Assess The Role Of The Teachers In An Inclusive Classroom

Critical issues facing educators today include; educational inequity, socio-economic status of students, cultural diversity, stereotyping, dominate cultural paradigms, and social disadvantage. Because of these issues, educators will be best prepared for classroom life if they find ways to adapt and modify the learning environment in order, to provide for inclusive regardless of the learners needs. All children in Australia are presented with the opportunity to attend schools which are designed to be inclusive for any and all abilities. Due to the diverse nature of the school age population in Australia classrooms are made up of an assortment of needs in relation to social, cognitive, and physical areas of learning.

Schools most frequently use them for selected students with mild to severe special needs. Inclusive education differs from previously held notions of 'integration' and 'mainstreaming', which tended to be concerned principally with disability and 'special educational needs' and implied learners changing or becoming 'ready for' or deserving of accommodation by the mainstream. By contrast, inclusion is about

Inclusion is simply to be “included”. Inclusion is used to ensure that people with disabilities and needs are not restricted from activities and tasks due to this. Inclusion is about valuing all individuals and giving them a fair chance to be included without discrimination, inclusion should also include children from disadvantaged groups, of all races and cultures as well as the gifted and the disabled. Equal opportunities and inclusion should take account not only of access to provision or school premises, but also to facilities outside school settings, such as school visits. Everyone

In a contemporary Australian school setting, inclusion is the ongoing collaboration of all members of the school community to effectively meet the diverse needs of all students, including those with additional needs (Blackmore, 2009; Lyons, 2014). All students regardless of their cultural background or ability level should experience an enriching education where they feel included and supported. Creating inclusive cultures, producing inclusive policies and evolving inclusive practices are the best ways to promote learning and participation in schools for all students (Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education, 2012; Dempsey, 2014).

Within a school, equality, diversity and inclusion is very important. It is their duty to make sure all children have equal access to the curriculum. Whether they are a different race, culture, gender or have a special need or disability, it is important that they are supported and have a right to participate and be treated equal; this is known as inclusion. As part of this it is important that schools and other professionals support and promote cultural diversity in schools and the wider society, breaking down any discriminatory barriers to learning.

Creating an inclusive learning environment is an extremely important aspect of modern education, which, according to Gravells (2008: p18), ensures that “[…] all learners are entitled to be treated with respect and dignity. Everyone is an individual, with different experiences, abilities and needs.” She also offers a brief explanation of inclusivity (2008: p18), which is “[…] involving all learners in relevant activities rather than excluding them for any reason directly or indirectly.” Inclusion has also been defined by John Tomlinson (1996: p26) as “the greatest degree of match or fit between individual learning requirements and provision”. In the other words, inclusive learning environment nurtures individual potential of all learners,

Aside from providing children with academic benefits, it provides them with a better understanding and respect for diversity. Being in a setting with many different types of students with different needs and abilities provides students with a way to learn about differences and how they can help others. In the Success For All study, results showed that the children involved in the study had “a reduced fear of human differences accompanied by increased comfort and awareness.” (Stout, 2001) If children are separated in the school because of their developmental differences then they will never truly learn that it is okay to be a unique individual. The idea that it is acceptable to be different should become a common knowledge to our students. With that knowledge, our students can make the future a better place for everyone. It has been said that the goal of inclusion is to “create a world in which all people are knowledgeable about and supportive of all other people.” (Whitworth, 1999)

Australia is very a multicultural and diverse country. Consequently schools are faced with many diverse students of different abilities and backgrounds. To ensure equity and fairness among students, policies and legislations have been put into place to ensure diversity is being catered for and that no student is being excluded from the education system. Some of these policies and legislation include: The Disability Discrimination Act 1992, The Salamanca Statement, Disability Standards 2005, Inclusive Education Statement, Disabilities Services Act QLD 2006 and the Melbourne Declaration.

It is important here to clearly distinguish between the terms of integration and inclusion as they are often interchanged (Thompson, 2002). Ainscow (1995) suggests that integration is about making a limited number of additional arrangements for individual pupils with SEN in schools which themselves change little overall, reflecting Warnock’s report. On the other hand, inclusion implies the introduction of a set of changes through which schools restructure themselves so as to be able to embrace all children. Integration involves the school in a process of assimilation where the onus is on the assimilating individual (whether a pupil with SEN or a pupil with a different cultural and linguistic background) to make changes so that they can 'fit in'. By contrast inclusion involves the school in a process of accommodation where the onus is on the school to change, adapting curricula, methods, materials and procedures so that it becomes more responsive. The creation of an inclusive school system certainly appears to harbour numerous challenges including: changing of staff attitudes; restructuring of the physical

Inclusion in classrooms is defined as combining students with disabilities and students without disabilities together in an educational environment. It provides all students with a better sense of belonging. They will enable friendships and evolve feelings of being a member of a diverse community (Bronson, 1999). Inclusion benefits students without disabilities by developing a sense of helping others and respecting other diverse people. By this, the students will build up an appreciation that everyone has unique yet wonderful abilities and personalities (Bronson, 1999). This will enhance their communication skills later in life. Inclusive classrooms provide students with disabilities a better education

General Education teachers may have biases towards certain disabilities which could affect the way they treat certain students. When this is realized, teachers may be more inclined to find more information/ resources to better teach students. When teachers associate a disability with their own experience with it, it can greatly impact their attitude towards inclusive classrooms.

Inclusion is not a new idea. Concerns about inclusion can be dated back to the civil rights movements of the 1960s through to the 1980s. The ideals behind inclusive education have their roots in the development of liberal and progressive thought, where equality of opportunities is stressed. Elizabeth Burgwin, a child welfare pioneer saw no purpose or virtue in segregation. The idea of separate schools was not even considered, instead the idea of how schools may be adapted to the needs of children with disabilities was considered. (Topping & Maloney, 2005).

The focus on inclusion has risen up the political and statutory agenda, to such an extent that there is widespread evidence of

A lot of people do not agree with inclusion in classrooms. They say, “the disabled student might be disruptive” or “the other students might get upset when the teacher has to slow down for the disabled student.” All students have their right to an education, whether it be inclusive or not. If a student is disruptive, the teacher should be able to handle it. Although people think inclusion has many disadvantages, there are far more advantages and benefits for all students, teachers, families and even for communities. Since everyone can benefit from inclusion,  we as society should make schools and communities inclusive.

Inclusive education is concerned with the education and accommodation of ALL children in society, regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, or linguistic deficits. Inclusion should also include children from disadvantaged groups, of all races and cultures as well as the gifted and the disabled (UNESCO, 2003). Inclusion tries to reduce exclusion within the education system by tackling, responding to and meeting the different needs of all learners (Booth, 1996). It involves changing the education system so that it can accommodate the unique styles and way of learning of each learner and ensure that there is quality education for all through the use of proper resources, suitable curricula, appropriate