Let’s take a look at what it means to be inclusively educated and the ways in which schools provide a common learning environment for children of all ability levels. When we think about inclusion, we know that many children with disabilities face significant barriers that should be removed by abolishing acts of stigma and discrimination among educators and peer groups. It includes ensuring all students with disabilities have equal access to a mainstream classroom with those without disabilities. All children must have quality education to meet their diverse needs. As we explore the key benefits of inclusive education, an attempt to understand the meaning of diversity and inclusion makes it easier to identify the advantages and disadvantages of students learning together.
Inclusive education is the process of welcoming special needs children into a regular classroom with the support of teachers. An inclusive environment is designed for all children to develop skills and a sense of belonging. If they do, they receive equal opportunities to learn, socialize with others, and participate in community life. For example, a special needs child may be invited to play with a small group of peers during recess because they are from the same classroom and were told that disability doesn’t mean being excluded. In an effort to meet educational goals towards academic progress, the school district must work together to ensure that teachers and school staff have the training, flexibility, and openness to adapt the strategy in teaching students with disabilities. While inclusive education is costly in many jurisdictions, funds must be distributed sufficiently by the government that is accountable for providing adequate training as well as implementations to tackle barriers faced by exclusion.
The main goal of developing inclusive education is to collaborate with special and general educators and members of the school board to address the needs of students with disabilities. The involvement of parents and social workers in the process of monitoring a child’s engagement in school can improve teacher competencies to make learning accessible. As you can imagine, some children with disabilities require intensive special education and they often spend less time in a regular classroom. Research has shown that at least 93 million people worldwide live with a disability, with approximately 7.1 million in the United States who have received special education at ages 3-21. Most of all, every child deserves to be supported as they grow and develop unique abilities to succeed. However, not all public schools are welcoming to students of different abilities in mainstream education. Making neighborhood schools inclusive is about full participation in all walks of school life. According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), they have the right to receive free education and related services at school. Under this law, schools across the nation are required to provide special education to help kids meet the needs of academic progress. If children are eligible for special education services, they must report their disability that applies to a specific level of learning. Another option that parents have when their child is in need of access to services is called a section-504 plan, which is part of the Rehabilitation Act. Even with these laws in place, parents often find themselves in adversarial battles with educators to get their children the education they are entitled to by law. The energy that is spent pushing back against parental efforts to receive quality education for their children is a waste of valuable time and resources that could be put to better use formulating a plan for success for the child.
Once the IDEA took effect, it required all schools to have a plan in place for accommodations. In addition to inclusion, the school board must team up with administrators and architects to ensure proper construction of buildings, playgrounds, and walkways. The common learning environment is a diverse setting designed for all children of the same age to learn together while receiving instructional support and opportunities. They all attend school full-time every day and often have access to after-school activities and other social opportunities such as having lunch with friends in the cafeteria.
Part of the issue we acknowledge in adjusting to inclusive school communities is how the norms negatively affect educational rights of minority groups, not just children with disabilities. These include people of color, gender identity, immigration status, and poverty. There are policies that surge discrimination against marginalized groups which may lead to high levels of frustration and prevents them from receiving quality education. There is no reason to think creating an inclusive classroom is a bad thing. And it’s important to understand that inclusion refers to fairness and respect of our individual differences. The removal of children from the classroom regardless of their learning differences means it violates the educational policies resulting in a divided system. If they have already been excluded from schools and activities, steps should be taken to create an inclusive learning environment through communication with specialists and teachers to ensure that students have access to classroom practices.
A better-quality education is necessary for all students to achieve the goals in learning and building close connections with peers. It’s often challenging for families to get their children the support they need, especially when the school system fails to provide appropriate services and programs a child is eligible for. Every school is required to consider the least restrictive environment for the child. In some cases being placed outside a mainstream classroom is the least restrictive environment, For example, the Cedar Lane School is a public school located in Fulton, Maryland. It’s exclusively for students with severe multiple disabilities who don’t do well in mainstream school and may need more intensive supports than can be provided otherwise.
The most effective teaching strategies involve independent practice and tiered lessons that allow individual attention to occur in an inclusive manner. The goals of the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) must be met to make learning flexible and appropriate for the student to be successful.
Parents and disability rights advocates are constantly fighting for quality education for children with disabilities. It would make more sense to add new policies that expand inclusion even though they don’t always work. We know that the IDEA continues to have a significant impact on the rights and protection of children and their families — it is there to say that the benefits of inclusiveness are legitimate in accordance with the law. However more work must be done to ensure that all students have access to a free and public education.
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