What is inclusion? 

Inclusion is an educational environment in which all students are grouped together in the same classroom regardless of their intelligence level hence the phrase used, “Least Restrictive Environment”. This practice means that an increasing number of regular classroom teachers are called upon to teach exceptional children in regular classrooms, sometimes also termed inclusive classrooms (LeFrançois, G. 2011). 

IDEA was established for children with learning disabilities and has been mandated as a part of every educational facility. As defined by the American Psychological Association, “The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) ensures that all children with disabilities are entitled to a free appropriate public education to meet their unique needs and prepare them for further education, employment, and independent living.”

Not every student learns equally; however, every student should be given the equal opportunity to do so regardless of their learning abilities. With that, inclusion provides an environment where not only students will learn together, but regular students will respect and build friendships with students with learning disabilities. While I never had the change to experience this firsthand, this type of environment will enhance friendships and students helping one another. I think that when a child is included in something, their self confidence improves and they will strive to work harder.

Second, inclusion allows students to understand one another and learn from each other as far as customs and courtesies and attitudes. Students are vulnerable to imitate what they see whether it be good or bad. According to the text, one of the benefits of inclusion is the learning of socially appropriate behaviors by students with disabilities as a result of modeling the behavior of other students.

Lastly, inclusive classrooms provide students with learning disabilities access to general learning like the rest of their peers. They will learn the same information instead of the curriculum being adjusted which may omit valuable information. In this case, these students may be learning information that could be too easy depending on where they stand knowledge wise. For others, the adjustment may hinder learning more challenging information some could be ready for. 

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). (n.d.). Retrieved July 17, 2016, from http://www.apa.org/about/gr/issues/disability/idea.aspx

LeFrançois, G. (2011). Psychology for teaching (11th ed.). San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

BY:Melissa Cagno