University Report: Education for Inclusion in Classroom Environments

This report is a proposal advocating for education for inclusion, a concept that emphasizes integrating students with and without disabilities in general education classrooms. It highlights the benefits, which include improved academic and social outcomes for all students, increased motivation, and enhanced learning opportunities. The report outlines procedures for creating inclusive environments, such as teachers being trained to accommodate diverse learning styles and ensuring that all students feel welcomed and supported. It also acknowledges potential barriers, including societal attitudes, rigid curricula, inadequate teacher training, insufficient funding, and centralized education systems. The report concludes with recommendations for implementation, emphasizing the importance of individualized education programs (IEPs), preferential seating, and teacher awareness of student needs, and providing necessary resources for students to succeed. The report aims to provide higher authorities with insights into the importance of inclusive education and steps needed for effective implementation.

Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
Introduction:
Inclusive classroom as well as inclusive environment is a new thought in the education
genre. This aspect of education believes in including a general form of teaching procedure and
classroom development where students with or without the disabilities are seen to work and learn
together (VanHees et al., 2015). It is quite different from the traditional through process where
students with special needs were allocated separate classrooms and teaching processes with the
belief that they require special attention and care. It is entirely different from the special
education classroom where students will disabilities only learn with similar other students with
disabilities (Messiou et al., 2017). This assignment will mainly be written in the form of a
proposal where various important aspects about inclusion education would be highlighted to the
higher authorities. It will depict the various benefits and procedures of developing such an
inclusive environment so that both students with or without disabilities can grow up to be adults
will full potential and strength to lead their successful lives in the society. Recommendations
would be provided to the higher authority about ways by which such environment can be
achieved in the schools.
What is needed to achieve?
Inclusive education will only take place when every student despite any challenges will
be placed in the age-appropriate general education classes. This can be in their neighbourhood
schools where they will receive high quality instructions as well as interventions and support
from expert teachers which will ultimately help them in meeting success in the core curriculum
(Faccolade et al., 2017).

2Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
Procedure:
 The classroom and the school will be mainly operating in the premise that students who
have special needs are fundamentally competent as students without special needs. In this
manner, all students will consider themselves as full participants in the classrooms as
well as in the local school community (Armstrong et al., 2016). It must be however kept
in mind that this form of education should be always considered as a movement related to
the legislation that all students will receive their education in the least restrictive
environment.
 Teachers require to take care that students with special needs should be working closely
with their peers without such needs to the maximum degree possible with the general
education being the first choice of all students. Researchers are of the opinion that
successful inclusive education can happen primarily through the procedure of accepting,
understanding as well as attending to the student differences as well as diversity which
will eventually include the physical, cognitive, social, emotional as well as academic
aspects (Carter et al., 2015). Therefore, teachers who would be participating in the project
needs to be well trained with proper principles and ethics so that they can help the
students to become successful part of the inclusive classroom.
 It is necessary to be aware of the driving principle for the teacher who would be
participating in the project. They need to make sure that all the students should feel
welcomed, appropriately challenged as well as supported in their efforts. The school

3Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
authority should need to also keep in mind that the environment should be such that the
adults should also feel supported (Baran, 2014). This might include the regular education
teacher as well as the special education teacher and even the staffs as well as the faculty
who are the key stakeholders. This should importantly include parents as well.
Benefits that the project will bring out:
 This project will help both the students with or without the special needs to learn more.
Over the last three decades studies have been conducted and they have found out that
students with disabilities have higher achievements as well as improvement in their skills
through the inclusive education strategies (Knight, 2015). These studies have also
suggested that even students without such needs are equally benefitted as well.
 Researchers have also found that for students who have special needs, inclusive
education will also provide them academic gains in literacy such as reading as well as
writing, in maths as well as in social studies. These would be both in grades as well as in
standardised sheets. They will also have better communication skills and improved social
skills with better capacity to make friends. Studies have indeed found out that more time
in general classrooms results the students with special needs to be associated with lower
number of absences and referrals for any kinds of disruptive behaviours. Studies which
have observed attitudes of such children have also found out that such education results
in higher self-concept (Demathews et al., 2014). They are seen to like school as well as
their teachers even more. They are found to be more motivated for working and learning
as well.

4Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
 In case of students who do not have disabilities, they are also seen to be benefitted from
such classrooms. They are also seen to show similar positive attitudes in the inclusive
classrooms with greater academic gains in reading as well as in mathematics. Studies
have also also shown that when students with special needs are present in the classrooms,
students without special needs get new kind of learning opportunities (Katz, 2015). One
of these is when they are seen to be serving as the peer coaches. Another benefit is also
noticed. It is found that as teachers are seen to be making greater considerations of the
diverse Students with special needs learns, they are seen to be providing instructions in a
much broader spectrum of learning modalities like that of kinaesthetic, visual as well as
auditory fields. This helps in benefitting the regular students as well.
 Previously researchers used to show concerns about potential pitfalls which make
instructions less effective in the inclusion classrooms. However, recent researches have
failed those beliefs. Findings have showed that neither instructional times not how much
time students are engaged differs between non-inclusive and that of the non-inclusive
classrooms. In place, there had been researches which have shown that regular students
have either little or no awareness about students with disabilities are existing in their
class.(Arishi et al., 2017). When they become aware, they are also seen to demonstrate
more acceptance as well as tolerance for their peers with special needs when they
experience inclusive education together.
The barriers:
It is very important for the higher authorities to be aware of the challenges that
implementation of such projects might result. Therefore, this proposal is also summing up the

5Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
challenges that might occur so that concerned authorities can device out effective planning to
mitigate the challenges:
 Attitudes: societal norms that had been often followed over the years might become a
barrier as societies need time to accept any new medium in the systems. Stalwarts have
suggested that old attitudes die hard and therefore many stakeholders might be seen to
resist any form of accommodation of the students with disabilities and different learning
issues and even those students who are coming from minority cultures. Prejudices might
come up against those who have such differences and this can lead to discrimination.
This might inhibit the education procedures.
 Curriculum: a rigid curriculum which does not give opportunity to the teachers for
experimentation as well as the use of different teaching methods can become one of the
most impactful barriers to inclusive model of education. Study plans which are not
supportive of the different styles of the learning can also hinder the schools experiences
for all types of students even to those also who are not recognised as having nay mental
as well as physical challenges (Bigby et al., 2014).
 Teachers: the project must give to train teachers well. Studies suggest that teachers who
are not trained or those who are unenthusiastic as well as unwilling about working with
differently-abled children can prove to be drawbacks to the successful inclusion. Training
can fall short of real effectiveness and these instructors who are fighting to survive under
huge workplaces might also resent the additional duties of coming up with various
approaches for the same lesson.
 Funding: adequate amount of funding is extremely important for inclusion. Schools are
often seen to lack adequate facilities as well as qualified and properly trained teachers as

6Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
well as other staff members. They might also lack educational staff materials and general
support. Lack of resources might come out to be one of the biggest barriers that might
hamper the project midway and hence stakeholders need to consider this effectively.
 Centralized education system: these are mostly seen to be rarely conducive for the
positive changes as well as initiatives (Terras & Ramsay, 2015). Decisions are mainly
seen to come from higher level authorities of the school system whose main focus
remains on the employee compliance rather than quality learning. They might not have
proper idea about the little or no idea about the realities that teachers might face; hence,
they have to make known of all the facts and figures so that they can take proper
decisions.
 Effective policies and behaviours: often many policy makers are seen to be not supporter
of the inclusive education and they can stonewall the efforts of the projects which are
trying to make the school policies inclusive. These can exclude whole groups of learners
preventing them to be a part of the mainstream educational system. These might prevent
the children of special needs to enjoy same opportunities for education and employment
that the general students enjoy.
Recommendation:
Education for inclusion has been one of the highlighted topics among the researchers and it is
slowing getting on the top priority list. Students with special or any form of special needs need to
be placed in a class that has an inclusive learning environment (Sharma et al., 2013). Teachers
who are categorized under the general educators with limited special education background
might find this daunting or be triggered with anxiety when it comes to dealing with students who

7Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
need special attention (Engelbrecht, 2013). Although there are special education teacher who are
expertise in the field of inclusive education, there is an urgent need of general teachers to have a
certain level of basic knowledge of dealing with the students who are in need of special attention.
All students must be able have necessary resources in order to be successful. The aim is to make
the students learn, grow and develop in their own way.
1. Get to know the class and student’s IEPs/504s
Teachers will know when there is a student who is entering the class with specific plan
and it is important for the teacher to connect with that student’s case manager. One of the
most common and helpful accommodation for students needing special needs is
preferential seating. The concept does not say to make the student on the front row or
beside the teacher (Lazaro, 2014). It is important to see if the student is comfortable
seating in a place he has been provided. Often thinking too hard and making them sit next
to the teacher’s desk can be daunting to them of may feel catastrophic. The student
needing special need can be seated with the peers he or she feel comfortable with and
may be helpful during class with studies. However, it is noted that seats that are away
from distractions have been helpful for students who have issues with attention. The
teacher should check and make sure about the student’s current documents. It is useful
for the teacher to make chart of each student’s services and at what frequency they need
the service. Teacher should be aware of the student’s next IEP meeting date and making
folder for such activity is often helps in getting the job done in an easy manner.
2. Implementation of UDL (UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING)
Universal Design has been one of the most circulating word in the field of education. It is
an approach to make learning engaging and accessible through curriculum planning and

8Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
mapping to a wider range of learners varying in their strength and needs. The Universal
Design for Learning is based on theories of multiple intelligences by Howards Gardner.
The system is to call for teaching to make use of multiple modalities and for students
with various forms of assessment tools (Black, Weinberg & Brodwin, 2015). Educators
who are familiar to the universal design for education are aware of the fact that everyone
learn and express themselves in their own different way. Therefore to express each one
should be allowed to use their strength while practicing their areas of need at the same
time. General teachers can educate themselves by viewing numerous videos explaining
UDL which they can implement as well as reflect on their own teaching practices (Katz,
2013).
3. Assist with important life skills
‘Life skills’ are usually presumed as some of the sever skills that one need to save life or
any dangerous event. However, it is not always same for every students and therefore
often the life skills include the necessary skills one need in order to be a proactive and
contributing member of society (Lipsky & Gartner, 2013). There are many general
students who fail to perform the few of the simple tasks such as telling time from analog
clock or writing letters. Therefore, teachers can plan a day to perform some of the tasks
focusing on self-development and self-refection. One day in a week to clean backpack,
organize the back pack, locker clean-up, sorting out routines and make the possible
organizing activities. This simple activity often leads to many success stories where one
develops the good habits of coming to school prepared and organized (Fallows & Steven,
2013). Teachers should also pay heed to their student’s essential and make them fill
surveys that would force them to think about their skills that they perform best.

9Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
4. Collaborative planning and teaching
Teacher should be able to spend some quality time with their students which will give
them better understanding of their students. Collaborative teaching should be encouraged
among the teachers that would help them understand students with special needs. It is
often advisable too to spend time with the parents as well. Teachers with no background
of knowledge regarding students with special attention should find separate and
collaborative time as per their understanding including student’s parents and special
education teacher (Beveridge, 2013). This will help figuring out ways of improving
student’s learning.
Conclusion:
From the above discussions it can be traced that when all students regardless of any
challenges they might face are positioned in age-appropriate classes of general education that are
present in their own neighborhood schools it is called an inclusive education. There are various
innovative ways for creating an inclusive classroom and it only needs the appropriate approach.
The very first method is getting to know student. Teacher needs to be aware of the student’s
special needs and requirement. Implementation of universal design for learning that has been the
one of the most helpful approach. Teaching life skills are another way of supporting students and
help building inclusive class. Also, lastly the most helpful is collaborating with the parents and
special education teacher. It is quite different from the traditional through process where students
with special needs were allocated separate classrooms and teaching processes with the belief that
they require special attention and care. In the above mention discussion, keeping the barriers in
mind the measured should be paid attention. since the inclusive classroom are different there is a

10Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
need for teachers to be aware of the special students to help them grow and develop along with
other students.

11Running head: EDUCATION FOR INCLUSION
Reference:
Arishi, A., Boyle, C., & Lauchlan, F. (2017, December). Inclusive education and the politics of
difference: Considering the effectiveness of labelling in special education. British
Psychological Society.
Armstrong, F., Armstrong, D., & Barton, L. (2016). Inclusive education: Policy, contexts and
comparative perspectives. Routledge.
Baran, E. (2014). A review of research on mobile learning in teacher education. Journal of
Educational Technology & Society, 17(4), 17.
Beveridge, S. (2013). Children, families and schools: Developing partnerships for inclusive
education. Routledge.
Bigby, C., Frawley, P., & Ramcharan, P. (2014). Conceptualizing inclusive research with people
with intellectual disability. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual
Disabilities, 27(1), 3-12.
Black, R. D., Weinberg, L. A., & Brodwin, M. G. (2015). Universal design for learning and
instruction: Perspectives of students with disabilities in higher education. Exceptionality
Education International, 25(2), 1-16.
Carter, E. W., Moss, C. K., Asmus, J., Fesperman, E., Cooney, M., Brock, M. E., ... & Vincent,
L. B. (2015). Promoting inclusion, social connections, and learning through peer support
arrangements. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 48(1), 9-18.