Inclusion/A Contemporary Challenge. What Is Your Perspective?

It is no surprise that inclusion (along with everything else in education) has pros and cons. I personally think that we need to look at children individually before deciding on one type of educational environment. I believe in the inclusive environment and equal education for all students but I also feel that we need to provide each student with the best opportunities for them to succeed to their fullest potential. There could possibly be situations in which inclusion isn’t the answer. It’s also difficult to focus on inclusion as a one size fits all method because not every school district approaches special education in the same manner. If every single inclusive classroom could have two teachers (one special educator and one general educator) that collaborated on lesson planning and implementation then it would be a lot easier to believe that each student was receiving an equal education that met state standards. 

In Education For All: Critical Issues in the Education of Children and Youth with Disabilities, Jimenez and Graf states that, “Inclusive schools’ advocates claimed that all students with disabilities, even those with severe cognitive impairments or emotional and behavioral disorders, should be served in general education.” (p. 79). I agree with this to an extent because again, not every child is the same and we cannot predict the outcomes of educating them in a general education classroom but I fully believe that we need to try.

Inclusion can be extremely successful if done correctly. I feel I most agreed when the speaker in the Are You Happy? The Story of Morgan Warren Youtube video said, “It takes commitment to make inclusion work.” As seen in this video, Morgan benefitted from being around her peers and they served as motivation for her. The teacher also did a wonderful job of promotion the inclusion of Morgan. All of Morgan’s peers accepted her and helped her succeed in the classroom.

In the article, Inclusion: The Pros and Cons, it says that some parents of students with more severe disabilities are concerned about the opportunities their children will have to develop basic life skills in a regular classroom setting. They are also cautious about inclusion because of fears that their children will be ridiculed by other students. I believe that this belief goes hand in hand with our last blog post in which we all agreed that educators need to promote for inclusion and acceptance of students with ELN. 

As a new educator in today’s classrooms it is hard to overlook the fact that a general education curriculum in college does not prepare us for an inclusion classroom. Early childhood education majors are only required to take two courses designed for special education. While not every classroom is labeled as inclusive, just about every classroom today contains at least one student who faces learning challenges. Educators need to know and understand disabilities, differentiation, and co-teaching practices to successfully teach in an inclusive classroom. This also includes the laws and the provisions that moved towards LRE. As said in Education For All, “The intent of this provision is to ensure that special education is not a place where students go but instead is a service provided to guarantee equal access to education.” (p. 75). As a follower of Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, I am constantly thinking about the many learning styles of my students. It’s almost impossible to teach this way without providing differentiated services in order to provide them with an equal access to education.