Is the Inclusive Classroom Model Workable?

One of the most satisfying years in my seventeen year mentor profession was the year I had a full addition class. The amazing part was that my trainees didn't even know that I was their unique education teacher. They viewed me as simply among their instructors. The regular education students also had no concept that I existed especially for the 10 students that had Specific Education Strategies. After having a year like that you would believe that my response to the question would be absolutely yes.

Well not quite. A closer look at the inclusive design is needed to weigh in on this concern. In TAKING SIDES: CLASHING VIEWS ON EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS, Mara Sapon-Shevin, (2008) states, "In our progressively varied world, all people need to be comfy with diversity. Inclusion benefits all students by helping them comprehend and appreciate that the world is big, that individuals are various, and that we can interact to find options that work for everyone". (as mentioned in Noll, pg.

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233) I agree with this statement however, does that mean addition will work for all?

According to Wade A. Carpenter, (2008) inclusion "does not suggest that every trainee is educated with peers at all times, however it does suggest that the responsibility of finding efficient means for all trainees to learn together is taken really seriously and discrepancies from this technique are made with hesitation and only after careful deliberation". (as cited in Noll, pg. 239) Each kid is unique and finds out in different ways; however, the trend today is that many schools still have a tendency to hold onto to the one-size-fits-all education philosophy.

It is often the case where a handful of students of varying requirements are set amongst a group of normally operating trainees. What is the thinking for this? To benefit the special needs students or have the regular trainees end up being more familiar with disabilities. Specials needs aren't always visible nor are they always what we think they are. A kid might have an undiagnosed hearing or vision problem, that's an impairment.

He or she may have difficulty with attention or with sitting still, that’s a disability. They may have difficulties with comprehending instructions, this is also a disability. Whatever the need, the issue is whether or not that child should be pulled from the classroom and work with a specialist in a resource room, or whether they should be fully included within the general education. IN CLEARING THE HURDLES OF INCLUSION, Sandy Merritt (2001) states that “inclusion does not mean that the student cannot be taken from the room for instruction if the IEP team deems it necessary. If it is not in the best interest of all students in the classroom for the special education student to remain there, the team can and should make changes in the student's placement. There is not one recipe for the inclusion of special education students. Because inclusion is individualized, it will look different for every student.”(Pg. 67) This is the statement that I agree with the most.

I do not believe that one size fits all! I do believe that inclusion works under the right circumstance and with the right students. In the beginning I told you of the best year in my teaching career. Well I can also tell you about the worst year. It was also a year when I had a full inclusion class. I had one student that required my attention to the extent that I struggled meeting the needs of the rest of my IEP students. The student that was getting my attention was a student with a behavior disability that required more structure that a regular inclusion class. His IEP stated his least restrictive environment as a regular education class.

It took me almost a whole year of documentation to finally have someone finally admit that this placement was not only inappropriate for the student but also for the 25 other students whose education he interrupted on a daily basis. What do I feel would be common ground between each side? An inclusive model is workable when all students benefit and thrive in the education setting. Do I think it’s important for regular students to understand varying disabilities? Absolutely, there are many ways to accomplish but only if it beneficial to all students.

References

Merritt, S. (2001). Clearing the Hurdles of Inclusion. Educational Leadership, 59(3), 67-70 Noll, J. (2010-02-08). Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Educational Issues. McGraw-Hill/Dushkin. Kindle Edition.