COOKE HOME
 WHAT IS INCLUSION?
What is Inclusion?
 Inclusion
refers to the practice of placing students with
special needs in regular
education classrooms with supports to help them fully participate.
Unlike mainstreaming, inclusion provides support services to all
children in the classroom and bases expectations on individual
goals. Students with special needs
are not considered "visitors," but are an integral part of the
school community.
When the Cooke Center refers to full inclusion, we
generally mean that one or two students are enrolled in a regular
education classroom, reflecting the natural proportion of
individuals with special needs
in the general population.
Partial inclusion means that students are in
self-contained classrooms but participate in daily inclusion
activities with their general education peers.
Our students' success is proof that inclusion works. Whether full
or partial, the ingredients for a successful inclusive educational
environment include:
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Collaboration
between special and general educators to execute a successful
inclusion program. |
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Curriculum
modifications, allowing each child to actively participate at
his or her own level. |
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“Push in”
services, such as speech, occupational and physical therapy,
integrated into the classroom. |
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Support
services, such as one-on-one instruction, provided to any
students who need them. |
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Environmental
adaptations so that all children can participate. This can
include anything from seating a hearing-impaired child closer to
the front to setting up a communication board for a non-verbal
child. |
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Cooperative,
small group learning, with an emphasis on working together
toward common goals. |
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Respect for
the rights of parents to take an active role in their children's
education. |
Studies show that students with
special needs
placed in the general education classroom perform better
academically and socially. These studies also show that inclusion
actually improves learning in typically developing children through
higher teacher–to-student ratios, greater individual attention, and
innovative instructional techniques. Moreover, they develop an
increased comfort level with human differences and greater empathy
for those whose learning styles differ from their own.
COOKE HOME
WHAT IS INCLUSION?
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