Hurdles and Huddles: The Inclusive Classroom

As mentioned in my last post, there are three things that must be effective in order to adequately support students with exceptionalities in today's education world; a strong inclusive classroom, parental involvement, and community support. Below are a few strategies that are sure to strengthen the three and increase the success of a student with disabilities in todays inclusive education environment.

1. Communication must be strong between parents, the general education teacher, and the special education teacher. At least once per week, the special education teacher and general education teacher must discuss the progress of the student and plan lessons or strategies for the upcoming week. This can be done quickly in the hallway between classes, or formally at a scheduled time each week. Shared planning makes this much easier. However, this is not the case with most special education inclusion teachers as they serve multiple grade levels of students. Communication to parents is equally as important as communication between teachers. Research has proven that strong parental support is strongly correlated with educational outcomes for all students! BOTH THE GENERAL EDUCATION TEACHER AND THE SPECIAL EDUCATION HAVE A DUTY TO KEEP PARENTS INFORMED CONCERNING PROGRESS. Special education teachers must go the extra mile to give parents opportunities to attend meetings, inform them of their rights, and make educational decisions regarding their child. It is also important to make sure that parents are receiving both positive and negative communication from the school. A quick note or phone call about how well their child has done can go a long way to improving the relationship with a parent and the educational system!

2. One thing that is often overlooked when discussing student success is the importance of community involvement. Parents should be well aware of resources within their community that can assist in supporting them raise a child with special needs. Do your students' parents know about local counseling agencies, support groups, therapy programs or services, etc? Does your school system partner with such agencies? What if, once per year, the school system hosted a parent outreach night? Parents of students with disabilities come together one night per year to attend short sessions (taught by LEA special education teachers or personnel) on things such as home behavior support, increasing literacy skills, or how to advocate for their child. They could sign up for parent support groups and meet system special education personnel. Community agencies can set up booths that detail their services so that parents are well aware of the opportunities for support locally. Such nights do three things; increase parent involvement, increase community support, and increase the potential for success for a student with a disability!
Here is one of my most favorite websites for parents of a student with special needs; www.understood.org. This website gives information regarding advocacy, school system support, and articles with information on various topics concerning students with disabilities.

3. Inclusion support in the general education classroom must be taken seriously, and regarded as a top priority for school administration and personnel. Unfortunately, special education services can sometimes can take a back burner to other happenings within a school. However, it is imperative that this student support service is provided and regarded with equal or greater care than even the regular education classroom. A strong special education program is essential for both students with disabilities and for typical students. It fosters a climate of both student equality and diversity; both of which are imperative lessons to students entering today's society. I have only one suggestion (outside of strong communication that has already been mentioned) for special education teachers that will help make the inclusion setting a successful environment for all involved.
Be an ACTIVE participate in the planning of inclusion lessons AND the teaching of inclusion lessons. Gone are the days of the "glorified assistant" that wanders around the room while the general education teacher provides the brunt of the teaching. There are many ways to coteach lessons with a general education teacher. You can read more about those here. Below is an easy diagram to also help understand the various types of coteaching. My personal favorite is to divide students into homogeneous groups (grouped by ability). The special education teacher teaches one group, the general education teacher teaches another, and other groups are located in independent centers. Lessons are differentiated as students rotate every so often between centers and teachers. This type allows for small group teaching, which can be the most effective for students with exceptionalities, and it allows both teachers to be ACTIVE participants in the lessons. Creating a coteaching structure that works for both the teachers and the needs of the students can sometimes take time, but the potential outcomes far outweigh the heavy lifting on the front end!

As you can tell, it takes a lot to make sure that educational outcomes are high for students with disabilities in any setting, especially in the inclusive environment. However, as educators, we must make sure that we are ensuring the success of ALL students, no matter what it takes! Please feel free to comment below how your school or system provides inclusion services. I would love to hear what works or doesn't work for others! The best way we can learn is from one another!

Hurdles and Huddles: Students with Disabilities

I still hear stories from veteran teachers that talk about the methods of teaching students with exceptionalities "back in the day". Students with special needs went from no education, to a limited education separated from their peers, to the modern movement of an all inclusive general education environment. While there are still some students whose least restrictive environment is located in a separate classroom, most students in public education have been mainstreamed in order to receive an appropriate public education experience.

While all the talk of inclusive classrooms create images of rainbows, sunshine, and unity; the education world still has leaps yet to conquer in order to secure the highest degree of education for all. 

The biggest hurdle; figuring out how to increase communication and effectiveness of all stakeholders involved in a Student with Disability's (SWD) education. Who are the stakeholders that impact a child's education? To name a few: the child, parents, teachers, school leaders, support personnel, student peers, community members and businesses. While we are discussing rainbows, sunshine, and unity, imagine this: all stakeholders huddled up in a circle, arms around each other's shoulders (much like a team huddle before a big game). The child is also in the huddle leading the others surrounding in a chant that inspires and motivates all. Now cut back to reality. The reality is that not all parents come to scheduled meetings. The reality is that not all teachers have the knowledge or the drive to create an inclusive classroom. The reality is that not all community businesses wish to support their local education agencies. The reality is that not all SWD are willing to put forth the effort to succeed. How can we do better? How can we huddle up in order to move forward? My next blog post will be focused on increasing the effectiveness of three things; an inclusive classroom, parental involvement, and community support. 

If you are a stakeholder in a SWD's education, please complete this survey to help me with my next post on the inclusion classroom. 

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