Special Education Becoming Less Special?

1213 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Positive effects of special education

Imagine a classroom in a typical high school; a teacher is explaining a lesson in Algebra. All of a sudden, there is an ear-splitting screech from the back of the classroom and a book goes hurling towards the chalkboard. One’s first instinct would be to whip around and see what the commotion was about; however, it is just Toby, the special needs child. This class encounters outbursts like this from Toby nearly everyday. The mainstreaming of special education students is the main reason behind these disruptions. Some of these pupils spend up to 80 percent of their day in a standard classroom setting. Inclusion of disabled students into a customary classroom has become a growing trend in many public schools throughout America in the past few decades. Because of this, mainstreaming is affecting the students, their peers, and their educators. (“Special Education”).

Vast majorities of people believe that the inclusion of disabled children is one of the most effective ways to improve the social and educational skill of these special needs students. However, this is not an ideal situation for the majority of these children to be dealing with on a daily basis. Placing a special needs child into a standard classroom actually causes them to learn less. For example, they do not obtain the attention needed, and lessons may be gone over to hurriedly for them. Due to this, the lesson being demonstrated would not be able to be comprehended by the pupil. In other words, a teacher would have to recreate and reshape lesson plans around one or two individual learners. The normal classroom setting merely allows these children to slip through the hands of teachers, becoming passed from educator-to-educator attempting to get out of the system as ...

... middle of paper ...

...r rather have them succeed in a specialized classroom setting? Well, the choice is up to you parents; now tell me, what would you decide? (“Special Education”).

Works Cited

Reynolds, Tammy, and Dombeck, Mark. “The Choice of Educational Settings: The Pros

and Cons of Mainstreaming Children With Intellectual Disabilities.” Seven

Counties Services, Inc. Web. 23 Feb. 2012.

http://www.2facts.com/icof_story.aspx?PIN=i1200490%term=mainstreaming.

Np. “Special Education.” Issues and Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues &

Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 7 Sept. 2007. Web. 23 Feb 2012.

http://www.2facts.com/article/i1200490.

“Teachers Under Fire.” American Decades. Ed. Judith S. Baughman, et al. Vol. 9: 1980-

1989. Detroit: Gale, 2001. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Print. 5 Mar. 2012.

Show More
Related

  • Inclusion in the Public School Classroom

    1541 Words  | 4 Pages

    What do we do with children with disabilities in the public school? Do we include them in the general education class with the “regular” learning population or do we separate them to learn in a special environment more suited to their needs? The problem is many people have argued what is most effective, full inclusion where students with all ranges of disabilities are included in regular education classes for the entire day, or partial inclusion where children spend part of their day in a regular education setting and the rest of the day in a special education or resource class for the opportunity to work in a smaller group setting on specific needs. The need for care for children with identified disabilities both physical and learning continues to grow and the controversy continues.

    Read More

  • Taking Sides: Inclusion

    605 Words  | 2 Pages

    Educators can have strong feelings on the subject because having special needs students in a regular classroom can have a large impact on the classroom community. Those who believe in inclusive classrooms realize that, to be successful, it requires allot of classroom management and differentiated instruction, but feel the benefits are worth the work involved. Those who do not believe in inclusion feel that it leads to “l...

    Read More

  • Migrant Students’ Perspectives

    712 Words  | 2 Pages

    Harry, B., & Klingner, J. (2006). Why are so many minority students in special education? Understanding race and disability in schools. New York and London: Teachers College, Columbia University.

    Read More

  • Special Education Students: Inclusion vs Reality

    1330 Words  | 3 Pages

    Federal and state laws, as well as mandates, now require schools to educate all children with disabilities in the least restrictive environment, to the maximum extent possible. The least restrictive environment is considered to be the general or the “regular” education classroom. The preferred language of today is the term “general education classroom”, because using the word “regular” implies that special education rooms would then be considered ‘irregular”. Schools are also bound by law to provide “a full continuum of services” which simply means they need to be able to provide all placement options, from the least restrictive to the most restrictive environment, such as an institution. Each special needs student also has an individualized education plan to meet their unique needs.

    Read More

  • Essay On Special Education Inclusion

    1204 Words  | 3 Pages

    Including these children in general education ultimately leads to their progress. Not too long ago, these people were segregated and labeled as incompetent. It was not until special education reform came about and showed the countless capabilities these exceptional learners have to offer. Teachers play a vital role in these entities’ lives. It is up to them to facilitate their learning as well as modify their measurable goals. Before inclusion, these people could not reach their potential, and not much could be said about how they learn or grasp concepts. Through inclusion, professionals can ascertain students level of performance and utilize strategies that work best for the child. Inclusion allows educators to take note on what type of learners these exceptional individuals are. Schoolteachers can reveal if the youth is a visual, auditory, tactical, or even a kinesthetic learner. Unquestionably, inclusion has brought about an age of progression for instructors and students’ in special education.

    Read More

  • From Inclusion to Friendship

    1876 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The 1% of US students with labels of severe disabilities including mental retardation have been historically excluded from ‘inclusive’ education” (Bentley, 2008, p. 543). Laws such as PL 94-142 and “No Child Left Behind” (as cited in Bentley), say that ‘public school students with all types of disabilities be educated in the least restrictive environment—‘to the maximum extent possible…with children who do not have disabilities’ the majority of these students with special education labels, such as, mental retardation and multiple disabilities are still isolated in special education classrooms (Bentley, 2008, p. 545). Wehmeyer (as cited in Bentley), points out that mere access does not promote authentic participation (Bentley, 2008, p. 546). Burkowski et al (as cited in Webster and Cater), “Friendship has been defined as a bond between two individuals that is stable across time and involves mutual affection, mutual preference and having fun together” (Webster and Carter, 2007, p. 201). It is up to parents, teachers and other paraprofessionals to seek ways to facilitate and encourage the types of positive interactions that will foster these types of friendships. If done successfully all students will benefit and there will be true inclusion.

    Read More

  • Special Education: Examining the Pros and Cons of Inclusion in Education

    1069 Words  | 3 Pages

    middle of paper ... ... _ Education _ Inclusion.aspx Harchik, Alan. The. (2005). The 'Secondary' of the 'Second Inclusion of children with special needs in regular classrooms: Pros. & cons.

    Read More

  • Minority Students in Special Education Programs

    1572 Words  | 4 Pages

    The special education programs in the United States have been designed to help children with special needs learn easier and fit in better with the education program. Unfortunately, many minority students get caught up in the mix and don’t get the proper attention they deserve. Furthermore, minority students are seriously over-represented in the educational programs. Many minority students are misdiagnosed and put into special education programs when in fact; they do not have a learning disability. This has become a growing problem in this country because it is seen as the easy way out. Schools all over the U.S. are doing this in order to not have to properly test and evaluate students for learning problems.

    Read More

  • Inclusion of Children with Autism

    1326 Words  | 3 Pages

    The inclusion of children with learning disabilities into normal classrooms has proved to exhibit both positive and negative effects on children with and without disabilities.

    Read More

  • Diverse or Disabled? The Improper Use of Special Education

    1250 Words  | 3 Pages

    ... placing children in special education costs money and resources that are already scarce. In order to provide the best education for all students, teachers must be careful to refer only those who are truly disabled and not simply different.

    Read More

  • The Influence of Special Education Teachers

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    I have been a Special Education Para-Educator for eleven years now. My decision to do this was based on the needs of my family and kids. When my last child was born, the doctors did not think that he would make it. He had a heart malfunction and was born with RSV and Von Villibrantds disease (which I did not find out until he was three); those factors lead me to want to work with special education kids, knowing that I could make a difference.

    Read More

  • Pros and Cons of Inclusion

    1351 Words  | 3 Pages

    Inclusion 'mainstreams' physically, mentally, and multiply disabled children into regular classrooms. In the fifties and sixties, disabled children were not allowed in regular classrooms. In 1975 Congress passed the Education of all Handicapped Students Act, now called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA mandates that all children, regardless of disability, had the right to free, appropriate education in the least restrictive environment. Different states have different variations of the law. Some allow special needs students to be in a regular education classroom all day and for every subject, and others allow special education students to be in a regular education classroom for some subjects and in a separate classroom for the rest. There are many different views on inclusive education. In this paper I will address some of the positive and negative views on inclusion and ways to prepare educators for inclusive education.

    Read More

  • Inclusion And Philosophy Of Early Childhood Special Education

    717 Words  | 2 Pages

    The true purpose of school is to prepare children for their future in becoming lifelong learners and global citizens. For children with special needs, special education services prepare and provide support for them in dealing with the challenges they face daily. Laws such as Individuals with Disabilities Education Act has enforced schools to provide education to all children and reinforces the purpose of the school, which is to provide children the Least Restrictive Environment to help them develop to their optimal potential. There are myriad of concerns regarding inclusion’s effect on typical developing students, yet a research done by Bui, Quirk, Almazan, and Valenti shows that “[p]resence of students with disabilities results in greater number of typical students making reading and math progress compared to non-inclusive general education classes” (p. 3). Therefore, inclusion not only benefits children with disabilities, but it also benefits typical developing student’s academic skills and allows them to learn acceptance and respect for students with disabilities.

    Read More

  • Inclusion Paper

    707 Words  | 2 Pages

    The idea of inclusion within a classroom tends to breed controversy from many people. Currently there is no clear consensus on a definition of inclusion (Heward, 2006). There are many different views on how students with disabilities should be handled. Those views ranged from students being fully included, partially included, or not included at all in mainstream schooling. Different descriptions of inclusion tend to reflect the person's own opinions towards it. People who feel students should not be included in the classroom focus on the negative characteristics of inclusion, such as the challenges of developing plans for students as well as the hard work it requires to incorporate those plans. However, studies show that full inclusion has many benefits to the students, for both students with disabilities as well as students without them. Inclusion has shown to improve the student's social skills, encourage communication, inspire laws and regulations, and improve the overall schooling experience (Gargiulo, 2012). Although it will take longer then some would like or have the patience for, full inclusion can be done in the classroom, with its benefits outweighing the hard work that it requires.

    Read More

  • Intervention Strategies in the Classroom

    1296 Words  | 3 Pages

    Special education is no longer restricted to schools that cater for specific disabilities. Increasingly mainstream classrooms must cater for a diverse range of abilities and be inclusive of children with disabilities, therefore providing special education (Heward as cited on Pearson Prentice Hall, 2010). In catering for all children within a class, teachers also need to provide intervention as necessary. Intervention according to Heward (as cited on Education.com, 2011) intends to reduce, eliminate and/or limit the hurdles faced by students with disabilities that may prevent them from maximising their learning and becoming productive members of society. This essay will discuss how teachers can provide all three kinds of intervention; preventive, remedial and compensatory on behalf of individual students who may require it (Pearson Prentice Hall, 2010). Each type of intervention will be explored with examples to demonstrate the possible use of each one and the potential issues that may be associated with them.

    Read More

More about Special Education Becoming Less Special?

Open Document