Chapter One

Spencer J. Salend
Understanding Inclusion

What is Special Delivering and monitoring a specially designed and coordinated set of
Education? comprehensive, research-based instructional and assessment practices and related
services to students with learning, behavioral, emotional, physical, health, or
sensory disabilities. Includes:
Individualized assessment and planning
Specialized instruction
Intensive instruction
Goal-directed Instruction
Collaborative Partnerships
Research-based instructional practices
Student performance evaluation
What is inclusion? Inclusion
A philosophy that brings diverse students, families, educators and community
members together to create schools and other social institutions based on
acceptance, belonging, and community. Recognizes that all students are learners
who benefit from a meaningful, challenging, and appropriate curriculum, and
differentiated instruction techniques that address their unique strengths and
needs. Seeks to establish collaborative, supportive, and nurturing communities of
learners that are based on giving all learners the services and accommodations
they need to succeed, as well as respecting and learning from each other’s
individual differences.
Designed to alter the educational system so that it is more able to accommodate
and respond to the diverse strengths, needs and experiences of all students

Mainstreaming
The partial or full-time programs that educated students with disabilities with
their general education peers. Decision to place a student in a mainstreamed
setting is based on educators assessment of his/her readiness; it was implied that
students had to earn the right to be educated full-time in an age-appropriate
general education classroom.

Effective inclusion- places all learners in general education classrooms

regardless of learning ability, race, linguistic ability, economic status, gender,
learning style, ethnicity, cultural and religious background, religion, family
structure, and sexual orientation

What is the least Least restrictive environment

restrictive Requires schools to educate students with disabilities as much as possible with
environment? their peers who do not have disabilities. Determined individually, based on the
students educational needs rather than the students disability. Promotes
placement of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. Students
can be shifted to self-contained special education classes, specialized schools and
residential programs only when their school performance indicates that even with
supplementary aids and services they cannot be educated satisfactorily in a
general education classroom.
Allow students to attend school as close as possible to their homes and to interact
with other students from the neighborhood. Relates to the principle of natural
proportions- according to the ratio of students with and without disabilities in a
classroom reflects the ratio of the larger population.
 What factors Normalization
contributed to the Seeks to provide opportunities, social interactions and experiences that parallel
movement to educate those of society to adults and children with disabilities. The philosophy of
learners in inclusive education students with disabilities in inclusive settings rests on the principle that
classrooms educational, housing, employment, social, and leisure opportunities for
individuals with disabilities should resemble as closely as possible the
opportunities and activities enjoyed by their peers who are not disabled.

Deinstitutionalization
Because of the terrible conditions found in many institutions as well as a growing
awareness of the negative effects of institutionalization, institutions for individual
with disabilities were closed and smaller, community based independent living
arrangements were developed. However, few funds have been earmarked for
services to support these arrangements, limiting the impact of the
deinstitutionalization movement.

Early intervention/Early childhood programs

Effective early intervention and early childhood programs offer all students and
families access to: developmentally, individually, and culturally appropriate
practices: the instructional practices and the curriculum are designed to address
the individual, developmental and cultural needs of the students.
Natural environments: the settings where young children commonly learn
everyday skills
Family-centered service coordination: the process of forming partnerships with
families to assist them in identifying and obtaining the services supports and
resources they need to foster learning and development.
Transition practices: the planning and delivery of practices that help young
children make the transition to general education classrooms.

These programs increase the physical, motor, cognitive, language, speech,

socialization and self-help skills of many children from birth through age 6. They
have reduced the likelihood that secondary disabilities will occur, empowered
families to promote their child’s development, and decreased the probability that
children with disabilities will be socially dependent and institutionalized as
adults.

Technological Advances
Assistive and instructional technology allows individuals with communication,
physical, learning, and sensory disabilities to gain more control over their lives
and environment as well as greater access to society and general education
classrooms.
Assistive tech device- any item, piece of equipment, or product system, bought,
modified, or customized, that is used to increase maintain or improve the
functional capabilities of an individual with a disability.
High tech- tend to be electronic and commercially produced; electronic
communication, speech recognition, reading systems, motorized wheelchairs,
long canes, adapted keyboards, touch screens and magnification aids
Low tech- usually nonelectric and homemade; pencil holders, strings attached to
objects to retrieve them if they fall off the floor.
Assistive tech service- any service that directly assists an individual with a
disability to select, acquire or use an assistive tech device- physical, occupational
and speech therapy.
Civil Rights Movement/Resulting Legislation
Brown vs Topeka Board of Ed: segregation by race
Court cases that were catalysts for change in the way that individuals with
disabilities were educated in the public school system:
Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children vs Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania- agreed that all students with mental retardation had a right to a free
public education. The placement in a general education public school classroom
is preferable to more segregated placements and that families have the right to be
informed of any changes in their children’s educational program.
Mills vs. Board of Ed of District of Columbia- right to free ed for students with
disabilities; the cost of educational services was not a justifiable reason for
denying special ed services to students who needed them

Advocacy groups
Various economic, political and environmental factors have increased the number
of individuals with disabilities, adding to the growth of the disability rights
movement. Transformed from invisible and passive

Segregated Nature of Special School and Classes

Disproportionate Representation

Standards-Based Reform and No Child Left Behind Act

 What are the laws The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
that affect special
education

Other laws Affecting Special Education

What is the impact of Impact of Inclusion on Students with Disabilities

inclusion

Impact of Inclusion on Student Without Disabilities

 Impact of Inclusion on Educators

Impact of Inclusion on Families

Maureen Scala-Freeman, Lesley University

MEd Curriculum and Strategies, MEd Supervision