In the last few decades, the question of integrating students with learning and other disabilities into regular classrooms has been somewhat controversial. While many people believe that these kids should be receiving the same education as the rest of their peers, others have argued that separate classrooms are more beneficial for not only the disabled student, but other students as well.
Personally, I am torn on this issue. In 1990, the Inclusion of Children with Disabilities Act (IDEA) was put into place. The IDEA states that “to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities … are educated with children who are not disabled, and that special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be attained satisfactorily (ACSD)”.
While I think it is every child’s right to be in the same classroom as other students, I have experienced the negative effects of it first-hand. When I was in 5th grade, there was a boy in my class (who was supposed to have been in 8th grade), who had learning and mental disabilities. He was extremely disruptive during class and often was violent towards teachers and other students, including myself.
In the graph above, it shows that many disabled students between the ages of 6-11 often stay in regular classrooms, without any extra resources or guidance. Similarly to my situation, my younger sister who falls in this age group has been experiencing negative effects as well. I believe that almost every year since she was in 1st grade, she has dealt with students with known mental disabilities throwing chairs across the classrooms, disrupting classes, and both verbal and physically assaulting students. In both of our situations, nothing was done to find a solution to these problems. The principals and disciplinary staff have said that there was not anything that they could do about these issues because the students could not help their actions and removing the students from the classroom would make the school look bad.
In addition, when students who have learning disabilities are forced to learn material at a faster pace than they can grasp, it is setting them up to fail. However, the Constitutional Rights Foundation suggests that in order to make it work, teachers will need training and ongoing help to change their assignments and methods in order to include disabled students. They would need to use non-traditional methods like “cooperative-learning groups, peer tutoring, learning portfolios, and oral tests, all students in the class will benefit”. They also say that, teachers may have to customize assignments for these students to be more successful.
On the other hand, many students with disabilities are perfectly capable of learning in regular classrooms. I believe that having separate classrooms available as an option for students with disabilities is the best course of action. In my opinion, it should be up to the discretion of the student, their parents and the school as to whether or not they would be able to be productive and safe in a regular classroom. I hope that more schools begin to implement this idea, as it would allow for a better learning environment for everyone.
“Including Students with Disabilities in General Education Classrooms.” Classroom Leadership: Schools and the Law: Including Students with Disabilities in General Education Classrooms. ASCD, Dec.-Jan. 2001-2. Web. 01 Mar. 2017. <http://www.ascd.org/publications/classroom-leadership/dec2001/Including-Students-with-Disabilities-in-General-Education-Classrooms.aspx>.
“Full Inclusion of All Students with Learning Disabilities in the Regular Education Classroom.” Learning Disabilities Association of America. Learning Disabilities Association of America, June 2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2017. <https://ldaamerica.org/advocacy/lda-position-papers/full-inclusion-of-all-students-with-learning-disabilities-in-the-regular-education-classroom/>.
“Archived: Educational Placements of Students with Disabilities.” Archived: Educational Placements of Students with Disabilities. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2017. <https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/OSEP95AnlRpt/ch1c.html>.
Costly, Andrew. “Including the Disabled Student.” Constitutional Rights Foundation. Constitutional Rights Foundation, n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2017. <http://www.crf-usa.org/brown-v-board-50th-anniversary/including-the-disabled-student.html>.
This controversy is of very pressing yet emotional nature. Obviously, the parents of these disabled students want their children to receive the most “normal” education that they can. As it goes for the general population teachers, they want all children to receive the best education possible. Of course, there is kickback from parents of the other students who feel their child’s education is affected by the presence of disabled children in the classroom. The varying views of this situation creates difficulty when trying to create a viable solution for all parties.
One common option to help alleviate the distraction of disabled children in the classroom is the presence of a Special Education Assistant. These aids often accompany students with disabilities throughout their academic day, giving them the “most normal” school experience possible. Often, these aids help students get from class to class, give additional guidance on assignments, accompany them at lunch, etc. The presence of teacher assistants can be extremely beneficial as it provides more support and guidance for these disabled students who may cause distractions in the classroom, hypothetically eliminating concern and annoyance from other students and/or parents. Though this may seem like one viable option to create an inclusive environment for disabled students in the classroom, there has been evidence of drawbacks.
“As it turns out: special educators, set down in the midst of general education classes, adapt to the prevailing focus on activity, activity flow, and the group’s overall engagement and responsiveness. They become supportive regular classroom teachers, even generalizing their ‘special’ advice in stereotypical, rather than kid-specific, terms” (Garnett). In this perspective, the presence of special instructors can affect the dynamic of the classroom, changing the role of the original teacher by altering learning topics and giving additional advice to students who may not need it. Often, this affect can lead to an uproar of complaints from teachers and parents who play the “fairness card.” “School participants […] ‘feel’ these rules are being violated, and will commonly rush to uphold them-even when they are not in the best interests either of the individual learner or the ‘rest of the class.’ Put another way, for classrooms to more fully accommodate students with learning disabilities, it may well take a cultural shift in the current way of ‘doing school,’ a more fundamental shift in how the enterprise operates overall, not only for those few” (Garnett). Though the positive effect of instructional aids is evident, there will always be kickback from parents and teachers who feel that the adaption and inclusion of disabled children is not viable and fair for a classroom setting. In order for this controversy to end and create an agreeable solution for all parties, change in some steadfast beliefs will be necessary.
Garnett, Kate. “What Are Classrooms Like for Students with Learning Disabilities?” Reading Rockets. WETA Public Broadcasting, 27 Feb. 2017. Web. 02 Mar. 2017.
I agree that the current way schools operate may not the greatest. However, not all schools have the resources available (Extra teachers, aids, classroom space) to make changes. Unfortunately, I don’t think we will ever be able to make everyone happy.
I do find it interesting that you first hand experience was not being the one on the other side of things. Although I completely agree that children with learning disabilities should be in a separate class, my reasoning is completely different.
I have twin girls who are now 14 that have very delayed emotional and mental disabilities which has caused them to remain at a third grade learning level. They were in public school until their second year in 2nd grade. My daughters had become so low on self esteem and severely negative thoughts towards themselves due to being in a classroom with other peers who did not have a learning disability. Daily other students would tease them because their homework was not at the same level as others. Being bullied constantly, and told how stupid they were. It was absolutely horrible, and has taken years to recover. Which they still struggle with those thoughts that were ingrained in their head by their peers. It would have been a far better learning environment if they were in classes where others were at their same level. That way they could relate to others who are struggling and learn to help each other. It makes a parent feel helpless when they want the best for their child but putting them in normal classes when they are already not at the same level except by age is like putting someone in first grade in the same class as all 10th graders and telling them to figure it out. It breaks my heart.
Compared to rearranging the living room with an invisible elephant in the middle, the remolding of the general education system to better serve students with learning disabilities is daunting, but not impossible. According to the elephant metaphor, the more you “see” where the problem lies, the less it tramples your efforts (Garnett).
From the reading and research I have done, it looks like many schools are attempting for inclusive education. It is believed that classrooms where students with learning disabilities are present in the normal classroom environment helps the students socially and academically (Chira). “Demystifying disabilities”, these programs promote interaction between all students giving the students with disabilities an example of socialization and teaching empathy and tolerance to their classmates (Chira).
However, the schools that have made the switch have shown varying degrees of success. For example, James Ysseldyke, a professor at the University of Minnesota who worked to incorporate inclusion into schools, said, “I’m very pro-inclusion on a philosophical basis, but it isn’t working well… It’s being used with every good intention to do some terrible things to kids.” (Chira).
Therefore, my question is what causes some inclusivity programs to work better than others?
The largest factor in this particular facet of education I believe specificity to the child. I think an obstacle to the goal of inclusion is that educators equate “inclusivity” to “fitting in”. In general, I think teachers have the right intentions when not wanting to change a student’s learning plan due to the adverse effects of the student “sticking out”. However, this comes with the price of a child not learning to their capability (Garnett). In addition, I worry that some teachers and students may garner the relationship of “you don’t bother me, I won’t bother you.” (Garnett). Again, while the teacher is attempting to control their classroom they do not permit students who may have trouble to reach their full potential.
Ultimately, I think the determining factor on the success of inclusive schooling depends on the amount of effort and resources schools are willing to put into it. With teaching aides, trained staff, and the understanding of “different strokes for different folks”, I believe that inclusive schooling may be a positive element to our education system.
Chira, Susan. “When Disabled Students Enter Regular Classrooms.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 18 May 1993. Web. 02 Mar. 2017.
Garnett, Kate. “What Are Classrooms Like for Students with Learning Disabilities?” Reading Rockets. WETA Public Broadcasting, 27 Feb. 2017. Web. 02 Mar. 2017
With the issue of providing an education for disabled students, there is a tradeoff between providing attention according to their need and integrating them into activities so they are not a group sequestered from other students. In a TEDx Talk, educator and CEO of an inclusion initiative Torrie Dunlap outlines the three models with which people can view disabled people: the medical model, the social model and the biopsychosocial model. The medical model interprets disability as a problem to be solved and encourages us to perceive the disabled with pity: “We feel sorry for people who are broken and need fixing and we feel charitable when we can help. We design special services for special kids. We feel kind when we can help these poor kids with disabilities.” This model is likely behind the creation of classrooms that group all disabled children together in a misguided effort to care for them. The model makes a lot of assumptions. “We are assuming that children who have disabilities have a poor quality of life. That they can’t learn and that they can’t achieve. We assume they need something different than other kids because they are special.” To solve this problem there is the social model approach, stating that “societal barriers are the problem and not the person. Disability is not viewed as negative but as neutral, and in order to limit the impact of a person’s disability we need to change the interaction between the person and the environment.” The social model encourages critical thinking about how to treat a group of people as just that, individual people, rather than a monolith to be widely generalized. The third model, biopsychosocial, “accepts that disability labels and diagnoses are an important part of a person’s identity and also understands that the environment plays a role in someone’s ability to function.” This may be the most prudent way to view the problem – incorporate the social model by acknowledging every student as a unique individual, which will avoid the pitfall of defining them by a label, while paying attention to the factors that make life harder for those with disabilities in order to go about reducing them. Using this holistic approach could avoid the all-or-nothing encompassing nature of approaches such as segregated classrooms for “special” kids.
For such a complex problem that has social, medical, and identity implications, it is imperative we avoid generalizing or lumping people with disabilities into one group. Using a case-by-case basis and evaluating based on the wishes of parents and the school is definitely the best choice going forward.
Dunlap, Torrie. “Isn’t It a Pity? The Real Problem with Special Needs.” TEDxAmericasFinestCity. San Diego State University, San Diego. 2 Mar. 2017. Lecture.
It’s interesting to see the multiple models for dealing with this issue. I feel like a biophsychosocial model seems like a viable option in the notion that everyone in the environment would be open to the allowance of disabled children to be molded by their environment. Though there is no one solution to this problem, I feel that the root of the issues comes from a lack of effort from all members in the community to aid in the inclusion of disabled students. Until agreeance and cooperation are evident from multiple aspects of the school system, this controversy will continue to challenge our society.
“Using a case-by-case basis and evaluating based on the wishes of parents and the school is definitely the best choice going forward.” It seems that we all believe that this would be ideal model for schooling of every individual in our education system. Therefore, where do you think we are failing to achieve this? Do you think teachers need more training to recognize the individual needs of students? Although, I am not sure how we can expect teachers to do this in already overflowing classrooms along with their other responsibilities. Or do you think we should include more learning assistants in the classroom to identify the individual needs? The only problem I see with this is the financial burden it would put on the school. Since we all seem to agree on how our classes should be, what do you think the best solution is?
I think so too aye
I want a law to be created and passed that explicitly states and rules that if a youngster used to disrupt classes but no longer does so, that even if he/she has all regular mainstream subject classes and a regular mainstream homeroom class, that it is illegal for the youngster’s regular mainstream homeroom teacher to refuse to give permission for him/her to go on a regular mainstream school club trip and that it is illegal for the youngster’s regular mainstream homeroom teacher to tell him/her to get the permission from a special education teacher. This is no way to reward a youngster for behaving him/herself and it causes the youngster irreversible psychological damage. Furthermore, whoever the youngster is made it clear that he/she turned over a new leaf, that he/she wants to be in the regular mainstream only, that he/she does not want anything to do with special education or any other stigmas whatsoever, and that he/she wants to be treated exactly like everybody else! This is not too much for the youngster to ask for!
Please reply.
This is all well and good on paper, but in reality, integrating many of these special needs students into the regular classroom creates a terrible burden on the teacher as well as other students in the class. My daughter who teaches elementary school (K-6) has mentioned many of her negative experiences over the last few years with special needs students. When they are asked to try and do some minor work, they throw themselves on the floor kicking and screaming at the top of their lungs for the whole period refusing to do anything. This is so disruptive to the other kids in the class it’s a wonder they can learn anything. They have also kicked other students as well as thrown a desk at my daughter and hit her in the face with a toy because she asked them to do some work. She has reported these incidents to her Director and has been told that these students can’t be disciplined because it against the law.
Also just last week she relayed an incident that occurred to another teacher in her school; the teacher was slapped four times in the face by one of the students. Again no discipline. What’s wrong with our school system? Why are these incidents continuing without punishment. At this rate we will no longer have teachers for our non-special needs students if something isn’t done to teach these kids responsibility for their actions. What’s society going to be like in few years?
I have the same problem in my kids class. They have a sped kid who is loud, obnoxious, constantly disrupting and disrespectful, yelling at students and teacher all day long. Many times he has hit students and was not sent to the Principal’s office. The kids say he is treated better than all the other kids and the regular rules do not apply to him. I want more legislators to address this so that kids, teachers, and principals can discipline these kids the same as everyone else. When that kid gets in the real world he will be arrested for assault. What kind of false reality are you creating for the child. It’s a hostile learning environment for the other kids.