Inclusion: A Tale of Two Teachers
A Tale of Two Teachers
Creating an authentic inclusive learning environment is essential for students with disabilities to make progress and meet grade level expectations in the general education classroom. Inclusion classrooms have the advantage of having two professional educators who bring with them diverse skills, knowledge, and expertise to effectively serve the learning needs of all students. All students benefit significantly from both teachers committing to providing equitable educational experiences. How can general education teachers use inclusive teaching practices in their learning environment to support students with diverse learning needs? How can special education teachers use IEP goals to foster access to and progress in the general education curriculum? When should they integrate special instruction into the general education classroom setting to meet the needs of diverse learners?
Equality,Equity, and Inclusion
Equality means all students have the same or equal opportunities to learn content standards and have meaningful participation in general education settings. When students with disabilities are placed in the general education classroom setting with their peers, that is equality because they have access to the same learning material, teacher, assessments, activities etc. There are many general education teachers who feel that is sufficient and will accept them into their classroom but will rarely play a significant role in their education.
Providing equity is when all students have the support and resources they need to benefit from equal opportunities to learn and participate in all aspects of school. Inclusive educators keep equity and access at the forefront of everything they do, always seeking new ways to improve teaching and learning.
Effective inclusion educators reflect on mitigating barriers to access and progress in the general education classroom and school campus at large. They place special emphasis on negative effects of barriers on marginalized groups. Would an equity framework such as inclusive teaching partnerships be the key to achieving an equitable education for students with diverse learning needs and help to close the achievement gap for diverse learners?
No Child Left Behind (NCLB, 2001) and the reauthorization of IDEA (2004)
I will not bore you with the details but the passage of these laws required students with disabilities to be included in systems of accountability in K-12 education. Students must now take the same standards-based assessments as students without disabilities. Equitable access to the general education curriculum for students with disabilities is becoming the norm due to this legislation. Our students with disabilities are finally becoming a priority and it has been a game changer. Teachers are starting to be held accountable for their student’s progress or lack thereof more than before.
The solution: Inclusive Teaching and Learning Instructional Strategies
In an inclusive learning environment students are learning with their peers and feel a sense of belonging derived from positive social interactions from those around them. Learning opportunities and outcomes are the same for students with disabilities and those without.
Inclusive teaching is about what teachers do to make the learning environment conducive to social, academic, and personal growth by creating conditions that make all students feel like they belong. When teachers are intentional about fostering trust, relevance, empowerment and community within the classroom environment, learning at the highest level is possible. It is important for there to be parity and equality between the two teachers in an inclusion classroom. Normalizing that the inclusion classroom belongs to both teachers as well as the students is a great first step to building an authentic inclusive classroom. Teachers who need complete ownership of the classroom setting and are unwilling to share, please be honest about it. For inclusion to work, both teachers need to be “all in” and there is no getting around that.
Inclusion requires you to be reflective in your practice because it does involve adapting to changes that may be uncomfortable to you at first. The results of your teaching efforts will ensure access, remove barriers, and support all students in making adequate progress in the general education curriculum. You must consider the full range of diversity in your student population such as language, culture, race, gender and the like. Personal biases (we all have them) toward student behavior, engagement, communication styles, work ethic and organization must be recognized, acknowledged and dealt with. You may take the Staffordshire Evaluation of Teaching Styles by clicking here.
The Tale of Two Teachers
General education teachers and special education teachers both play a critical role in creating an inclusive learning environment for students. Implementing inclusive practices with fidelity would be impossible without the contribution of both teachers and the support of school leaders. Yes, both teachers are different and are responsible for different aspects of student learning experiences and while they can be competent separately, they are dynamic together.
We must reimagine relationships between special education teachers and general education teachers. They are both committed professional educators seeking to improve teaching and learning for all students. One teacher is not better, more competent, superior, or inferior to the other. Closing the achievement gap cannot happen through the efforts of one teacher. We need an army of educators, family members, school leaders, community members, and other school stakeholders to support inclusive practices. We begin with a strong professional partnership between general education teachers and the special education teachers that is grounded in interdependence on each other’s strengths. Inclusion teachers must understand that they need each other and their contributions are of equal importance; only then can they prepare all students for meaningful participation in school and in life.
The General Education Teacher
Focus on the curriculum and learning standards or the “what”
Usually lack confidence and competency in teaching students with disabilities.
Consistently examine barriers in teaching practice and mindset
Responsible for delivering the methodology or the “how” of teaching and learning
Provide the special education teacher with a copy of your lesson plans
Increase professional competency through reflective practice and professional development
The architects of core instruction because of their rich knowledge of content
Integrate SDI into the lesson planning process through collaboration with the special education teacher
Consider SDI, in the creation of activities, assignments, and projects
Seek to combine co-teaching approaches, UDL, and DI to implement SDI, when appropriate
Implement SDI to meet academic goals as stated on the student’s IEP
Special Education Teachers
Implement SDI for students receiving special education services as stated on their IEP
Support the general education teacher in understanding student IEPs and SDI received in the instructional setting
Design SDI within the context of the general curriculum in collaboration with the general education teacher
Continue to add tips, tricks, resources, strategies, practices to your toolbox.
Monitor student progress
Pre-teach and reteach when appropriate
Utilize High Leverage Practices, Supplemental aids and Services (SAS), accommodations, modification, and SDI
Serve the needs of diverse learners exclusively, there is no time for anything extra.
Train and manage paraeducators
Utilize co-teaching approaches where applicable
Use student data to design and implement intensive interventions
Create student data sheets and record baseline data
Implementing Inclusive Practices
Many general education teachers state that inclusion can be disruptive when more than one teacher is in the classroom. For sure, if there is no collaboration or coplanning, it won’t be as effective as it could be especially if the teachers have just started working together. The lesson will not teach itself, my teacher-friends and you must bring your A-game. Teachers can collaborate and plan to embed instruction that addresses individualized goals with instructional content.
This is accomplished by first focusing on the content or standard being taught then includes instruction that is tailored to specific IEP goals. The general education teacher and the special education teacher will use their expertise to balance academic progress with student support needs within the pace of classroom instruction. Flexible instructional delivery is the shared responsibility of everyone in the inclusive classroom including paraeducators and related personnel.
When coming together for lesson planning:
General Education teacher must: Provide the learning standard, lesson objectives, Assessments, Activities (using UDL and DI)
Special Education teacher must: Provide student learning profiles that contain the relevant IEP goals for each student, SDI, learning strategies, intervention plans, accommodations and modifications, Specialized Aids and Services (SAS)
Implementing Embedded Instruction
Identify the goal: Both teachers decided what specific IEP goals could be addressed or identify areas where intensive instruction is needed. (*hint: identify goals that apply across content areas)
Identify natural opportunities to provide instruction: Teachers will identify natural opportunities to provide specialized instruction or interventions within general education activities and routines such as transitions and independent work.
Use prompt fading during instruction: Ask the student question if they don’t know the answer give them a prompt to help them out. Begin to increase the wait time before providing a prompt more and more until they are answering without being prompted.
Collect the data: At least twice per week collect data on the student’s progress. Special education teacher will review the data each week to ensure the student is on track to reach their goal and if changes are needed.
Students who are a part of an inclusive school culture have a sense of belonging and feel welcomed in the classroom setting. The curriculum is adapted as appropriate to meet their individual needs and there is connection to family and community. The teachers are culturally responsive and they value the unique strengths of students and understand how learner variability influences the learning process. Teachers practice “presumed competence” by not making assumptions about what a student with a disability is capable of learning and accomplishing.
Just so we are clear, both the special education teacher as well as the general education teacher must commit to an inclusive partnership where they learn to become interdependent on each other’s skill, knowledge and expertise. The general education teacher is the architect of core instruction using elements of both UDL and DI to design learning experiences for all students. The special education teacher uses SDI, intensive interventions, learning strategies, resources, and practices to provide students with instruction beyond what is provided to by the general education teacher to give students with disabilities opportunities for meaningful participation and progress in the general education classroom.
Inclusion can’t exist without both teachers working in concert with each other to improve teaching and learning. Placing students with disabilities in a classroom does not equal inclusion. Special education teachers who are not doing their part as stated above can’t say they practice inclusion. A fully inclusive classroom involves a 50% contribution from the general education teacher and a 50% contribution from the special education teacher. It really is like a marriage in that it takes commitment, compromise, trust, and an open mind. Inclusion requires a lot especially in the beginning but if you build a strong inclusive learning environment grounded in acceptance and celebration of each others differences; your students will thrive academically, socially, and behaviorally.
It only takes two badasses who aren’t ego-tripping and can see the big picture. They will change the lives of children who need a champion. The rest will continue to do the same things they’ve always done and things will stay exactly the same.
