jill bardin paper edex 619

8/2/2019 Jill Bardin Paper EDEX 619

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Educational Inclusion for Students with Intellectual

Disabilities

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Disabilities

Jill Bardin

University of South Carolina


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Educational Inclusions for Students with Intellectual

Disabilities

Introduction

The topic of educational inclusion for students with

disabilities has been an area of great controversy.

Inclusion is not a separate location; but a philosophy

that urges schools, neighborhoods and communities to

welcome and value everyone, regardless of differences

(Renzaglia, Karvonen, Drasgow, & Stoxen, 2003).

Many educators refer to the terms mainstreaming and

inclusion interchangeably. However, mainstreaming and

inclusion are two different practices. Mainstreaming

entails that individuals with disabilities have separate

placement and enter the mainstream only for activities that

they can perform at the level needed to succeed

(Renzaglia, Karvonen, Drasgow, & Stoxen, 2003). If we place

students with disabilities in separate places, we are

teaching all students that students with disabilities are

in fact different from others.

Students with intellectual disabilities have historically

been placed in self-contained settings and have

traditionally spent little time in settings with non-

disabled peers. An individual with disabilities has to fit

a program that already exists instead of creating a program


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to fit the unique needs of the student. Polloway, Lubin,

Smith and Patton (2010) stated that the federal data

collected in 2003 indicates that 88.3% of students with the

label of mental retardation and 73.2% of students with an

autism label spend less than 20% of the school day in more

inclusive settings.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

2004 requires students to be provided with a free and

appropriate public education in the least restrictive

environment. It also requires that students be educated in

the school they would attend in he or she was nondisabled.

IDEA also states that a child with a disability may not be

removed from education in the age-appropriate regular

classroom just because he or she needs modifications to the

general education.

Many individuals with intellectual disabilities are

being mainstreamed into classes without the proper support

needed to enable them to be successful due to a variety of

reasons. It could be due to general education teacher not

knowing how to work with the student, lack of training,

lack of collaboration between the general education teacher

and special education teacher or resources.

In my school district, students have historically been

placed into a program where they are served based on their


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category of disability instead of their unique needs. Scott

and Brady (2000) indicated placement outside of the school

which the student would attend if not disabled should be

considered an atypical placement (p. 394). At one

elementary school, there is a program for students with

learning disabilities. At another elementary school, there

is a program for students with autism. At a different

elementary school, there is a program for students with

emotional behavior disabilities. At another elementary

school, there is a program for students with orthopedic

disabilities, and at my school, there is the program for

students with mental disabilities. Throughout their

elementary school lives, students make friends within the

general education classroom. Then, when the students in the

self-contained classroom turn middle school age (11 years

old), they move to the middle school that has the program

that serves their category of disability while their same

age peers go to a different middle school for the sixth

grade year. Some programs are in two different zoning areas

of the district, so the students who are required to go to

a program based on their category of disability, attend

elementary school with one set of peers, then are required

to make all new friends in a school that is zoned for a

different area because they have a specific disability. For


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example, students with autism attend elementary school with

one set of peers. Once these students finish fifth grade,

they are never in the same school with those friends from

elementary school. Their early friends never see them again

in an educational setting.

In my school, students with mild intellectual

disabilities have historically been placed in a self-

contained classroom and been able to access the general

education curriculum based on availability of support. Many

times, students participate in the same grade level for two

years due to lack of assistance. For example, a child with

a disability would participate in kindergarten for one

year, and then stay in kindergarten the following year due

to not having enough people to provide the support needed

in the general education classroom. By holding a child

back, the child is not being provided the opportunity to

have the best quality of life. It is our job as special

educators to provide the support needed for the child to

access in the general curriculum and be provided with the

upmost quality of life.

Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to discuss how

educators can provide appropriate support and teach the

skills necessary to access the least restrictive

environment, so all students can access the general


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curriculum and enabled to have to upmost quality of life.

This topic is important to students with mental retardation

because it improves their quality of life. This topic is

important to me because I would like to see our school

district change to a more inclusive environment. In this

paper, I will discuss a variety of instructional strategies

that can be used to facilitate successful inclusive

environments.

Definitions

Mainstreaming

Mainstreaming implies that the individual with a

disability has a separate place and can only go into the

general education classroom for activities in which they

could perform at the level to be successful (Renzaglia,

Karvonen, Drasgow, & Stoxen, 2003). By using the

educational practice of mainstreaming, educators have

different expectations for individuals with disabilities.

The educators are implying that the individual with a

disability does not belong in the general education

classroom. The educator does not have the same high

expectations for all students.

Students with disabilities are not an integral part of

the educational environment. Their time in the classroom

is limited; thus, they have little time for social


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interaction and do not see positive peer behavioral role

models. Mainstreaming also limits the academic environment

of the students with disabilities.

Inclusion

Inclusion is a philosophy in which individuals with or

without disabilities are valued members of the community

and everyone belongs. The educator has high expectations

for all individuals with and without disabilities. The

educator provides the appropriate support to students with

disabilities, so the individual is able to perform tasks in

the general education classroom with their same age peers.

Ryndak et al. (2010) compared long-term effects between two

brothers with significant disabilities. One brother was

provided services in the self-contained setting while the

other received services in an inclusive setting. They

found that the brother that received his special education

services in the general education setting achieved more

positive long-term outcomes. Inclusion is a philosophy

that must be embraced by educators for individuals to be

provided with the upmost quality of life.

Inclusion simply improves the quality of life for all

students with disabilities as well as the lives of students

without disabilities. By including students in the general

education setting, students receive appropriate academic


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stimulation as well as social relationships with peers of

the same age.

Interventions

Self- Determination

Self-determination involves elements involving choice

and decision making, problem solving, personal goal

setting, self-management, self-instruction, and self-

advocacy (Carr et al., 2002). By teaching individuals to

set goals, manage his behaviors, solve problems, and

advocate for himself, the individual will have the skills

Research has suggested that teaching students to set

goals and evaluate their progress towards the goal can

promote access to the general education curriculum. Goal

setting can be taught through setting attainable daily

goals and monitoring progress towards those goals.

Self-management is a strategy that has been described

as a technique for enhancing independence in the classroom.

It shifts the behavior management responsibility from the

teacher to the student (Harrower, 1999). Koegel, Harrower,

and Koegel (1999) found teaching self-management procedures

increased academic engagement and reduced disruptive

behaviors. The behavior and academic gains were maintained

after completely fading the assistance from a support

person.


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Instructional Adaptations

Researchers have found many successful strategies and

interventions for facilitating inclusive education for

students with intellectual disabilities.

Partial participation is another instructional

strategy that allows students with disabilities to

participate in an inclusive education. It involves

adjusting the curriculum to facilitate participation. This

strategy allows the student with a disability to

participate in the same projects and instructional

activities as the rest of the class, with specific

modifications to the activity so that it suits the childs

specific abilities and needs (Harrower, 1999).

Modifications and accommodations to the general

curriculum can be made in order for students with

disabilities to be able to participate in a less

restrictive environment. Modifications and accommodations

such as oral administration, extended time on tests, use of

calculator and use of dictionary have been suggested as

additional strategies to foster success.

Peer Support

In self-contained classrooms, students with

intellectual disabilities do not typically have good models

for appropriate classroom behavior and social interactions.


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By increasing time in the general education classroom,

social behavior can be improved.

In many classrooms, interactions with peers are

discouraged and many classrooms have rules against student-

to-student interactions (Shukla, Kennedy, & Cushing, 1999).

However, if the teacher creates situations for social

situations to occur in the classroom through class work and

other instructional strategies, students with disabilities

could benefit from instruction in the general education

classroom.

Shukla, Kennedy, and Cushing (1999) found that peer

support may be preferred to direct assistance from an aide

for students with intellectual disabilities in the general

education classroom. Their research also found that peer

support could improve the quantity and quality of social

interactions between students with disabilities and their

peers.


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Conclusion

Although the topic of educational inclusion of

students with intellectual disabilities continues to be a

controversial topic, there are many effective research

based strategies for facilitating educational inclusion for

students with disabilities. Historically, students with

disabilities have been served in a separate location and

services have been based on available options rather than

providing options that serve the individual.

By segregating students, individuals with intellectual

disabilities do not have the utmost quality of education.

Scott (1998) noted even with extensive support, not all

students can be taught effectively in typical settings all

the time. This is the case for any student who requires

learning support, including those without disabilities (p.

401). In order for all students to be provided with the

highest quality of education, educators must stop looking

at an individuals label of disability and start looking at

what services and support the individual needs to be

successful.

With appropriate instructional adaptations, peer

support, and teaching self-determination skills,

individuals with intellectual disabilities can be

successful in a general education classroom. I have found


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in my experience as a teacher of students with educational

disabilites, the quality of life for students improves

tremendously when the students are served in an inclusive

educational setting. I have observed the positive aspects

of my students developing friendships with peers of their

same age. I have also observed the gains in academic

performance when my students are served in a more inclusive

academic setting. The parents of the students with

disabilities offer a tremendous amount of positive feedback

concerning the benefits of the inclusive academic setting.


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References

Carr, E.G., Dunlap, G., Horner, R.H., Koegel, R.L,

Turnbull, A.P., Sailor, W., Fox, L. (2002).

Positive Behavior Support: Evolution of an AppliedScience. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions,

4(1), 4-16.

Harrower, J.K. (1999). Educational Inclusion of Children

with Severe Disabilities. Journal of Positive Behavior

Interventions, 1(4), 215- 230.

Individuals with Disabilities Act Ammendments of 2004. 20

U.S.C 1400 et seq.

Koegel, L.K., Harrower, J.K., & Koegel, R.L. (1999).

Support for Children with Developmental Disabilities

in Full Inclusion Classrooms Through Self- Management.

Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 1(1), 26-

34.

Polloway, E.A., Lubin, J., Smith, J.D., & Patton, J.R.

(2010) Mild Intellectual Disabilities Legacies and

Trends in Concepts and Educational Practices.

Education and Training in Autism and Other

Developmental Disabilities, 45(1), 54-68.

Renzaglia, A., Karvonen, M., Drasgow, E., & Stoxen, C.

(2003). Promoting a Lifetime of Inclusion. Focus on

Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities. 18(3),

140-149.

Ryndak, D., Ward, T., Alper, S., Storch, J.F., &

Montgomery, J.W. (2010). Long-term Outcomes of

Services in Inclusive and Self-Contained Settings for

Siblings with Comparable Significant Disabilities.

Education and Training in Autism and Developmental

Disabilities. 45(1), 38-53.

Scott, M.L., Partington, J.W. (1998). Students with autism:

Characteristics and Educational Programming. Singular

Publishing Group. San Diego, CA.


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Shukla, S., Kennedy, C.H., Cushing, L.S. (1999).

Intermediate School Students with Severe Disabilities:

Supporting Their Social Participation in General

Education Classrooms. Journal of Positive Behavior

Interventions. 1(3), 130-140.

jill bardin paper edex 619

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