Inclusive Education

ECS 100November 4, 2015

Dr. Wanda Lyons

What is inclusive education?

What is Inclusion?

All students are learners All students benefit All students attend regular classrooms in

neighbourhood schools (with support services as needed)

Provides students with fairness rather than sameness - Differentiated Instruction

Flexible curricula and instruction

How are we doing?

Saskatchewan Ministry of Education

Inclusive Practice: Students are supported in a range of age-appropriate classrooms in neighborhood schools; sufficient supports exist within regular classrooms for successful achievement of appropriate outcomes for students; classroom teachers engage in instructional planning based on inclusionary practices and beliefs; school personnel take purposeful action to create a welcoming, responsive, and inclusive environment; personnel work in collaborative teams

Student Support Services Service Delivery Rubrics, 2012, p. 2

Current state - Canadian

Students with learning exceptionalities represent 9-15% of the Canadian school-aged population (Canadian Council on Learning [CCL], 2009; Timmons, 2006).

Difficult to summarize rate of inclusion as information is not aggregated at national level.

Differences from one province to another; from school system to school system; and from school to school (Jordan, 2007).

Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS) conducted by Statistics Canada as a post-census survey

PALS (Statistics Canada, 2008)

Prevalence of placements: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-628-x/2008004/t/5201212-eng.htm

Proportions of children with disabilities aged 5 to 14, by type of education and severity (PALS, 2006)* from survey completed in 2004

Time in the General Education ClassroomUS Dept. of Education, Office of Elementary and Special Education, 2008 (cited in Burrello, Sailor, & KleinhammerTramill, 2013).

>80% 40%-79% <40% Other Environments

All disability labels

53.7

23.7

17.6

5.1

Intellectual disabilities

16.0

28.7

48.4

6.9

Multiple Disabilities

13.4

16.7

44.5

25.4

Beliefs about Outcomes for Students with

Disabilities

Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS) (Blackorby et al., 2007). 11,000 elementary and middle years students receiving

special education services over 5 years Focused on identifying factors related to academic and

social adjustment outcomes for students with disabilities student-level factors (e.g., characteristics of students;

disability and functioning, demographics, & social skills & behaviors)

household circumstances (e.g. income, parent expectations & support)

school factors (e.g. participation in general education, instructional groupings, student engagement, etc.)

SEELS (continued)

Disability clusters: All disabilities

High-incidence

Cognitive

Behavior

Sensory

Physical/health

Severe

Collected data 3 times over 5 years

Parent phone interviews, staff questionnaires, student assessments in reading and mathematics, student interviews

SEELS (continued)

Greater involvement in general education settings was associated with higher reading and mathematics performance

Students with disabilities overall and those

in the severe disability cluster who participated actively in general instructional activities had a pattern of higher academic performance across all outcomes measures compared with students who were less active participants (p. 7-14)

SEELS (continued)

Greater participation in general education academic classes is related to more positive social outcomes for students with disabilities overall

Students who took more than 80% of their academic classes in general education settings were more likely to belong to school or community groups and had been involved in fewer disciplinary incidents

Outcomes for Students with Disabilities

Rea, McLaughlin, & Walther-Thomas (2002)

Compared educational outcomes of 8th grade students with learning disabilities (n=58) who were in inclusive school or pullout program.

Students with LD in inclusive classrooms: Earned higher grades in LA, Math, Science

and Social Studies than in pullout programs Achieved higher scores on standardized

tests of LA and Math Experienced same number of suspensions

as those in pullout programs Exhibited better attendance

Outcomes for students with Outcomes for students with disabilitiesdisabilities

Higher reading and mathematics performance (Blackorby et al., 2007; Rea, McLaughlin, & Walther-Thomas, 2002; Waldron & McLeskey, 1998).

No significant differences in reading and math achievement (Cole, Waldron, & Majd, 2004; Fore et al., 2008).

Increased social interaction (Kreimeyer, Crooke, Drye, Egbert, & Klein, 2000).

Improved attendance (Rea, McLaughlin, & Walther-Thomas, 2002).

Beliefs about Outcomes for Students without

Disabilities

Outcomes for students without disabilities

Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS) (Blackorby, et al., 2007) positive outcomes for students with and without disabilities The presence of students with disabilities does not adversely

affect other students; rather, involvement in general education is related to positive academic outcomes for students overall.

Cole et al. (2004) academic progress in math and reading was greater for students

without disabilities who were educated in inclusive settings; while there were no significant differences for students with disabilities.

McDonnell et al. (2003). Compared achievement of 324 students without disabilities in

inclusive classes with 221 students without disabilities whose classes did not include students with developmental disabilities

The presence of students with developmental disabilities in regular classrooms did not negatively impact achievement scores of students without disabilities, regardless of the school or grade-level

Outcomes for Students without Disabilities

Demeris, Childs, & Jordan (2007) *** Examined relationship between number of students

with special needs per class and large-scale achievement scores (provincial assessments) in reading, writing and math

Sample involved 1973 single-grade, Grade 3 classes in Ontario with 16 or more students per class

Students without special needs perform marginally better as the number of students with special needs in the classroom increases.

Impact on students without disabilities

Equal or improved outcomes

Higher reading and mathematics progress (Blackorby et al., 2007; Cole, Waldron, & Majd, 2004; Demeris, Childs, & Jordan, 2007).

No significant differences in achievement (McDonnell et al., 2003; Friesen, Hickey, & Krauth, 2009).

Research on Outcomes: Summary

Research on outcomes for students with and without disabilities reports:

(a) there are no adverse effects or differences in the achievement of typically developing peers when students with exceptionalities are placed in the regular classroom (Kalambouka, Farrell, Dyson, & Kaplan, 2007);

(b) the inclusive classroom environment is more positive (or no different) than segregated settings for students with learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and language impairments (CCL, 2009); and

(c) children who are educated in highly inclusive settings are in better health, enjoy going to school more, progress more quickly in school, and interact more positively with peers compared to students educated in low inclusive settings (Timmons & Wagner, 2008).

Beliefs about Disability and Difference

The medical/pathological model

• Disability is viewed as a deficit; a problem; a pathology

• that originates and exists within the individual

• and needs to be treated, remediated, or fixed so that the individual can become closer to ‘normal’.

• When applied to education, if the student can’t “keep up”, they are excluded

The charity model

• Assumes that individuals with disabilities need to be cared for and protected; appeals to benevolence; reinforces feelings of inadequacy and helplessness

The social model

• Emerged from disabled people’s critiques of the individual/medical model; Disabilities Studies and Disabilities Studies in Education (DSE)

• A two-fold definition:

• Impairment refers to the biological difference

• Disability is viewed as a social and cultural construction that restricts, marginalizes and oppresses individuals identified as “disabled”.

Racism

Sexism

Heterosexism

Classism

Ableism

Ableism is similar to other types of discrimination (e.g. racial, ethnic, gender, age) but is often unrecognized

as an important issue or one that even exists (Johnson, 2003).

Ableism

“the belief that it is better or superior not to have a disability than to have one and that it is better to do things in the way that nondisabled people do” (Storey, 2007, p. 56).

Ableism in Schools

Although schools often advocate social justice and acceptance of differences (e.g., in race, ethnicity, class, gender) disability and ableism are overlooked in this advocacy (Storey, 2007, p. 56).

Teacher Preparation &

Teacher Beliefs:How do we actually do it?

Planning for diverse needs

Content

Instruction & how we engage students

Product(how students demonstrate knowledge/skills)

Think about…… content & objectives

Extended Learningfor some students

Objectives/underlying concepts for some students

For most students

Think about…… content

Students will begin to think about

how they will plan for diverse needs in future planning and

courses.

Inclusion means everyone belongs.

Students learn in different ways.

Teachers are responsible for teaching all their students.Sometimes teachers need help.

Inclusion means all children attend regular classrooms in their neighbourhood schools and are provided with supports to be

successful.

Students will gain awareness of research on the outcomes of inclusion

Students will reflect on challenges associated with inclusion and gain knowledge of potential supports

Students will reflect on how teacher beliefs and assumptionsinfluence teaching.

How will students demonstrate knowledge?

Options: Small & large group discussions in class Seminar discussions Assignment

Identify questions for further discussion in seminar

Notes & reflections

Key components

Respectful and inclusive school and classroom climate.

“Making differences ordinary”(McLeskey & Waldron)

Universally designed curricula

Diverse and differentiated instructional strategies

Classroom teacher responsibility for the learning of all students

Continuum of supports (for students & teachers)

Collaboration

Professional development

Getting started . . .

Good teaching practices are the same for students with/without disabilities – learn to differentiate

Teacher attitudes make a difference – explore yours!

Read student records Talk to previous teachers Ask questions Get to know your students YOU’RE NOT ALONE! – know who your supports

are and access them.

Helping all student to achieve their goals

Dreams:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_-P4t2jR1g

Don’t Limit Me:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOwDfnoek6E

References

Blackorby, J., Knokey, A. M., Wagner, M., Levine, P., Schiller, E., & Sumi, C. (2007). What makes a difference? Influences on outcomes for students with disabilities(Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study SRI Project P10656). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Retrieved June 20, 2007, from http://www.seels.net/designdocs/SEELS_W1W3_FINAL.pdf

Canadian Council on Learning (CCL) (2009). Does placement matter? Comparing the academicperformance of students with special needs in inclusive and separate settings. Lessons inLearning. Retrieved from Canadian Council on Learning website http://www.cclcca.ca/pdfs/LessonsInLearning/03_18_09E.pdf

Cole, C.M., Waldron, N., & Majd, M. (2004). Academic progress of students across inclusive and traditional settings. Mental Retardation, 42, 136-144. Demeris, H., Childs, R.A., & Jordan, A. (2007). The influence of students with special needs included in grade-3 classrooms on the large-scale achievement scores of students without special needs. Canadian Journal of Education, 30, 609-627.

References (continued)Fore, C., Hagan-Burke, S., Burke, M. D., Boon, R. T., & Smith, S. (2008). Academic

achievement and class placement in high school: Do students with learning disabilities achieve more in one class placement than another? Education and Treatment of Children, 32(1), 55-72.

Kalambouka, A., Farrell, P., Dyson, A. & Kaplan, I (2007). The impact of placing pupils with

special educational needs in mainstream schools on the achievement of their peers.Educational Research 49, 365-382. Kreimeyer, K.H., Crooke, P., Drye, C., Egbert, V., & Klein, B. (2000). Academic and

social benefits of a co-enrollment model of inclusive education for deaf and hard-of-hearing children. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 5, 174-185.

McDonnell, J., Thorson, N., Disher, S., Mathot-Buckner, C., Mendel, J., & Ray, L. (2003). The achievement of students with developmental disabilities and their peers without disabilities in inclusive settings: An exploratory study. Education & Treatment of Children, 26, 224-236.

Rea, P. J., McLaughlin, V. L., Walther-Thomas, C. (2002). Outcomes for students with learning disabilities in inclusive and pullout programs. Exceptional Children, 68(2), 208-222.

References (continued)Storey, K. (2007). Combating ableism in schools. Preventing School Failure, 52(1), 56-58.

Timmons, V., & Wagner, M. (2008). Inclusive education knowledge exchange initiative: An analysis of the Statistics Canada Participation and Activity Limitation Survey. Retrieved from: http://www.ccl-cca.ca/pdfs/FundedResearch/201009TimmonsInclusiveEducationFullReport.pdf