Running head: HOW A TEACHER FEELS ABOUT INCLUSION

How a Teacher Feels About Inclusion

John Beckius
University of St. Thomas

HOW A TEACHER FEELS ABOUT INCLUSION

All students deserve the right to an education. All master teachers strive to ensure every
one of their students attains an education. There are different styles of teaching, and there are
different styles of learners. There are types of learners who make it nearly impossible for other
students to attain an education. These types of learners may have neurological disorders,
emotional disorders, cognitive limitations, or some type of sensory loss. With this variety of
learning challenges and opportunities, it can be very hard for teachers to confirm that their
students get the same education. Do all students deserve the right to the same education, in the
same room at the same time? Does Special Education Inclusion help individual students or harm
whole group learning? Making special education inclusion the exception rather than the rule can
positively affect the education of all students involved.
Since the passing of the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1997 (IDEA), the goal of
classrooms shifted to from one of segregation to one of acceptance and community, and to one of
making certain all students were treated fairly. That is, treated fairly in the sense not that every
student was treated the same, but that every student was given the tools and accommodations
they needed to be successful. This represented a major positive change for an extremely large
portion of the nation's learners. This shift in education meant that students with physical, mental,
or neurological differences were finally able to receive the same education, in the same setting
and at the same pace as their regular education counterparts. However, this also meant that
students who suffered from emotional disorders who required separation from the rest of the
class due to severely challenging behaviors would receive accommodations. A child
demonstrating an outburst behavior can interrupt a lesson for an extended period of time, causing
off-task behavior of regular education students. These outburst behaviors, for the most part, are

HOW A TEACHER FEELS ABOUT INCLUSION

chronic behaviors. These are not anomalies. These are daily. The students who are affected most
deeply by an emotional or neurological disorder lack social skills necessary to function
successfully in a regular education setting (Gal, E., Schreur, N., & Engel-Yeger, B., 2010).
The number of students in the classroom, the number of assistants in the classroom, the
current workload of the students and the teacher, and even the budget of the school contribute to
the success of the individual learner (Gal, et. al, 2010). The environment plays an extraordinary
part in the success of learners. The relationship between students and students, students and
teacher, and teacher and students cannot be understated either. Some students require bright
lights. Some students need to filter the light through colored plastic overlays. Some students
require space enough for a wheelchair or walker. Still others with sensory loss require the
amplified voice of the instructor, while others require total silence in order to absorb a lesson.
Some learners require other learners within close proximity. Some learners are quite literally a
threat to the safety of other learners within close proximity. Some learners are wonderful
contributing members of the classroom community for most of the day, but can be easily set off
on a disruptive outburst. Every single one of these learners deserves an education by a skilled,
caring, master teacher (Gal, et. al, 2010).
There are several accommodations that students with learning challenges require to
ensure their success in the classroom. A student with a neurological, cognitive, or emotional
disorder may require extra time on an assignment, small group instruction or assessment,
manipulatives, and adaptation to the assessments. And although students with neurological,
cognitive, or emotional disorders are perceived as more of a behavior challenge than students
with sensory loss, accommodations for students suffering sensory loss are mostly environmental

HOW A TEACHER FEELS ABOUT INCLUSION

(Gal, et. al, 2010).
Children with learning disabilities are three times more likely to suffer from emotional
disorders and behavior problems than children without learning disabilities (Gal, et. al,
2010).These emotional problems can be detrimental to the learning environment. A student
having an emotional outburst deserves to have the time and space to let his or her emotions out.
Meanwhile, the rest of the students in the classroom deserve to have their learning uninterrupted.
A student with a behavioral problem deserves to have the security of a full time teacher always
within close proximity to ensure positive behavior choices. A student with a learning disability
deserves instruction on his or her level at the pace at which they can succeed. A student with
sensory loss deserves the special attention to environment and instruction that he or she requires.
Any combination of these students can be demanding to the time and attention that a teacher
must give to provide each and every student an education. Studies from the time that IDEA was
enacted indicate that children who are perceived less demanding in terms of teachers input are
generally viewed more positively as candidates for inclusion (Gal, et. al, 2010). It has been
noted that an inclusion classroom, or the least restrictive environment has been selected for
students with cognitive limitations and sensory loss (Gal, et. al, 2010).
Because the outbursts caused by the disorders these students suffer from have the ability
to cause interruptions in the learning of peer students, it is better to be fair and give every student
the same right to an education. This may mean that the students are not in the same room.
Because of that separation, students who would otherwise be distracted for extended periods of
time after witnessing a disturbing emotional outburst, can experience an uninterrupted lesson and
enjoy all of the special accommodations they require to be a success.

HOW A TEACHER FEELS ABOUT INCLUSION

References
Gal, E., Schreur, N., & Engel-Yeger, B. (2010). Inclusion of Children with Disabilities: Teachers'
Attitudes and Requirements for Environmental Accommodations. International Journal
Of Special Education, 25(2), 89-99.