Inclusion_Debate

Special Education has come a long way since the beginning of education. In many cases throughout the years children needing special education were tucked away in a classroom secluded from the rest of the students up until the founding of a great program called Inclusion. Inclusion takes the special education student and places him/her in a classroom full of regular students and has their special services come to them rather than having them secluded from all of their peers. Inclusion is a very controversial idea because it relates to educational and social values, as well as our sense of individual worth. Talking to an inclusion aid for a student with autism she is one hundred percent for the integration of special education students into the “regular” classrooms, although many others may disagree. Inclusion is a very beneficial idea, supported by law that promotes a well-rounded education while also teaching acceptance of others Inclusion has adapted to refer to the inclusion of handicapped students in general education classes, but there are many other ways to refer to inclusion. In the early stages inclusion was referred to as integration and now is referred to as mainstreaming or having the students of special education reentering the regular or general education classrooms. Some students may be participating in inclusion or be mainstreamed all day with or without an aid while others may only do it for a fraction of the day. Inclusion puts the students with disabilities in the general classrooms for a period of time which they can handle (all depending on the severity of the disability and the student themselves) while only being pulled out for services that are required and necessary for the student to thrive. Article Number One This article talks about what inclusion is and how it started and the many pros and cons of how inclusion can benefit the students of both the disabled population and general population. Both authors of the article are professors in either special education or behavioral sciences. The main focus of the reading is to give the reader facts about why inclusion started and what the purpose of it is for people that are not aware about the subject. There are many pros and cons to be weighed out when it comes to following the rules of inclusion in public schools as the article states. Many people do not realize that a teacher for an inclusion classroom must have extra education and be proficient in both regular education and special education in order to give the student that was placed in inclusion the best experience possible in order to take away as much as possible from the opportunity. Inclusion started in the 1980s having special education students join their regular education classmates rather than being secluded by themselves in a classroom. The special ed kids are not there to keep up with the other kids but merely there to be included and have modeled behavior and hopefully pick up some of the skills the other students have helping them to be more of a contribution to society. (Kavale, & Forness. 2000) Pros of Inclusion Our country was founded upon the ideals of freedom and equality, so why not have the same treatment for those children or adults that fall into the disabled category. Inclusion gives the students in special education the opportunity to be integrated with their fellow students in regular education in order not to feel like an outcast. One big pro for inclusion is it gives the regular education students a better insight to the disabled student population. Kids are cruel and do not identify well with things of the unknown, secluding the special education kids makes it hard for the other students to know what they are about and it turn because they are different they often get made fun of or judged simply for their disability. On the other hand the special education students benefit from seeing how the “model” student behaves in school. If a special education child happens to be very behavioral sometimes all it takes is for them to have good behavior modeled for them in order for them to pick it up, rather than being secluded in a classroom with other behavioral children which might make it seem to them that it’s okay to act inappropriate. Some may say that the biggest pro for inclusion would be the fact the students in the program feel more of a belonging to the school and classroom as a whole, which gives the special education student a feel of self worth. Teachers will also benefit from inclusion as it gives them a better sense of awareness and appreciation of individual differences in all children. This also gives teachers the opportunity to broaden their own horizons to teach in new ways in order to get the information across to everyone in the room. Cons of Inclusion Even though there are many good things about the inclusion program there are always some negative sides as well. Although putting behavioral children in inclusion may help them to learn appropriate behavior it also disrupts the classroom for all the other students who are also there to learn. Some may say that mainstreaming the special education students may frustrate them as well since they may feel that they are in competition with the other students, and since they are dealing with a disability this may cause them to lash out on the other students. Many inclusion students have an aid with them to assist them with their work but those who do not will suffer not having the same support as they have in a self contained special education classroom since there are not as many teachers in a regular education classroom. Many parents of “gifted and talented” students feel that the inclusion program is not good for their children since it slows down the curriculum in order to accommodate the inclusion students. This can hurt those students since they move at a faster learning pace. A poll conducted by the American Federation of Teachers in West Virginia showed that seventy eight percent of respondents thought that the disabled student population would not benefit from inclusion and eighty seven percent thought that the regular education students would not benefit as well. Article Number Two This article talks about a specific group, which is an advocacy group for students with disabilities and challenging behaviors. The article is about a conference the group attended for the province's francophone teachers union. The conference was held in order to “better improve the education offered to all students, including those with learning, mental or physical challenges (White 2000)”. Inclusion standing alone was not the problem but the teachers involved in the union believing that they could not provide all of the students the education that they deserve. Many teachers were complaining about the lack of support in the classroom when asked to take on a full class of general education students as well as a few special education students. Parents were equally frustrated since they felt their children were not receiving the support that they need in order to have the experience better them instead of hindering their learning possibilities. One of the biggest points that parents felt the need to express is that they feel that the teachers and administrators are not fully committing themselves to the inclusion program and without full commitment the program will not work. The biggest thing needed that the article points out is that teachers and administrators need more and better training in order to serve and teach the students to their full ability. (Alan White 2000 How Teachers Can Better Prepare Themselves Many teachers of the past or who have been teaching for years do not realize all of the preparation it takes to walk into and run an inclusion classroom. Many do not have the training to deal with special education students and often find themselves getting frustrated and giving up on themselves. In order to be prepared the teachers need to (in most states) become duel certified in special education as well as elementary education or a particular subject in high school. Having the duel certification helps the teachers to better understand what each individual student will need and also give them better insight as to how to deal with an IEP (individualized education plan) for the special education student. Since each special education student is different they all have a different set of goals and expectations. The teacher must be able to collaborate the students IEP within the teachings of the curriculum. Article Number Three “The Learner-Centered Psychological Principles (LCPs) (APA Work Group of the Board of Educational Affairs, 1997) have emerged as a framework for improving teacher practices that would enhance student learning and motivation using the most current knowledge in the field. (King 2005/2006)”. This group looks at and focuses on the needs of special education students in the inclusion classroom and how to meet them. It also looks at middle school students, special education and general education in inclusion classrooms to see what their teacher’s practices in order to enhance the students learning experience. The article also gives examples on how the teachers can use their LCP knowledge and transfer it to the classroom. Article Number Four This article talks about how parents in Arlington Heights do not want their child with disabilities in the inclusion environment or become mainstreamed and would rather have them stay in a self contained classroom. The parents of the students in this particular school district went as far as making up a petition to keep their children out of inclusion classrooms. The school district is not an inclusion district and does not plan on implementing inclusion with those students until the parents and teachers come together to make an IEP. They are more concerned with having the students in a least restrictive environment that is appropriate. Thomas Hehir was a speaker at the district meeting encouraging parents to read his book "New Directions in Special Education: Eliminating Ableism in Policy And Practice". The parents nor the administrators were not fond of this idea and look that the author as an inclusionist. The book tries to point out that after high school ends there is no “real” place for the special needs population and inclusion will help to better prepare the students for the real world. (Deborah Donovan ddonovan@dailyherald.com 2010) Article Number Five Sue Gross writes about how education has gone from one extreme to the next. When she was a child and in school she talks about how all special education children that were deemed able to learn were always in a secluded classroom and never with the general/regular education students. Gross’s opinion is that the pendulum seemed to be stuck and not swinging between both sides for a good balanced environment. Now she looks at the inclusion program and thinks the pendulum is still stuck but on the complete opposite side of things considering many educators main focus is to mainstream all special needs children into regular/general education classrooms. A happy medium is what the author is looking for, something that will benefit all that are involved. What students would be candidates for inclusion' Students would need to be studied for a period of time to see what their basic and long term needs are. Many students that are aggressive and could be harmful to others would not be good candidates unless they were able to control their emotions. The last thing inclusion wants to do is put other students at risk. The teachers and parents would have to look at the child’s abilities, can they write on their own, can they read, are they verbal or able to communicate in other ways with their peers. Overall would the inclusion environment help them or hinder them and slow them down. Inclusion takes a lot of work for the parents, teachers and the student. The teachers need to be fully committed to making it work and know how to handle a situation should it arise. Proper training is the only way this can happen. Parents need to support the teachers and implement the programming at school at home to insure consistency for the student at hand. The student has the least amount of work to do he or she just needs to do their best. With the right support and training inclusion would be good for all special education students in different increments. Slowly school districts and administrators will find a good balance for all children but like other things in life it is all about trial and error. What may be good for one child may not be for the other. Deborah Donovan ddonovan@dailyherald.com. (2010, March 2). Special ed parents want to keep separate classrooms. Daily Herald,4. Kenneth A Kavale, & Steven R Forness. (2000). History, rhetoric, and reality: Analysis of the inclusion debate. Remedial and Special Education, 21(5), 279. Alper, S. (1999, Feb 4). Children who learn together, learn to live together. Retrieved February 25, 2009, from Inclusion Web site: http://www.uni.edu/coe/inclusion/ Cohen, Oscar (1994, October 20). 'Inclusion' should not include deaf students. Education Week. Retrieved February 25, 2009, from http://www.zak.co.il/d/deaf-info/old/inclusion Tomsho, R. (2007, Nov 28). Parents of disabled students push for separate classes . Wall Street Journal . U.S. Department of Education. (October, 1992). Policy Guidance. Retrieved February 25, 2009, from http:// www.zak.co.il/d/deaf -info/old/inclusion Ilda Carreiro KingAmerican Annals of the Deaf, Volume 150, Number 5, Winter 2005/2006 Grosse, Susan J. (1995). Danger ahead for students with disabilities: Beware the swinging pendulum! Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance ALAN WHITE. (2000, September 1). Special-needs advocate welcomes inclusion debate. New Brunswick Telegraph Journal