, may be moreproductive for the student and the general ed. teacher. I think that thereis a lot of responsibility placed on the general education teacher, and theydo not have the training like specialists. Special ed. teachers are trainedespecially for these children, they should be able to work with them. At thesame time general education teachers make modifications for typical kidsby trying different techniques and strategies, so as to help the childunderstand. So why not be willing to make modifications for children withspecial needs? In school we are taught-ALL CHILDREN LEARNDIFFERENTLY! This is why I think I fit into the category that supportsinclusion philosophically, but has trouble putting it into practice. I read in abook that if we can think of all children as being special and having specialneeds, then special will no longer apply to only disabled children. We need tochange the language to support role change.
Category: Miscellaneous
