Including Learners with Low-Incidence Disabilities

Inclusive Education for Students with Low-Incidence Disabilities in Taiwan – Where We

are, What We have Learned
Pei-Yu Chen Chun-Yu Chiu
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 INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR
STUDENTS WITH LOW-INCIDENCE
DISABILITIES IN TAIWAN
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WHERE WE ARE, WHAT WE

HAVE LEARNED

Pei-Yu Chen and Chun-Yu Chiu

ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to share the experience and discuss issues
that support and hinder inclusive practices in Taiwan. In this chapter,
inclusion-related culture and policies are described in the context of
Taiwan, followed by the challenges and lessons learned from promoting
inclusive education for students with disabilities from the perspectives of
general and special education teachers. Some promising strategies
applied by teachers are also discussed in this chapter based on the find-
ings of the research literature in Taiwan. Implications for practice and
research about inclusion are addressed at the end of this chapter.
Keywords: Inclusive practices; general education; special education;
least restrictive environment

Including Learners with Low-Incidence Disabilities

International Perspectives on Inclusive Education, Volume 5, 203 219
Copyright r 2015 by Emerald Group Publishing Limited
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved
ISSN: 1479-3636/doi:10.1108/S1479-363620140000005012
203
 204 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

INTRODUCTION

Providing a least restrictive environment (LRE) for students with dis-

abilities is a worldwide trend in the field of special education, including
the Republic of China (Taiwan). In 1997, the Ministry of Education offi-
cially included the term “least restrictive environment” in the amendment
of the Taiwan Special Education Act (TWSE). Since then, more and
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more students with disabilities have been educated in inclusive settings,

including those with low-incidence disabilities. In the 2012 school year,
84% of school-age children with disabilities received special education
in general education and resource classrooms or through itinerary
education in Taiwan (Ministry of Education, 2013). The trend of inclu-
sion over the course of 15 years indicates that nowadays students with
disabilities have more access to general education curriculum and
social interaction with typically developing students (Cheng, 2012a;
Wang, 2011).
The purpose of this chapter is to introduce inclusive education for
students with disabilities in Taiwan, including those with low-incidence dis-
abilities. According to Kirk, Gallaher, Coleman, and Anastasiow (2011),
low-incidence disabilities are categories of disabilities that are less than 1%
of school population. These categories include students with multiple
disabilities, hearing impairments, orthopedic impairments, traumatic brain
injury, visual impairments, and students who are deaf and blind (Kirk
et al., 2011). While low-incidence disabilities refer to certain categories of
disabilities, most of the research on inclusive education in Taiwan was
conducted across various disabilities (Wang, 2011). Therefore, we describe
issues around inclusive education in Taiwan without emphasizing specific
categories of disabilities.
The following four aspects are depicted in this chapter. First, we
describe the inclusion-related culture and policies in the context of Taiwan.
Then, we discuss the challenges and lessons learned from promoting inclu-
sive education for students with low-incidence disabilities from the perspec-
tives of general and special education teachers. Next, strategies applied by
teachers in Taiwan to promote inclusion are addressed. Lastly, implications
for practice and research about inclusion will be addressed at the end of
this chapter. By sharing the experience of promoting inclusive education
in Taiwan, we hope to help researchers and practitioners understand
how inclusion for students with disabilities is perceived and carried out in a
different culture and context.
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 205

IN CONTEXT OF TAIWAN

Demographics and Policies

Taiwan is a democratic nation consisting of a total population of 23 million,

with over 95% made up by Han Chinese with a smaller proportion of
indigenous groups (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2014). Although Taiwan is
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a relatively homogenous society as compared to the United States, socio-

economic and rural-urban discrepancies still exist nonetheless. Additionally,
the increased number of immigrants also significantly diversified cultures
in Taiwan in the past decade (National Immigration Agency, 2011). The
education system in Taiwan was influenced by the policies and practices of
various countries. The majority of disability-related policies were drafted
with careful analyses of international laws and societal context in Taiwan,
including People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act (TWPD) and the
two sets of special education policies.
Chronologically, TWPD was originally enacted as the Disability Welfare
Act in 1980 and amended in 1997 and 2007 to align with the United Nations
Declarations on the Rights of Disabled Persons 1975. TWPD, recently
amended in 2009, 2011, and 2013, mandates general protection from discri-
mination and specifies educational rights for people with disabilities.
Notably, Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan (equivalent to congress in the U.S.)
passed the first reading of the United Nation Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities in June, 2013 and was in the process of ratifying
the convention (Cong. Rec. No.1684, 2014). People with Disabilities Rights
Protection Act [TWPD] (2013) prohibits educational agencies (e.g., schools,
institutions) from rejecting student admission on the basis of disability or
the lack of appropriate facilities and resources. It also provides that schools
and education programs must accommodate students with disabilities to
receive appropriate education services.
The other set of laws was the TWSE, first enacted in 1984 and subse-
quently amended in 1997, 2004, 2009, and 2013. Similar to TWPD, TWSE
(2013) also supports inclusive education by regulating the local authorities
to provide accessible environments, free transportation, and scholarships
to students with disabilities. It also states that the committee should make
placement decisions following the principle of proximity (distance from
home to school). TWSE also provides classification for type of disabilities.
See Table 1 for the statistics of students with disabilities. The amendment
of TWSE in 1997 incorporated the concept of inclusion and emphasized
 206 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

Table 1. Statistics of Students with Disabilities in Primary and Secondary

Education.
Category Educational Level Number

Preschool Elementary Middle High Total %

school school

Total 13,664 40,920 26,460 19,770 100,814 100

─ ─
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% 13.55 40.59 26.25 19.61

Intellectual disabilities 943 11,229 7,719 5,785 25,676 25.47
Visual impairment 49 373 275 298 995 0.99
Hearing impairment 336 1,142 691 688 2,857 2.83
Speech disorders 568 1,233 173 104 2,078 2.06
Physical disabilities 431 1334 988 1,122 3,875 3.84
Cerebral palsy 113 224 126 69 532 0.53
Other health impairment 280 1,377 835 799 3,291 3.26
Emotional and behavioral 57 2,749 1,491 1,252 5,549 5.50
disorders
Learning disabilities 0 11,943 9,596 7,018 28,557 28.33
Multiple disabilities 609 2,761 1,491 581 5,442 5.40
Autism 961 5,034 2,709 1,805 10,509 10.42
Developmental disabilities 9,103 0 0 0 9,103 9.03
Other disabilities 214 1,521 366 249 2,350 2.33

Note: The authors used data from multiple spreadsheets retrieved from Special Education
Transmit Net (2014) to compile this table. This data excludes students in special schools
(n = 6,636).

providing LRE and offering related services, accommodation for assess-

ment, and assistive technology in general education settings to meet the
learning needs of students with disabilities (Wu, 2004). The policies in
Taiwan set the stage for providing inclusive education for students with
disabilities.

Statistics of Students with Disabilities

In the 2003 school year, 33% of students with disabilities were enrolled in
general education classrooms, 31% received special education services in
resource rooms, and 6% through itinerary education (Wu, 2007). Overall,
70% of students with disabilities are educated in inclusive settings (Lo &
Lin, 2006). As of the 2013 school year, 2.6% of children ranging from
preschool to high school in Taiwan (N = 107,450) were students with
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 207

disabilities. A total of 85,607 students with disabilities were enrolled in par-

tial or complete inclusive settings (i.e., general education classroom,
resource classroom, and itinerary service) in 2013 (Special Education
Transmit Net, 2014), which constitutes 79.67% of the student body.
Another 21,843 students (20.33%) were served in relatively less inclusive
education settings, namely, special schools, home education, or hospital-
based programs (see Table 2).
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A general education setting refers to a placement where students with

disabilities receive appropriate education along with students without dis-
abilities. Depending on the needs that are documented in their individua-
lized education programs (IEPs), they may receive related-services and
accommodations, including personal assistant and assistive technology
(The Enforcement Rules of the Special Education Act, 2013). In contrast
to full inclusive educational setting, the resource classroom and itinerary
service, as defined in the Enforcement Rules of the Special Education Act
(2013), are classified as partial inclusive setting. The Enforcement Rules
regulate students served in a resource classroom who receive education

Table 2. Educational Placement of Students with Disabilities in Primary

and Secondary Education.
Category Educational Level Number

Preschool Elementary Middle High Total %

school school

Total 13,839 41,649 27,654 24,308 107,450

% of N 12.88 38.76 25.74 22.62 100
Partial or full inclusive 12,664 35,704 22,344 14,895 85,607 79.67
education setting
% of N 11.79 33.23 20.79 13.86 79.67 ─
General education classroom 5,454 4,920 3,771 6,342 20,487 19.07
Resource classroom 102 27,463 17,714 8,409 53,688 49.97
Itinerary service 7,108 3,321 859 144 11,432 10.64
Less-inclusive education 1,175 5,945 5,310 9,413 21,843 20.33
setting
% of N 1.09 5.53 4.94 8.76 20.33 ─
Self-contained classroom 819 4,629 3,706 4,875 14,029 13.06
Special school 175 729 1,194 4,538 6,636 6.18
Hospital-/home-school 181 587 410 0 1,178 1.1

Note: The authors used data from multiple tables retrieved from Special Education Transmit
Net (2014) to compile this table. The total student number includes students in special schools
(n = 6,636), which differs from Table 1.
 208 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

services primarily in general education classrooms and who are pulled out
for special education or related services when appropriate according to
their IEPs. Meng (2006) further specified that the amount of time that a
student with a disability spent in pull-out services provided by a resource
classroom should not exceed 50% of the total hours of a school day. On
the other hand, students who are required to receive special education and
related services at home, institution or school due to health considerations
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are visited by itinerant teachers at least two hours per week.

The data revealed that over the course of 10 years, more students with
disabilities received special education services in full or partial inclusive set-
tings. However, the increase in the number of students with disabilities in
inclusive settings does not ensure the quality of special education provided
to these students. Without sufficient preparation and support, implement-
ing inclusive education may have a negative impact on the social and aca-
demic development of students with disabilities (Chiang, 2011).

INCLUSION IN TAIWAN
To understand the quality of inclusive education, more than 300 journal
articles and 200 theses and dissertations in Taiwan have investigated var-
ious aspects of inclusive education, including perspectives on inclusion as
well as challenges and strategies to promote successful inclusive education.

Perspectives on Inclusion

As Wu (2004) pointed out, successful inclusive education for students with

disabilities is influenced by the interaction of the following factors, includ-
ing education placement, administrative support, environmental arrange-
ment, classroom management, instruction and assignment modification,
curriculum design and adaptation, professional training, peer interaction,
and family collaboration. That is, general education teachers, special edu-
cation teachers, and parents of students with disabilities play important
roles in successful inclusive education. However, most of the studies on
inclusion in Taiwan did not involve parents of students with disabilities as
participants (Wang, 2011). Therefore, in the following section we focused
on describing how general education and special education teachers per-
ceive inclusion in Taiwan.
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 209

General Education Teachers

Inclusive education has been implemented in Taiwan since the amendment
of TWSE in 1997, and one of the factors influencing successful inclusion is
educators’ attitude toward students with disabilities and toward inclusive
education (Wu, 2004). Chiu (2001) surveyed and interviewed elementary
(n = 129) and secondary (n = 149) general education teachers across
10 counties/cities in Taiwan to understand the barriers and their needs in
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providing services for students with disabilities. Administrators of the

department of education in 18 counties/cities were also involved in the
survey. The results indicated that only 27% of elementary teachers and
18% of secondary teachers thought students with disabilities should be
placed full-time in general education classrooms, and 32% of secondary
teachers thought students with disabilities should enroll in self-contained
classes. The results also showed that 11 out of 18 administrators of depart-
ment of education marked “teachers’ refusal toward inclusion” as one of
the top five barriers they encountered when providing support for general
education teachers to help students with disabilities. Wu (2004) compared
1,422 educators, including administrators, general education teachers, and
special education teachers in elementary schools in Taiwan about their
attitudes toward inclusion. The findings showed that administrators and
special education teachers had more positive attitudes than general educa-
tion teachers did regarding including students with disabilities in general
education classrooms.
The attitude of general education teachers toward inclusion seemed to
change gradually overtime. Hsu and Chan (2008) surveyed 308 elementary
school teachers who were head-teachers of general education classes in
Taiwan. They asked the teachers about their perception about inclusion
and the extent to which they would accept students with learning disabil-
ities (LD), autism, hearing impairment, and attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD) to be placed in their classrooms. The scores on the
surveys indicated that overall general education teachers showed neutral to
positive attitudes toward students with disabilities placed in general educa-
tion settings. While general education teachers thought inclusion was the
right thing to do for students with disabilities, most teachers reported over-
all low acceptance of having students with disabilities in their classroom,
especially those students with autism and ADHD because of their challen-
ging behaviors.
As Chiang (2011) pointed out, general education teachers in Taiwan
had great pressure to keep up with the pace of curriculum mandated by
their school. Thus, large group instruction and lecture were the most
 210 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

common instructional strategies applied in general education classrooms.

Furthermore, (a) the size of the class, (b) the lack of appropriate teaching
materials, (c) the concerns and questions from the parents of typically
developing students, (d) the lack of professional training in special educa-
tion, (e) insufficient collaboration between general and special education
teachers, and (f) the lack of administrative support were also reported by
teachers in Taiwan as challenges that impede inclusion (Chiang, 2011;
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Hsu & Chan, 2008; Lin, 2011). Overall, the results of studies in Taiwan
indicated that in the past decade the attitudes of general education
teachers toward the concept of inclusion gradually became more positive.
Nevertheless, empowering general education teachers to overcome the
aforementioned challenges to promote successful inclusion in their class-
rooms still requires support from all stakeholders in Taiwan.

Special Education Teachers

Most of the special education teachers highly supported the concept of
inclusion (Wu, 2004), but they still expressed concerns about placing stu-
dents with disabilities in general education classrooms. Special education
teachers indicated concern about the influences of inclusive education on
the social adjustment of students with disabilities and about collaborating
with general education teachers.
Researchers in Taiwan found that students with disabilities are margina-
lized in general education settings (Chang, 2011; Cheng, 2012a; Lo, 2009).
Cheng (2012a) described that many resource room students usually felt
that they were ignored or rejected by peers in general education classrooms.
Even students without challenging behaviors, such as students with low
vision, were excluded by peer groups. Lo (2009) investigated the challenges
encountered by a student with visual impairment in a vocational high
school and found similar findings. The student with visual impairment felt
she was different from and not as good as her peers academically. The find-
ings of these studies showed that without appropriate support, students
with disabilities usually had academic and social difficulties in inclusive
settings.
Many studies in Taiwan investigated whether interventions developed by
teachers would influence peer acceptance for students with disabilities. For
example, peer-assisted learning strategies were applied in general education
settings to improve academic performance as well as social relationship of
students with disabilities (Chiu, 2003; Tsuei, 2006). Yang and Chung (2006)
developed a series of activities for 2nd grade typically developing students
to increase their understanding about various disabilities. After eight
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 211

sessions of intervention, the experiment group showed significantly higher

acceptance for students with disabilities than the control group. While the
intervention showed promising results, the maintenance and generalization
of the intervention effects were not monitored after the intervention. Thus,
whether the peer relationship of students with disabilities improved as a
result of the intervention remained unclear.
Another challenge that concerns special education teachers is collabora-
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tion with general education teachers to successfully implement inclusion.

Students with disabilities enrolled in inclusive settings spent most of their
time in general education classrooms. To ensure that students with disabil-
ities receive appropriate special education services throughout a school day,
special education teachers need to collaborate with general education in
many ways. The collaboration may include (a) arranging learning environ-
ments, (b) modifying curriculum and instructions, (c) managing challenging
behaviors, (d) providing assessment accommodations, (e) accessing assistive
technologies, and (f) discussing and implementing IEP goals (Cheng, 2012b).
Liu and Tseng (2012) documented the changes of general and special
education teachers in the process of their collaboration. They concluded
that collaboration did not occur spontaneously, and both general and spe-
cial education teachers need to develop understanding of each other’s needs
and expectation. However, based on the authors’ observation during school
visits, most of the special education teachers felt uncomfortable reaching
out to provide “suggestions” to experienced general education teachers.
While most of the special education teachers support inclusion and know
that collaboration is essential, more collaboration training may be needed
as well as more assistance from administrators in working with general edu-
cation teachers.

Practice of Inclusive Education

Inclusive education refers to having students with and without disabilities

to learn together. It emphasizes arranging normalized learning environ-
ments, increasing collaboration between general and special education tea-
chers, and providing special education services in general education
classrooms (Niew, 2006). Currently, most students with disabilities in
Taiwan are educated with their typically developing peers. But the special
education services are usually provided in resource rooms or in pull-out set-
tings, and collaboration between general and special education teachers is
still uncommon.
 212 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

Some researchers in Taiwan have introduced a number of strategies

developed in the United States to promote inclusion for students with dis-
abilities, such as differentiated instruction, universal design for learning
(UDL) (Lee & Tsai, 2009), response to intervention (Hung & Ho, 2010; Lin,
2008), and cooperative learning (Sheu & Lin, 2006; Tsuei, 2006). However,
most of these interventions are not integrated into daily practices by tea-
chers, and the effects have not been verified by researchers in Taiwan.
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Other researchers have conducted surveys or qualitative research to help

understand what strategies were applied by general and special education
teachers who had successful experience with inclusion in Taiwan. In a quali-
tative study by Niew (2006), 32 participants were interviewed and observed
to obtain information about strategies promoting inclusion in general educa-
tion classrooms. These participants were highly qualified elementary educa-
tors who successfully implemented inclusion in their classes and were
recommended by special education professors, administrators, special edu-
cators, and parents of students with disabilities. The strategies were orga-
nized in four sections: (a) strategies before school starts, (b) strategies during
school year, (c) transition strategies, and finally, (d) additional strategies.

Strategies before School Starts

General education teachers reported that before the students with disabil-
ities entered their classes, they reminded themselves to treat each student
differently since every individual is different. In addition, they actively
gather information about specific disabilities by attending workshops or by
requesting information from special education teachers. Participants also
questioned teachers who had taught the students to prepare themselves for
the new school year.
To prepare students with disabilities for a new environment, general
education teachers introduced all the teachers and environment to the stu-
dents before the school year. Some teachers had students with disabilities
help decorate the classroom and acknowledged their help in front of the
class on the first day of school.

Strategies during School Year

After students with disabilities entered inclusive settings, general educa-
tion teachers applied numerous strategies to help these students obtain suc-
cessful experience socially, academically, and behaviorally. General
education teachers were good at utilizing resources, such as special educa-
tion teachers, volunteers, and other professionals to help provide social
skills trainings, academic modifications, and behavior management.
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 213

General education teachers actively communicated with related person-

nel, including typically developing students and parents of students with
and without disabilities to promote social adjustment of students with dis-
abilities. Specifically, general education teachers conducted activities as
described by Yang and Chung (2006) to increase students’ understanding
about certain disabilities and discussed and modeled how to interact with
students with disabilities. Teachers shared the change and growth of typi-
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cally developing students after students with disabilities entered their class
to help parents of students without disabilities view inclusion positively.
As to academic adjustment, general education teachers modified instruc-
tion, assignments, and assessments to meet the need of students with
disabilities. In addition, arranging small group activities and assigning
appropriate roles and tasks for each group member, allowing time for one-
on-one instruction after class, and setting up the classroom appropriately
for students with disabilities (e.g., seat-arrangement, amount of informa-
tion on the wall/board, or light in the classroom) were common strategies
applied by general education teachers. The effects of utilizing small groups
to conduct cooperative learning has been verified across studies in Taiwan
(Sheu & Lin, 2006; Tsuei, 2006).
In an effort to effectively manage challenging behaviors, general educa-
tion teachers tried to understand the underlying reason for the behaviors,
clearly communicated the standards and expectations of the behavior, dis-
cussed the behavior with students with disabilities in private, and modeled
appropriate behaviors. In addition, for some students with disabilities, gen-
eral education teachers provided warnings before transitions or making
changes to the schedule, gave extra time to finish tasks, or modified the
activities when necessary.

Transition Strategies
When students with disabilities were transitioned to a new environment,
general education teachers prepared the students for the new environment
by introducing new teachers, classrooms, schedule, campus, and bus route.
In addition, general education teachers prepared the teachers in the new
environment by sharing experiences and strategies that worked for the
students.
The aforementioned strategies demonstrated that general education tea-
chers were capable of implementing strategies in their classrooms that were
effective in educating ALL students, including students with disabilities.
Thus, if general education teachers had positive attitudes toward inclusion
and were aware and responsive to individual differences, they would
 214 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

feel more confident in promoting inclusive education for students with

disabilities.

Additional Strategies
The aforementioned strategies align well with practices that are frequently
used by special education teachers. In addition to those strategies, research-
ers in Taiwan also proposed some guidelines of instruction for special edu-
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cation teachers. For example, Cheng (2012a) suggested that teachers

provide multiple modalities during instruction to enable students with dis-
abilities to participate in activities in a way that met their learning styles.
Lo (2009) reminded teachers who provided special education services in
pull-out settings to plan for successful generalization in the general educa-
tion classroom by arranging multiple exemplars when teaching and by hav-
ing students with disabilities practice new skills across persons, settings,
and materials. Chiang (2011) addressed the importance of providing age-
appropriate activities during instruction, such as games played by same-age
peer groups, to help students with disabilities to more easily blend in with
typically developing peers.

FUTURE IMPLICATIONS

Successful inclusive education requires support from administrators, gen-

eral and special education teachers, typically developing peers and parents
of students with disabilities. Given the current state of inclusive education
in Taiwan, a few directions for educators and researchers are proposed to
promote inclusion for students with disabilities.

Implication for Education

General education teachers in Taiwan reported not feeling confident in

helping students with disabilities in their classrooms, and special education
teachers reported they had difficulties collaborating with general education
teachers. In order to better implement inclusive education in Taiwan,
schools should first conduct organizational reform by considering excep-
tional students as members of the whole student body, sharing responsibil-
ity for helping them be successful in school settings. Specifically, the
leadership team of schools in Taiwan should implement school-wide
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 215

interventions, such as response to intervention and school-wide positive

behavior support to provide proactive services for every student. In addi-
tion, administrators should set up professional groups that include admin-
istrators, general education teachers and special education teachers to
discuss specific cases or challenges in their daily practices to promote colla-
boration. Administrators should also arrange professional development
workshops targeting (1) background knowledge as well as intervention stra-
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tegies of special education and (2) guidelines to successful collaboration

among professionals to help teachers overcome existing challenges.
General education teachers should actively attend workshops about spe-
cial education and collaborate with other professionals to help them pro-
vide appropriate learning experiences for students with disabilities in
general education classrooms. Special education teachers should step out of
their comfort zone by actively helping general education teachers solve
their difficulties in modifying instruction, assessments, and assignments as
well as managing challenging behaviors of students with disabilities.
Teacher training programs should add more classes related to special
education, such as introduction to special education and differentiated
instruction for pre-service general education teachers. In addition, practi-
cum experience in inclusive settings should also be part of the training pro-
gram. As to special education teachers, while the “collaboration with
families and professionals” class is usually offered by most of the teacher
training programs in Taiwan, the instructors can arrange more learning
experiences in the field for the pre-service teachers to obtain a deeper
understanding and experience with collaborative practices.

Implication for Research

According to Wang (2011), 53% of the studies on inclusion conducted in

Taiwan applied survey methods and 24% applied qualitative methods.
Other studies used case studies, action research, and mixed methods to
investigate the effects of inclusive education for students with disabilities.
Most of the survey studies focused on investigating the attitudes of teachers
or peers toward inclusion, current practices, challenges, and coping strate-
gies. Limited studies were available in Taiwan that systematically investi-
gated the overall effects of inclusion and the maintenance of the effects on
the academic, social, and behavioral development of students with disabil-
ities. Future research should examine the effects of inclusion for students
with different categories and severities of disabilities.
 216 PEI-YU CHEN AND CHUN-YU CHIU

In addition, the effects and social validity of the interventions developed

in different cultures and contexts, such as differentiated instruction, UDL,
or response to intervention, should also be examined. These interventions
could then be adjusted to fit the school culture in Taiwan.

CONCLUSION AND SUMMARY

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The concept and practice of inclusive education in Taiwan are at its early
stage compared to that in the United States and other countries. While
most of the students with disabilities in Taiwan are placed in inclusive set-
tings, such as general education classrooms and resource rooms, the extent
to which their needs are addressed in general education classrooms remains
unclear. Currently, the education system in Taiwan is undergoing reform,
and such change will dramatically change the practices in general educa-
tion, which will directly influence students with disabilities enrolled in inclu-
sive settings. How these changes would impact inclusive education in
Taiwan requires further examination.

KEY TERMS

Inclusive education Emphases on arranging normalized learning environ-

ments, increasing collaboration between general and special education
teachers, and providing special education services in general education
classrooms.
Inclusive settings In this chapter, inclusive settings refer to education pla-
cements that provide both partial and full inclusive education, including
general education classrooms, resource rooms, and itinerary services.
Low-incidence disabilities Low-incidence disabilities are categories of
disabilities that are less than 1% of school population. These categories
include students with multiple disabilities, hearing impairments, orthopedic
impairments, traumatic brain injury, visual impairments, and students who
are deaf and blind.
Taiwan (Republic of China) Taiwan is a democratic nation consisting of
a total population of 23 million, with over 95% made up by Han Chinese
with a smaller proportion of indigenous groups. The education system in
 Inclusive Education in Taiwan 217

Taiwan was influenced by the policies and practices of various countries.

The majority of disability-related policies were drafted with careful analyses
of international laws and societal context in Taiwan, including People with
Disabilities Rights Protection Act (TWPD) and the two sets of special edu-
cation policies.
General education classrooms in Taiwan On average there are 30 35 stu-
dents and one head teacher in a class in the elementary and secondary
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levels. Each class may have up to three students with special needs.
Students usually arrive at school around 7:30 am and leave around
4:00 4:30 pm.
Resource classrooms in Taiwan The teacher-student ratio is 1:8 in a
resource classroom. Each resource classroom usually has two special educa-
tion teachers in elementary schools and three special education teachers in
middle and high schools. Similar to the resource classrooms in the United
States, the courses of resource classrooms in Taiwan usually are conducted
in small groups and the content of the courses are made to address the stu-
dents’ needs, including academic, social, and behavioral instruction.
Special education teachers in Taiwan Most of the special education tea-
chers in Taiwan are graduated from a four-year teacher training program
of undergraduate level. Providing direct services to students with disabil-
ities and indirect services to general education teachers and families of stu-
dents with disabilities consume the majority of the work of a special
education teacher. In addition, during the child-find process, most of the
special education teachers in Taiwan are responsible for conducting stan-
dardized assessment (e.g., IQ test), gathering other information, and writ-
ing up an evaluation report for the students’ IEP team to determine their
eligibility for special education.

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