Through my experiences, I believe all
students should have access to general education classes and provided with
interventions if needed. I think least
restrictive environment looks like a revolving door, where students receive interventions
based on their needs. For example, a
student may do really well with adding and subtracting fractions, but struggle
with problem solving when applying those skills. The student can be in the classroom for the
learning of fractions and pulled out for interventions on how to apply those
skills. Once the team teachers get more
experience, ideally, they would be able to provide the intervention in the
classroom.
I found the comments the administrators
made on inclusion in your article interesting. It would be intriguing to do a survey on how
administrators feel about inclusion compared to how successful their inclusion
settings are in their school. I have
noticed throughout my career with many principals, the impact a leader can have
on the school environment. Who
principals are as people, what they believe, and what they know and are able to
do, significantly influences the teachers to change in the school. Comparing
the two districts I have been in, the principal’s education of special
education has had significant impact on special education in the
building.
The inclusion of students with
disabilities in schools needs to become an expectation not an option and
we need to better educate administrators and teachers. With that
being said, there needs to be more professional development to improve teaching
in the inclusion setting for both general educators and special educators, along
with constant collaboration and monitoring to improve the inclusion setting. This
is also stated in IDEA as a support and service to include “support and
training to staff that work with that student.”
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