Does inclusion
for children with special needs work?
Before we ask ourselves whether or not it works, we need to ask what
inclusion means. The Halifax Regional
School Board (HRSB) has a Special Education Policy. The policy indicates that the HRSB endorses
the value of inclusive schooling and does so in accordance with the Education
Act 54(2)(d). The HRSB states that it is
committed to “developing and implementing educational programs for students
with special needs within the regular instructional settings with their peers
in age in accordance with the regulations and the Minster’s policies and
guidelines”. Students with special needs are defined by the
HRSB as students whose needs are such that they require supports in addition to
those provided by the classroom teacher.
There is an
excellent article on Education Canada’s website regarding inclusion. The article cites work from Roger Slee (British Journal of Sociology of Education
31, no. 5(2011): 561-573) who opines that we need to ask how we build the
capacity of schools to grow with and work with difference , instead of asking
how we train people to recognize difference and then run to the special
education teacher for support. In other
words, we need to train teachers how to effectively manage the varying needs
and capabilities within their classrooms.
It is my opinion that in order to effectively manage an inclusive
classroom, our teachers need to be provided not only with specialized training,
but also additional classroom resources.
The key question is whether the child being “included”
is benefiting socially and academically.
For some children being in a classroom setting can result in increased
anxiety and distractibility. It begs the
question: Are some children being kept
in the classroom in the spirit of inclusion when they could be more successful
in a different educational setting? For
example, for a child who struggles with emotional self-regulation, it can be challenging
to socialize with peers of the same age who have already developed these
skills. Children need to be given
opportunity to develop skills in a setting where they feel comfortable. This also brings up the roles and
responsibilities of the stakeholders in a child’s development and
education. The stakeholders are the
child, the child’s parents or guardians, educators, administrators, the child’s
treatment providers (pediatrician, psychologist, occupational therapist, speech
pathologist, etc.), and the community.
In a previous blog post I
discuss working with your child’s school.
Although the school might recognize that a child is having difficulty
with learning, the parent or guardian must authorize intervention, including
testing.
Seeking resources outside of
the school can benefit your child’s ability to have success in an inclusive
classroom. For example, if we consider a
child with emotional self-regulation challenges, an occupational therapist can
be quite beneficial in this area. While
Occupational Therapists do work with schools, they typically will perform a
brief assessment and offer recommendations to be implemented within the
classroom. Occupational therapy services
are also available through the public health care system and privately. By parents attending sessions with their
children, the tools provided can be practiced at home as well as at
school. Occupational therapists who do
not work in the school are open to visiting the school and/or communicating
with the school.
Regarding time spent in the
classroom, from my observations as a volunteer at my son’s school, there are a
number of children who leave the classroom throughout the day to work with a
resource teacher or other staff member, in particular for assistance with math
and language arts; and then there are some children who go to a resource room
for a break from the classroom due to difficulty managing in an environment
with high sensory stimuli. We need to
look at our classrooms and ask ourselves, how can we do this better?
In some private teaching
environments, children are taught with other children who are at the same
developmental level, rather than with their peers of age. The children are typically with children
within a few years of their own age.
This allows the teacher to teach children with the same developmental level
in a given topic, and also reduces the child’s frustration of trying to keep up
with a curriculum that is beyond their current ability. This would be interesting to pilot at a school
with our current resources to determine whether it would result in better
learning outcomes.
Speaking of resources,
increasing classroom support in the form Education Program Assistants (EPA) or
teacher’s aids would greatly benefit the classroom, in my opinion. While some children, including our son, have
an EPA assigned to them for a portion of the day, there are other children
whose needs have not been clearly identified and are considered not to warrant
EPA support. Educating teachers on how
to manage the various learning differences in their classroom is obviously important;
however with a classroom of 20 plus children it can be difficult to address the
learning needs of each student.
Technology is another area that
we should be investing in. Most children
today are comfortable with using technology, and for some it opens up an
opportunity to advance learning. Take a
child with a speech and language disorder.
Assistive technology can address the child’s difficulty to communicate which
is fundamental to success in school.
So, back to our original
question: Is inclusion working? Well, like I said, it depends. For our son, inclusion has been successful so
far. However, I must tell you that he is
provided with EPA support, assistive technology and works with a resource
teacher for part of the school day. We also have sought additional intervention
outside of school and work with our son at home. So although he is part of a regular
classroom, he spends approximately half of his learning time outside of the
classroom.
In order for a child to have a
successful school career, all stakeholders need to take part in creating a
learning environment that is appropriate for the child. We also need to clearly identify the learning
goals for the child.
