Philosophy of Inclusion

Ashley Hunt

College of Western Idaho

EDUC 230-002W: Intro to Special Education

Natalie Raass

May 10, 2021

 Philosophy of Inclusion

It will be my responsibility as an educator to ensure all students have access to a free and

appropriate education in their least restrictive environment. This means that I will need to know

how to support all students who enter my classroom regardless of race, age, gender, or

exceptionality. I will need to ensure each student feels safe, included, and accepted in the class

so that they are comfortable and in the right environment to learn. I will need a toolbox of

strategies on hand to support all kinds of students at all different levels.

Coleman, Gallagher, and Kirk “define a child with exceptionalities as a child who differs

from the typical child in mental characteristics, sensory abilities, communication abilities,

behavior and emotional development and/or physical characteristics.” (Coleman, Gallagher,

Kirk, 2015). Children who have disabilities or children who are gifted or talented can be

considered exceptional, so support will look different for each case. To support these children, I

will need to first be aware of any exceptionalities and ensure the student is in their least

restrictive environment. Most students who have exceptionalities will have an IEP so that I have

an idea what modifications and supports need to be put in place. I can also support students by

having open communication and collaboration with their team of specialists, including their

parents.

Acceptance is so important for all people so I will need to ensure my classroom is one where

every student feels accepted and included. To do this I will lead by example and include students

with disabilities in classroom activities. We will talk about how differences make us all unique

and focus on what people can do instead of what they might not be able to do. Students with

disabilities will participate in small group work and if needed (and wanted) they will have a class

partner who rotates so everyone will be able to experience how it feels to help someone. It is my
hope that this will be eye-opening to students and teach them that helping people is the standard

for building a strong and accepting community to make the world a better place.

Every student that walks into my classroom will have at least one unique trait or

characteristic. I plan to celebrate these differences in the first week of school as we are all getting

to know each other. We will participate in a class activity where we talk about one unique

characteristic that we have. I will use the scene from Finding Nemo to start off the conversation.

The one where Nemo goes to school and they ask him about his fin and then all the other kid fish

share something different about themselves. This should help keep the discussion light and fun

and show that some differences are more obvious than others, but no two people are the same

and we should accept everyone regardless of differences.

Students who enter my classroom will always have their needs met. If they are struggling

with content, I can help them by meeting them at their current level and supplementing with

extra foundational skills and resources. If a student has trouble with reading comprehension, I

can give them shorter excerpts or find resources at a lower level so that they can understand and

still complete the task given. Alternatively, if a student seems like they are way ahead of the rest

of the class I can give higher level excerpts to ensure they are being challenged enough and not

getting bored. I can ask gifted students questions that require a higher level of thinking. I can

also modify work for those students who may have significant exceptionalities. For example, if I

assign a written essay but I have a student who cannot write, I can ensure that student has the

resources like a paraprofessional or a computer they can access or even accept an oral

assignment. All students deserve to be met at their level of learning and to have their individual

needs met.
 Inclusion of all students is so important in education. If a student does not feel included, they

likely will not want to participate, and it could harm their self-esteem. It is my goal to ensure

every student that enters my classroom leaves feeling capable, accepted, and included in the

classroom environment. I can foster a community of inclusion by leading by example and

celebrating everyone’s differences and showing it is okay that everyone is not on the same level

if everyone is trying their personal best.

 References

Kirk, S. A., Gallagher, J., & Coleman, M. R. (2015). Educating exceptional children. Cengage
Learning.