Inclusion+in+Classrooms

//__**Inclusion in Classrooms**__// =**Definition** **of Inclusion:** = Inclusion is an approach to educating students with special educational needs. It supports a child's right to participate and the schools duty to accept the child. It is an effort to make sure students with disabilities go to school along with their friends and neighbors while also receiving whatever, "specially designed instruction and support" they need to achieve high standards and succeed as learners. Placing a child in the least restrictive environment (LRE) is a key element of inclusion.

=**Overview and History:** =  Today it is widely accepted that inclusion is the preferred approach to educating children with special needs and it increases the potential academically and socially for most students. The extent to which inclusion is being adopted in school districts varies greatly today. However, in general we have come a long way as a country in meeting the needs of children with spec ial needs and inclusion is one of the basic principles that enables that.

 Inclusive practices have a long history. The ideas for inclusion came from the Civil Rights Movement. Before that time special needs students were highly segregated and had no mandated rights for receiving an appropriate education. By the 1970's civil rights legislation brought about changes for children with special needs. It demanded that they have equal educational opportunities. By 1997, the reauthorization of IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) supported inclusion. IDEA encourages general education and special education teachers to work together to benefit all students. In 2002, NCLB (No Child Left Behind) legislation helped to support the philosophy of inclusion, specifically, to not segregate children with special needs.

 The inclusive movement has occurred in stages. The first stage focused on desegregating students with special needs; basically, getting them into the general education classrooms. The second stage focused on developing practices to support children with special needs in the general education classrooms. Currently, there is a third stage, which no longer focuses on where a student is taught but rather focuses on "what" a student is taught and "how" the teaching is accomplished.

There are four key characteristics of inclusion: home-school placement, the principle of natural proportions, restructuring teaching and learning, and age-and-grade-appropriate placements. Home-school placement means that a special needs student attends the same school they would have attended if they did not have special needs. The principle of natural proportions means that children with special needs should be placed in a classroom in the same proportions that occur within the general population. Restructuring teaching and learning means that general and special educators need to partner with providers of related services, families and students to provide the aids and services needed. Age and grade appropriate placements means that students are placed in the grade that corresponds to their age.



=Articles: = __Inclusion Policy and Practice__ by Thomas P. Lombardi. This article includes strategies for educators, how the law affects education, inclusion programs, and  the role of schools, community leaders, parents, and students. []

__The Challenge of Inclusion__ by Diane Bricker. This article includes recommondations for fostering successful inclusion. []

=Books: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Inclusion: Highly Effective Practices for all Students by James M. McLeskey, Michael S. Rosenberg, and David L. Westling. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">This book paints a complete picture of inclusion by breaking the subject into three segments: Foundations of Successful Inclusion, Meeting the Needs of All Students, and Effective Practices for All Students. The initial section provides an introduction to inclusion, how and why it has evolved, and how student diversity influence inclusion and education in general. The second section provides background information regarding specific disabilities, key issues, and challenges for including students in each category. Section three provides an in-depth presentation of key evidence-based practices.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Inclusion Strategies That Work!: Research-Based Methods for the Classroom by Toby J. Karten. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The book is newly revised to reflect current legislation and research-based strategies. This best-selling guide shows how to adapt teaching strategies, curriculum, and assessment to create a fully inclusive classroom. =<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">PowerPoints: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|Mainstreaming Children with Disabilities: Is It the Child's Best Interest]by Jessica Smith. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The presenter shows an overview, advantages and disadvantages, as well as alternatives on Mainstreaming/Inclusion. =<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Blogs: =

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|On Special Education] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">These blogs talk about inclusion and special education and government policies as well as problems with inclusion and special education around the country.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|Diego's San Francisco Education Blog] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">These blogs are about a father in San Francisco raising a child with special needs and his opinion and views on educating a student with special needs.

[|National Professional Development Center for Inclusion Blog] This is a blog developed by the National Professional Development Center for Inclusion. It provides incites, stories and resources about inclusion for professional development providers, teachers and parents.

=<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Videos: = media type="custom" key="11162984" width="270" height="270" <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">This is a video with music of schools in the Jefferson Parish Public School District. The district is celebrating the start of Inclusion in their schools.

media type="youtube" key="N105TGmMkLk" height="313" width="420" <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">This is a video set to music showing many photos of what "inclusive education" means. = = =media type="youtube" key="o5WCX-998vs" height="315" width="420"= <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">This video set to music talks about how inclusion is incorporated into the classroom and how inclusion benefits everyone. =<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Movies: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|Including Samuel] by Dan Habib <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">This is a documentary about the director's son Samuel that portrays the family’s hopes and struggles as well as the experiences of four other individuals with disabilities and their families.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|Elementary Ed] by Andy Genovese and Samantha Grogin This is a documentary about two children on the Autism spectrum and how inclusion has benefited them and the other children in their classes. The school in which they are educated has been recognized for its acceptance of special education children into an 'inclusive' classroom.

=<span style="color: #008000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Professional Memberships: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">[|National Professional Development Center for Inclusion]

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