Inclusion in the Classroom

Inclusion in the classroom is a controversial subject with regard to learning. It tampers with social values and the feeling of individuality. Inclusion in the classroom is the commitment by the school to meet all the learning needs of a student to maximize the education given. It is a way of combining all students into one classroom instead of outcasting children with disabilities. This brings a sense of equality and belonging. Many questions follow this topic; do we value our children equally? Are their different levels of inclusion? What are the pros and cons of inclusion? Inclusion is at the forefront of education because people are torn over it.

Before viewing the pros and cons of this subject, I think it is crucial we decipher what exactly are the levels of inclusion? If one would want full inclusion, than that would be extremely difficult because some individuals are so disabled that they may become a distraction to the rest of the class. I am not being facetious with that comment, however, I have worked with disabled children before and if you are trying to teach a class of thirty children it may be difficult. Partial inclusion is when a certain level of disability is allowed into the classroom and other higher level of disabled children will get the individual attention.

There are many pros and cons when it comes to inclusion. Many of the supporters for inclusion look at the ineffectiveness of seperating disabled children from the norm. The following link (http://www.sedl.org/change/issues/issues43/support_for_inclusion.html) shows that the numbers do not lie. Here are some quick facts:

-43 percent of students in special education do not graduate;
-youth with disabilities have a significantly higher likelihood of being arrested than their non- disabled peers (12 percent versus 8 percent);
-only 13.4 percent of youth with disabilities are living independently two years after leaving high school (compared to 33.2 percent of their non-disabled peers); and
-less than half of all youth with disabilities are employed after having been out of school one to two years.

These statistics show that noninclusion of students at the moment are not raking in the numbers one would like to see. Supporters say that inclusion may improve learning for ALL students. Children will have the opportunity to learn and accept individual differences and help one another. On top of increased learnign potential, school districts can reduce costs by letting the teachers.

A major con with inclusion is the level of expertise and education that a teacher may have. Being able to teach a person with disability is far off from teaching history. There is a level of background that you need to have in order to teach successfully. People who are against inclusion note that teachers will not have the education level, resources, or support to have inclusion int he classroom. They also believe that children with disability will not get the individual care needed to be educated sucessfully.

My personal opinion is that full inclusion would never be able to work, however partial inclusion could be successful. Guidelines need to be made on what is "partial" and what is "full." Not every student with a disability needs to be excluded from a classroom. The word "disability" is vague and does not create any criteria. There are many students out their with "minor" disabilities that can and should be involved in a normal classroom. However, I believe the children with a "major" disability should have a trained and experienced professional assist them and give them the individual attention that they need.