Philosophy of Inclusion

The philosophy of inclusion is a popular topic for debate. One such debate is how a teacher

can successfully use inclusion in their classroom. I, while in the process of becoming an

elementary school teacher, have developed my own philosophy of inclusion in the classroom

based from an entire semester learning about students with disabilities. Through what I have

learned, I have found ways to support learners with exceptionalities in my future classroom and

how to foster a community of acceptance and tolerance within my general education students. I

have also learned about how to meet the needs of my struggling learners by utilizing several

teaching strategies and how to meet the needs of all the different levels of learners in my

classrooms, from gifted and talented to learners with significant exceptionalities. One of the

goals I have as a future teacher is to help all my students succeed and be able to celebrate the

differences of all my students.

The first step I would do in supporting learners with exceptionalities in my classroom is to

study their Individualized Education Plan, IEP, to know the right support the student will need.

In doing so, I can alter my teaching instruction to meet the needs of that student. Also, based off

the student’s IEP I will make sure the student will have all the support they will need to be

successful within the classroom, for example, assistive technology or modifications to the

material. I also believe strongly in collaborating with other teachers to come up with new

strategies to help students be successful. Taking these steps will help me better support my

students with exceptionalities.

Another part of having an inclusion classroom is to foster a community of acceptance and

tolerance within the general education students. Being a teacher, it is my job to teach this to my

students. Without any direction the students will not know what to do. It is my job to teach the
students how to be friendly, caring, and helpful towards one another. In doing so, the students

will know how to interact with one another and show more acceptance towards one another.

Celebrating the differences of all my students starts with fostering a community of acceptance

and tolerance. I would also educate the classroom about the differences in people, for example,

in different ways people learn and in all the diverse cultures that we are around every day. A

good example of celebrating my students would be allowing students to talk about something fun

they did or something cool that has happened to them or have your classic “show and tell” in

front of the classroom. In doing this the students get to learn about each other and get to

celebrate their differences all the while feeling part of the community.

There will always be learners who will struggle, but it will be my job as a teacher to use

strategies to help meet those needs of those who are struggling. I am a firm believer on keeping a

structured classroom and lesson plan. When I was in grade school, and even now, the classrooms

that I struggled the most in are the ones that have little to no structure. Having that structure

allows the students to focus on the material being taught instead of wondering what is being

taught. Another strategy I will employ will be always allowing the students ask questions. Some

of the best high school teachers that I had always had a time set up for students to come to them

with questions about the material being taught. Also, as stated above, if I have a student that is

really struggling, and I cannot figure out how to help them I will always collaborate with other

teachers to brainstorm new strategies.

I feel like the greatest challenge for all teachers in an inclusion classroom would be meeting

the needs of all the different levels of learners in the classroom, from gifted and talented to

learners with significant exceptionalities. This is where I believe a teacher can put their creativity

to use and make the lesson plan fun. One idea that I like to use is differentiating the instruction
for students, or in other words come up with several different ways to teach the same subject.

This will allow me to meet the individual needs of each student in a classroom setting. A great

way to incorporate this method is through setting up stations and breaking up the learners into

different groups based on their level of learning. A great example of this is shown in the video

“Station Rotation: Differentiating Instruction to Reach All Students”. In the video the teacher

breaks up the students according to their level of learning and rotates the students between three

stations. Each station has a different modality; so that all learners will have an opportunity to

learn in a way that works best for them. For example, have a station set up for the visual learners,

the hands-on learners, and the social interaction such as a group discussion. This allows for the

lesson to be fun; the students get to learn in a way they enjoy, and the teacher can better meet the

needs of all different levels of learning.

The whole idea of inclusion in a classroom is to make the students, all students, feel like they

belong to the classroom community. In order to have a successful inclusion classroom the

teacher needs to learn how to support learners with exceptionalities, foster a community of

acceptance and tolerance, celebrate the differences of all the students, and develop strategies to

meet the needs of all levels of learners in the classroom including the ones that are struggling. I

hope as a teacher myself, I will learn and become better at including all my students who walk

through my door. All students deserve to feel part of the community, all students deserve to learn

to their fullest potential, and with an inclusion classroom all of the above is achievable.
 References

Station Rotation: Differentiating Instruction to Reach All ... (2017, October 3). Retrieved May

11, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kg38A1ggYiE