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Finch EDU 119 Melissa Midgette

Mainstreaming and inclusion can seem very similar to each other, and are in fact often used interchangeably. The term "Inclusion" when used in education is an approach to educating students with special educational needs. Under the inclusion model, students with special needs spend most or all of their time with non-disabled students. Implementation of these practices varies. Schools most frequently use them for selected students with mild to severe special needs. It involves bringing the support services to the child (rather than moving the child to the services) and requires only that the child will benefit from being in the class (rather than having to keep up with the other students). Proponents of inclusion generally favor newer forms of education service delivery. When we use the term "Mainstreaming" in education we are referring to the selective placement of special education students in one or more "regular" classes during specific time periods based on their skill. Proponents of mainstreaming generally assume that a student must "earn" his or her opportunity to be placed in regular classes by demonstrating an ability to "keep up" with the work assigned by the regular classroom teacher. Schools that practice mainstreaming believe that special needs students who cannot function in a regular classroom to a certain extent "belong" to the special education environment. The teacher in the "Inclusion" class facilitates the learning by encouraging, prompting, interacting, and probing with good questioning techniques, such as 'How do you know it's right can you show me how?'. The teacher provides 3-4 activities that address the multiple learning styles and enables students make choices. For instance, in a spelling activity a student may

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choose to cut and paste the letters from newspapers or use magnetic letters to manipulate the words or use colored shaving cream to print the words. The teacher will have mini-conferences with students. The teacher will provide many learning manipulatives and opportunities for small group learning. The teacher in a "Mainstream" class has the responsibility for the day-to-day management of all students. The key to meeting the needs of all pupils lies in the teachers knowledge of each pupils skills and abilities and the teachers ability to match this knowledge to identifying and providing ways of accessing the curriculum for every pupil. The teachers must plan differentiated work, ensure that individual learning targets are incorporated into planning, plan and oversee the work of any learning support assistant or other individual working with a child with Special Educational Needs, monitor the progress of these students. They must also provide information to the Special Education Needs Coordinator about the progress, achievements and attainments of the pupils with Special needs. Also, discuss with the Special Needs Coordinator any concerns that they have about the students when they suspect the student may be experiencing barriers to learning. Provide information and reports to other agencies involved in supporting an individual student as well as provide reports for annual reviews. I personally believe a student with disabilities should have every right to join a general education classroom when possible. The concept of inclusion is based on the fact that a student with disabilities deserves to have the same education as a regular education student. Inclusion

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involves more of a moral stance, and a student in an inclusion classroom usually needs only to show that they are not losing out from being included in the classroom. students in an inclusion setting often have support groups, in addition to expectations and assessments that are tailored to their own development. A student in an inclusion classroom often has an entire support team helping them to adjust to the classroom and supporting the general education teacher to be able to provide an individualized curriculum for the special education student. Even if the student is only making a small academic gain, the reward may present itself in the form of life preparation development and positive social skills.