Throughout looking for secondary sources, I have found that
there is more information about the negative impacts of inclusion classrooms
than I originally thought. Yes, a lot of the research and information leans towards
inclusion classrooms but some of these articles also bring up the negative
side. Though some of my research will cover the necessities of an inclusion
classroom, my argument is guided towards the downfalls of this environment for
both special needs students as well as the general education students. The secondary
articles I have chosen discusses some of the advantages and downfalls of an
inclusion setting across different grade levels and disability areas. There are
many challenges associated with inclusion classrooms including the level of
content, the pace of the classroom, expectations of independent skills, and
much more. Throughout reading some of these articles, I have come to the realization
that the teacher’s attitude and ability to differentiate instructions properly
have a major impact on the effectiveness of an inclusion classroom. My second
article discusses the importance of continued professional development with specific
components that should be discussed and implemented for inclusion teachers. There
are many articles I found that discuss ways of making an inclusion classroom
work. Ideas, practices and skills that can be contributed to making a successful inclusion environment, but I am going to focus on the ways this environment doesn't work.
Mastropieri, Margo A., and Thomas E. Scruggs.
“Promoting Inclusion in Secondary Classrooms.” Learning Disability Quarterly, vol. 24, no. 4, 2001, pp. 265–274. JSTOR,
JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1511115.
Vaughn, Sharon, et al. “A Collaborative
Effort to Enhance Reading and Writing Instruction in Inclusion Classrooms.”
Learning Disability Quarterly, vol. 21, no. 1, 1998, pp. 57–74. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1511372.
Obiakor,
Festus E., et al. “Making Inclusion Work in General
Education Classrooms.” Education and Treatment of Children, vol. 35, no. 3, 2012, pp. 477–490., www.jstor.org/stable/42900597.
I find your topic particularly interesting as I have personal experience growing up with a very close family friend who has autism and going to school with him all my life. I know that this is a very individualized situation as to whether or not a student can or should be in an inclusion classroom. There certainly are students who benefit from them with a teacher aide assigned to specifically assist the student that needs a little bit more help and there are instances where being an inclusion classroom can be profoundly negative to the student's learning. I am very interested to see from your personal experience in these classrooms learning and watching students what you think about maybe the need for more teachers specifically special education teachers in schools to assist in the inclusion classrooms that do exist.
ReplyDeleteI am surprised to hear you found more articles about the negative side of inclusion classrooms. I had also thought that inclusion was better but after hearing your experiences, I have also had a change of mind. Has there been a change in what is better or not over time?
ReplyDelete-Michelle Rim
If there is some good, there has to be some bad to accompany it. Otherwise life would be full of too much good news and that's bad for the humility. At least you have turned your obstacle into a new direction. That's the best kind of research, I've found. That which takes your information in ways you didn't expect.
ReplyDelete