Brittany Layne

SPED 480

2/19/2017

Prompt 1- Inclusion

Since I started student teaching, I have been exposed to inclusion in my 1st grade

classroom. I have seen the positives and the negatives of inclusion and the textbook has

emphasized on those positives and negatives. By writing this paper, I hope to gain more

understanding about the benefits and challenges of inclusion.

To start off, Ill discuss the benefits of inclusion in the classroom. The benefits are rather

obvious- most students with special needs who are mainstreamed benefit from the regular

classroom environment and being around peers. These benefits mainly contribute to students

social learning. For example, in my classroom, there are two students who participate in

inclusion every day and one student who participates on certain occasions (i.e. class parties). The

two students who participate daily are benefitted through interaction with other peers and seeing

a regular classroom environment. These two students get a sense of normal for part of their

daily routine. It is also positive for regular classroom students to interact with students with

disabilities, allowing them to see and understand differences in others.

Although inclusion is beneficial for some students with disabilities, it is not beneficial for

all students with disabilities (Zigmond, 2003). In student teaching, I have seen students who are a

part of inclusion only and other students who are a part of pullout programs only, but studies

have shown that schools offering combined services, rather than inclusion only or pullout only,

has students with significantly greater progress in reading and higher levels of teacher
satisfaction (Vaughn 2011). I believe this to be true because one service may provide support

for a child in which the other service cannot. Not everyone agrees in offering multiple services.

Some believe that allowing a variety of services would prevent real integration of students with

special needs (Vaughn 2011). I believe that allowing a variety of services would be best to fit the

needs of each individual child.

While the works of inclusion are still underway, I plan to serve my students with

disabilities in my classroom by providing inclusive opportunities that put the students needs

first, provide adequate resources, maintain a continuum of services, are aligned with the

service-delivery model, and meet the needs of all students.