What can we do to promote the social integration of students with exceptional learning needs? One word specifically comes to mind, Partnerships.
Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA), 1975, the backbone of special education, and the beginning of the partnership in the mid 1970's, with the belief that "all" children have the right to a free and appropriate education. This shift in basic thinking was the first movement to promoting the social integration of students with exceptional learning needs.
The framers of that Act realized that not only were these children educationally stigmatized but their social stigma affected them daily on Main St. This partnership between the Federal Government and Children with disabilities paved the way for not only educational integration but social integration. Prior to the introduction of LRE (least restrictive environment), the children with disabilities were outcasts both at home and at school and this forced integration changed that thinking. "...if separate but equal is not allowed with regard to race,neither should it be allowed to segregate students with disabilities from participating in public school settings." (Jimenez, Graf, 2002). This integration had broken down walls for these children that had existed for decades and called for immediate partnership between parents and educators alike. Like any partnerships they needed time to strenghthen and grow.
We must take into consideration that not all partnerships are perfect and need a level of trust that does not always exist "...in many instances, schools and families interact within a culture of mistrust and intimidation." (Jimenez,Graf, 2002). We as educators must continually build those partnerships with administrators, parents and students, both with and without disabilities, is this is to work correctly and to its fullest potential.
Unfortunately, even today stigmas continue to persist and exist, but there are resources which can be utilized that are authorized by IDEA and funded by the Department of Education. PTIs (parent training and information centers), CPRCs (community parent resource centers and others to assist the parents of children with disabilities. Of course for our children with disabilities,resources like "circle of friends-involves educators, parents, or peers inviting classmates to form a support network for students with a disability so that the student will have friends (Falvey, Forest, Pearpoint, & Rosenburg, 2002). These support groups can be the "in" that children with disabilities are looking for to feel just like the other children. It is our job to educate and partner with these types of resources to socially integrate our children. With these resources and the expansion of others the question of how to integrate children with disabilities may never need to be asked.
After many years within the field of education, special education that is, I was not familiar with all the support groups that are available to the families of students with special needs. Those groups that you mentioned above that were outlined in Chapter 4 of Exceptional Lives present many avenues, not only for parents but educators alike, to gain support to integrate students with exceptional needs into the social area of their same age peers.
ReplyDeleteIt is definitely a partnership that needs to be built on trust. Teachers do need to realize that parents may bring years of resistance to the table when you sit down for an IEP meeting. They automatically may respond in defense and seem abrupt and aggressive. Always remember to see the student's life through their eyes- the parent. You may react differently too.
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ReplyDeleteAgostino, very nice ideas. I like your thoughts on partnerships, and how you related them to the initial collaboration between the federal government and children with disabilities. I, too, incorporated IDEA into my Blog Post #2. The idea that all students are entitled to a free and appropriate education in the LRE is becoming the mantra of the semester for me, thus far. The support groups are another great asset. The Circle-of-Friends is an outstanding way for social interaction among children with disabilities who may have a difficult time coming out of their shell in a classroom setting.
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