The Class Room By William Wright G00051681

There are many problems with today’s education, but one of the main problems would be the topic of inclusion vs. self-contained classroom. Many people have different opinions on this topic. For instance, some believe that disabled children should be separated from non-disabled children in classrooms, while others believe they should not be separated. There are many advantages and disadvantages to both sides of this situation. The views of both of these choices are completely opposite. On one side something may have a positive outcome, but on the other side, it may result in a negative outcome. Choosing which one has more positive outcomes for students is not the easiest choice, but it is a choice that has to be made in order for students

The inclusion of children with learning disabilities into normal classrooms has proved to exhibit both positive and negative effects on children with and without disabilities.

Inclusion is the act of placing students with disabilities into the general education classroom. Students are given the tools, time, and resources necessary to actively participate in all aspects of the general education classroom. Inclusion is not just adding a student with disabilities into the classroom, but genuinely including them as valued members of the classroom. Inclusion is not an easy system to put into practice because it requires a great deal of teamwork and cooperation between teachers, administrators, and parents. Positive Inclusion programs closely supervise the social and academic progress to ensure the students are thriving. When inclusion is done correctly, the teacher finds a way to meet the student’s needs in a way that is natural and unobtrusive. The resources and supports in an inclusion classroom benefit all students, not just the students with disabilities.

I also believe that a key element of inclusion is maintaining a close relationship between me and the special education teachers and paraprofessionals that I will be working with. If it is at all possible to work together in one classroom, I believe that this will benefit all my students.

Inclusion is the act of having students with disabilities and abled body students in the same classroom. In concept this has many benefits not only for the students but it also saves time and money for the school, however in practice I do not think inclusion works the way it was hoped to. Inclusion in theory will put light strain on the classroom because of safe guards such as helper teachers are in place to help out. In my experience these teachers are in the way most of the time when students are trying to learn, and students feel cheated when the special needs students are handed a supplemented test making the students feel bad. Lastly that the pros of inclusion in the classroom are set in perfect conditions with good teachers on both sides special education and general education, however most of the time that is not the case.

Inclusion can be defined as the act of being present at regular education classes with the support and services needed to successfully achieve educational goals. Inclusion in the scholastic environment benefits both the disabled student and the non-disabled student in obtaining better life skills. By including all students as much as possible in general or regular education classes all students can learn to work cooperatively, learn to work with different kinds of people, and learn how to help people in tasks. “As Stainback, Stainback, East, and Sapon-Shevin (1994) have noted, ‘...the goal of inclusion in schools is to create a world in which all people are knowledgeable about and supportive of all other

Students with special needs need deserve the same education general education students are presented with. The philosophy of “ Disability Inclusion” concentrates on creating a safe, loving, and effective learning environment for students who suffer from physical, learning, and behavioral disabilities. When a student with disabilities is placed in the same environment as a non-disabled student, the results show wonderful improvement. When we are able to discover the strength of the student we are able to see just how much the student can improve in an inclusion classroom. Disability Inclusion not only sets a new beginning for an equal education of special education students, but it allows for more interaction with the child, and a more hands-on assessment.

Teachers attitude toward inclusion are important factor that can cause inclusion to succeed or fail. Survey results indicated that numerous educators have a positive attitude towards the inclusion of special needs students and the beneficial outcomes that

The teacher needs to prepare students to be accepting of the special needs students by being honest about the nature of the child's disability and/or behavior difficulty. Although inclusion seems like a great idea that should be of some form of benefit for all involved, if not handled properly it can become a very stressful situation

Orr (2009) conducted interviews with special education teachers and the attitudes they have seen in their schools since inclusion was implemented in their schools. Orr (2009) chose fifteen teachers, which included fourteen female and one male teacher who agreed to participate in the study so it was a purposive criterion sample. Twelve of the fifteen teachers taught in a suburban area, two in a rural area, and one in an urban area; but they varied in the age they taught and school. Seven of the fifteen teachers taught in a self-contained classroom while the remaining eight taught in a resource room, where they only saw a student for less than an hour or two a day. Another pattern that showed was that many teachers found that they did not receive any classes that focused on differentiation or inclusion while completing their undergraduate work (Orr 2009). These results are important when considering the implementation of inclusion because it may mean that there is a need to reteach teachers. It is important to consider professional development classes district-wide before implementing inclusion in the classroom.

Inclusion in classrooms can further benefit the communication skills and sense of community among students with and without disabilities. “Children that learn together, learn to live together” (Bronson, 1999). For students with special needs, inclusive classrooms provide them with a sense of self-belonging. The classrooms provide diverse environments with which the students will evolve feelings of being a member of a diverse community (Bronson, 1999). For students without disabilities, they learn to develop appreciation of the diversity. The classrooms provide many opportunities for the students to experience diversity and realize that everyone has different abilities that are unique and acceptable. From this realization, the students will learn to be respectful for others with different characteristics (Bronson, 1999). Inclusion in classrooms is beneficial to all students’ individual and community growth.

In order to get a true understanding of teaching in an inclusion classroom, I was able to observe a fourth grade classroom at Village School in West Windsor, New Jersey. The general education teacher was Ms. Welsh and the special education teacher was Ms. Wilush. Ms. Welsh has been teaching for many years, while Ms. Wilush has only been teaching for two years. Each teacher brings with them different strategies, that together make a wonderful classroom dynamic. The students make up an average size fourth grade classroom of a little more than twenty, but there are three students who receive additional instruction from Ms. Wilush in a resource room throughout the day. During my observation, I was able to sit in on writing lessons and science lessons. There was a wide variety of students in the class with all different strengths, weaknesses, and personalities. Watching and learning from both teachers through observation and interview was an extremely valuable experience.

Over the past twenty years, there has been a strong movement within schools around the United States to integrate students with disabilities in to general education classrooms. Schools have been making more efforts to increase educational opportunities for students with disabilities, and while there are many benefits to inclusion, there are also many challenges. Inclusion of special education students in a regular education classroom continues to be the center of debate amongst administrators and teachers. Everyone has their own ideas and attitudes towards inclusion, and research studies have revealed that there are many things that contribute to those positive or negative attitudes.

Over the course of structuring the education system to include students with disabilities, there has being an ongoing research topic of inclusion. Inclusion, in this area, means the full inclusion of students with special needs in the general education classroom . The research and the debates about the issue of whether or not there should be full inclusion of Special Education students in all general education classrooms in all public schools throughout the United States rages on. The number of students with special needs that are included in regular education classrooms in public schools has swollen, and the educational philosophy and movement have grown and have been adopted and practice, as well. The questions remains, Is this new teaching style very effective and beneficial to the academic success of students with special needs as well as other students? How does the inclusion of special needs students in regular class setting effect the teaching strategies of regular education teachers and their regular education students?

Few topics have as much controversy as inclusion of children with special needs in regular classrooms. Few professionals question the appropriateness of inclusion of students with disabilities in regular classes. However, significant debate about which students should form part of the general education classes and the time they should spend in those classes persists. This has led to two groups, one for, and the other against inclusion. There are those who think that all students belong to regular education. This group claims that all students have a right to attend school with their peers and this can only occur within a single system where all students form the learning community. Secondly, the group claims that all students can benefit from education through supportive learning in inclusive settings. Third, they cite stigma as unfavorable to the children’s welfare. Lastly, they observe that the approaches used in special classes do not significantly differ from those used in regular classes (Zwaagstra et al. 13). Conversely, the other group believes that only students who meet certain standards should be included in regular classes. The group supports inclusion only under unique conditions. This group observes in regular classrooms instructors cannot offer some of the services that students with disabilities need. Additionally, they claim that instructors in regular classrooms may lack the