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When developing this project, I felt as if Inclusion would be the best topic to  include. As an intervention specialist, it is important to make sure that your students are included and are working alongside their non-disabled peers. Research has been done that proves that when students with disabilities work with their non-disabled peers, they are able to perform more successfully.

In middle school, students are developing their different social groups and creating stronger friendships. It is important for all students to be able to create these relationships alongside their peers, whether they have a disability or not. It is also important for these students to be prepared for high school. If inclusion is present, students with disabilities are able to feel included in the general education setting and can continue to do so in high school.

These resources are examples of why inclusion is important to have. They also show how inclusion can be important in the community as well. With inclusion, people are likely to be more accepting of those who are different because they are around them more often.

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This Padlet is geared towards the idea of an inclusive education. Inclusive education is important in schools because it allows for inclusion of all students as well as faculty and members of the community. As a teacher, I want to create a inclusive environment for my students and allow them to feel safe and welcomed in my classroom.

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1. Unicef - Inclusive Education - Article

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1. Unicef - Inclusive Education - Article

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This article describes inclusive education in a bigger picture. It explains how creating an inclusive environment requires changes in many different aspects of society, which can be difficult. This article states that in order for full inclusion to be successful in the school, "Teachers must be trained, buildings must be refurbished and students must receive accessible learning materials" (Inclusive Education). This can be along process, which explains why many schools have not adapted an inclusive school setting. Unicef focuses on four key areas to implement inclusion in the schools. These areas include advocacy, awareness-raising, capacity-building, and implementation support. When these areas are met, there is more of change of being able to close the gap in education for students with disabilities.

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There are an estimated 240 million children with disabilities worldwide. Like all children, children with disabilities have ambitions and dreams for their futures. Like all children, they need quality education to develop their skills and realize their full potential.

Yet, children with disabilities are often overlooked in policymaking, limiting their access to education and their ability to participate in social, economic and political life. Worldwide, these children are among the most likely to be out of school. They face persistent barriers to education stemming from discrimination, stigma and the routine failure of decision makers to incorporate disability in school services.

Disability is one of the most serious barriers to education across the globe.

Robbed of their right to learn, children with disabilities are often denied the chance to take part in their communities, the workforce and the decisions that most affect them.

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Children with disabilities are often overlooked in policymaking, limiting their access to education and learning.

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2. The Power of Letting Children Learn Together - Article

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2. The Power of Letting Children Learn Together - Article

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This article explains what inclusive education is and why it is important to have in schools. This article states that, "Around the world, children are excluded from schools where they belong because of disability, race, language, religion, gender, and poverty" (The Value of Inclusive Education 2019). Students are not only not included in general education classrooms because of disability, but also because of their background and culture. This can be hard on the children because they don't always understand why they are not able to be included with the other students. The article also states that, "Inclusive systems provide a better quality education for all children and are instrumental in changing discriminatory attitudes" (The Value of Inclusive Education 2019). When children are able to be accepting of students with different backgrounds, culture, and disability, the environment of the school will become more welcoming as well.

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The Power of Letting Children Learn Together

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Everyone benefits when all children, regardless of their differences, are educated together.

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3.  Building Disability Inclusive Education through Data - Picture

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3.  Building Disability Inclusive Education through Data - Picture

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This picture represents children with different characteristics to them. Although, they are all kids and they are all the same, just with unique features to themselves. Just because someone looks a little different, or needs support to do something, doesn't mean that they are any less.

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This picture represents diversity and inclusion in many different aspects. The people in this picture all come from different backgrounds and cultures. Yet, they are all lending a hand to the person near them. I think that this is a perfect example of what inclusion in schools should look like. Students and faculty should always be there for each other no matter where they may come from or what they look like.

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7. News - What Does the Research Say About Inclusive Education? - News Article

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7. News - What Does the Research Say About Inclusive Education? - News Article

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This article describes the start of special education in schools in the 1950s and 60s. This article explains that, "There is a strong research base to support the education of children with disabilities alongside their non-disabled peers. Although separate classes, with lower student to teacher ratios, controlled environments, and specially trained staff would seem to offer benefits to a child with a disability, research fails to demonstrate the effectiveness of such programs" (Whitbread, 2021). Evidence shows that when students with disabilities are alongside their non-disabled peers, they are more successful with their goals. Different strategies within the general education classroom are also beneficial for students with disabilities. These strategies can include peer tutoring, cooperative learning, and differentiated instruction.

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The Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s was a precursor to legislation protecting the rights of children with disabilities to a public education. In the Supreme Court ruling ofBrown v. Board of Education in 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren, referring to segregation of children by race, stated:

Today, education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments...it is a principal instrument in awakening the child to cultural values, in preparing him for later professional training, and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment. In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education. Such an opportunity...is a right which must be made available on equal terms. We conclude that in the field of education, the doctrine "separate and equal" has no place (Brown v. Board of Education, 1954).

These same arguments, originally applied to race, have been repeated on behalf of children with disabilities, many of whom continue to be educated separately from their non-disabled peers despite legislation mandating otherwise ( U.S. Department of Education, 2003).

There is a strong research base to support the education of children with disabilities alongside their non-disabled peers. Although separate classes, with lower student to teacher ratios, controlled environments, and specially trained staff would seem to offer benefits to a child with a disability, research fails to demonstrate the effectiveness of such programs (Lipsky, 1997; Sailor, 2003).

There is mounting evidence that, other than a smaller class size, "there is little that is special about the special education system," and that the negative effects of separating children with disabilities from their peers far outweigh any benefit to smaller classes (Audette & Algozzine, 1997).

Students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms show academic gains in a number of areas, including improved performance on standardized tests, mastery of IEP goals, grades, on-task behavior and motivation to learn ( National Center for Education Restructuring and Inclusion, 1995).

Moreover, placement in inclusive classrooms does not interfere with the academic performance of students without disabilities with respect to the amount of allocated time and engaged instructional time, the rate of interruption to planned activities and students' achievement on test scores and report card grades (York, Vandercook, MacDonald, Heise-Neff, and Caughey, 1992).

The types of instructional strategies found in inclusive classrooms, including peer tutoring, cooperative learning groups, and differentiated instruction, have been shown to be beneficial to all learners. For example, Slavin, Madden, & Leavy (1984) found that math scores for students with and without disabilities increased by nearly half a grade level as a result of working in cooperative learning groups.

Peer tutoring resulted in significant increases in spelling, social studies and other academic areas for students with and without disabilities (Maheady et al, 1988; Pomerantz et al, 1994). The use of graphic organizers, study guides, and computer accommodations resulted in significantly improved performances on tests and quizzes for students with and without disabilities (Horton, Lovitt, & Berglund, 1990).

In addition, children with intellectual disabilities educated in general education settings have been found to score higher on literacy measures than students educated in segregated settings (Buckley, 2000).

Quality inclusive education doesn't just happen. Educating children with disabilities in general education settings with access to the general education curriculum requires careful planning and preparation (Deno, 1997; King-Spears, 1997; Scott, Vitale, & Masten, 1998).

Research shows that principals, special education directors, superintendents, teachers, parents and community members must all be involved and invested in the successful outcome of inclusive education (Villa, 1997; Walther-Thomas, 1997). Teachers - both general and special education - must collaborate to create learning strategies and environments that work for all students.

Related service personnel, including speech therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapists and school psychologists will be expected to deliver their services in the general education environment rather than in therapy rooms and will need to incorporate their services into the general education curriculum and schedule (Ferguson, Ralph, & Katul, 1998).

Educators must rethink assessment, as No Child Left Behind and IDEA 2004 both call for more extensive evaluation of students' progress, including the use of standardized assessments.

Research highlights the benefits of efforts on the part of schools to find meaningful and creative ways for parents of children with disabilities to participate and contribute in the school community ( Ryndak & Downing, 1996).

The benefits of strong family-school partnerships are well documented in the literature. Student academic achievement is higher when parents are involved; in fact, the higher the level of parent involvement, the higher the level of student achievement (Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Christenson & Sheridan, 2001). Other benefits of strong family-school collaboration include improved student attendance, higher aspirations for postsecondary education and career development (Caplan, et. al., 1997), improved social competence, (Webster-Stratton, 1993) and lower rates of high-risk behavior on the part of adolescents (Resnick et al., 1997).

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) strongly emphasizes the involvement of families at every step of the special education process, from referral to evaluation, to Individualized Education Program (IEP) development, to monitoring progress.

Yet, many parents of students with disabilities are not fully participating members of their child's IEP Team. Data from the first year of the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS) funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) as part of the national assessment of the 1997 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 97), showed that:

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individuals with disabilities education act

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News - What Does the Research Say About Inclusive Education? (Kathleen Whitbread, Ph.D.) - Wrightslaw

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The Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s was a precursor to legislation protecting the rights of children with disabilities to a public education. In the Supreme Court ruling ofBrown v.

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The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019) is about an adult with Downs syndrome, Zak, and a man trying to leave town, Tyler. Zak escapes the home he was living in and meets Zak while he is trying to escape from a bad situation. Tyler explains to Zak that he doesn't care that he has a disability and he treats Zak the way he would treat anyone. They travel by foot to Florida together and create a friendship on the way. This movie brought joy to my heart and knew this was something that I should include on this Padlet. While this movie isn't about inclusion in the school, it shows inclusion in the community which I feel is even more important.

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The Little Clever Girl:
I have no eyes to see
Yet I have a hand to write
Legs to walk though not strong as yours,
Yet I am what I am,
A little clever child

This poem is from the students perspective describing how she may be different and that she may not be able to do everything that others are able to do. But in the big  picture,   she can still do everything but  it may just be in a different way than others can. Just because someone has a disability, it doesn't mean that they aren't capable of achieving success.

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While this song is a bit cheesy, it is a great example of inclusion in music. The artist, Frank Nemiroff, explains how he may do things different, but he's still a lot like everyone else and he still has feelings too. Just because someone is different than you, doesn't mean that they are weird or strange. Everyone has different qualities and that is what makes them unique.

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This TedTalk presented by Ilene Schwartz talks about the power of inclusive education. She describes how inclusion is not a teaching strategy or a placement issue. She says that inclusion is about belonging to community, a group of friends, a school community, or a neighborhood. This is important to understand because just because someone is there, it doesn't always mean that they are feeling included.

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The power of inclusive education | Ilene Schwartz | TEDxEastsidePrep

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9. Inclusion  Makes the World More Vibrant - Video

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9. Inclusion  Makes the World More Vibrant - Video

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In this video, the little boy is helping his mom who is blind. While they are walking through the museum, his mom asks him to pick a piece if artwork that he likes and explain it to her so she can experience it with him. He finds a picture of a war and explains it to her in such detail so that she can imagine it herself. A crowd gathers and cheers him on after he's explained the picture. Others ask him to explain other pieces of art as well because of how wonderful is explanation was. This video shows Inclusion outside of the classroom. While the schools are our main focus, we also have to consider inclusion in every day life. When we do so, the world itself will be a happier, more welcoming place.

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Getting Started - Experience as Language Arts Student

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Getting Started - Experience as Language Arts Student

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In middle school, a lot of my language arts class included vocabulary practice, reading, and writing. We were given vocabulary tests each week and were provided a novel to read that included reading tests and writing essays for each of the novels. We also were given different writing assignments to practice skills such as formatting, APA/MLA styles, researching, and writing personal narratives. To practice with APA/MLA, we would be given flashcards to write all of our sources that we will use and would write the citation as well as the in-text citation for each source. She would then have conferences with each of us to review our sources and give us the extra help if we needed it. Because I went to a small school, I had 4 teachers that were split among the 7th and 8th grade class. Therefor, each of the teachers were able to incorporate what we were learning into each of the different subjects.

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Perspectives From Field - Students & Teachers

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Perspectives From Field - Students & Teachers

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While working with the students at Garfield Middle School, I noticed a lack of engagement and interest with school. A majority of the students did not have the motivation/interest to complete their school work or pay attention in class. While working with one student in particular, he explained to me how school is "dumb" because there is nothing interesting being taught and he just "does not care". This can be difficult on the teacher because it puts stress into finding lessons that could interest students that have these thoughts about school. When my partner and I taught our lesson, we tried our best to create something that would allow the students to be engaged. While observing the student talked about previously, I noticed that he was interested in the work he was doing and actually fully completed this assignment before the end of the class. In this specific scenario, the way that my partner and I taught was different than the way that the students are used to. Therefor, the students were engaged because it was different. Teachers should change up their ways of teaching throughout the year and give students the opportunity to be able to find their own learning style that works best for them.