What is Inclusion?

WHAT IS INCLUSION?

"Successful inclusion is measured by one’s level to appropriately participate and access their education."

Marie Lewis, RN, PhD, BCEA

Inclusion is not just placement in a regular education class.

BEING INCLUDED:

  • Has positive effect on achievement of individual goals

  • Provides a satisfactory quality of life and actualization

  • Creates a sense of meaning and purpose

  • Means actively participating from a strengths model in day to day activities

  • Includes all settings not just in regular education

  • Is being a part of what everyone else is a part of

  • Is being a valued and welcomed member of the community.

  • Effects our cultural values

  • Is having healthy relationships and friendships

  • Incorporates meeting one’s needs

  • Improves self-esteem and promotes growth socially and emotionally

  • Inspires and enriches our lives

  • Provides normalization for everyone

  • Includes participation in the life of the school and community

  • Provides an authentic feeling of belonging and being valued

  • Means Related service providers must consider delivering their services in the general education environment

  • Is relating and functioning together

  • Is about schools, worship places, work, community and recreation environments

  • Promotes seeing the abilities of others to contribute

  • Is in the social, academic, financial, and physical aspects of life

  • Takes team work for proper planning, preparation, adaptation, training, services and supports like: peer tutoring, cooperative learning, and differentiated instruction, graphic organizers, push-in related services and special education teachers, individual adult supports, study guides, and computer accommodations

  • Improves social cognition skills, on task behaviors and decreases negative behaviors for those children with disabilities.

  • Improves, and does not negatively effect or interfere with, the academic performance of other students.

  • Demonstrates the belief that separate and equal is not equal

  • Requires family and school partnerships and collaboration with vested involvement of all community members - or it doesn’t work..

  • Values diversity

  • Demonstrates the law of natural proportions and normalization and should reflect the community. (If 10-11% of the children in your community have disabilities, then the classroom should have no more than 11% of students with disabilities.)

Copyright 2015 Marie Lewis

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