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Essay / Inclusion of Students with Disabilities - 2994
Schools in today's society are rapidly changing and increasingly striving to implement best practices in their schools. However, before a school can implement a program in its school, it needs reliable evidence that the new program will work. A new program that schools are looking to implement is inclusion in the classroom because of the benefits that inclusion could bring. The implementation of inclusion is strongly linked to people's attitudes, whether positive or negative. However, even though inclusion is widely implemented, there is relatively little data on its effectiveness. It may be that inclusion benefits some areas such as reading and social skills more than others. For inclusion to be properly implemented, it is important that teachers, parents, and administrators know the definition of inclusion. An inclusion program means that the student spends all or most of their school time in a general education classroom rather than a self-contained classroom. However, students will still receive the support and interventions they would have received in a self-contained classroom. There are different types of inclusive classes where different types of teaching are provided. There is co-teaching where a general education teacher and a special education teacher co-teach. Both will work with students who have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and the student will receive more support. Additionally, an inclusive classroom may have a general education teacher, but the special education teacher is a resource or aide, which is a collaborative model of inclusion. Perceptions of Inclusion Inclusion is a growing trend in schools today; however, many teachers offer a social skills curriculum aimed at inclusive teachers. Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice, 13(4), 2247-2261. doi:10.12738/estp.2013.4.1736Sharpe, MN & York, JL (1994). Effects of inclusion on the academic performance of classmates without disabilities. Corrective and Special Education, 15(5), 281.Smoot, SL (2011). An outcome measure for social inclusion goals. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 30 (1), 6-13. Solis, M., Vaughn, S., Swanson, E., & Mcculley, L. (2012). Collaborative teaching models: The empirical foundations of inclusion and co-teaching. Psychology in Schools, 49(5), 498-510. doi:10.1002/pits.21606Wischnowski, MW, Salmon, SJ, & Eaton, K. (2004). Evaluating co-teaching as a means of successful inclusion of students with disabilities in a rural district. Quarterly rural special education, 23(3), 3-14.