Alejandra Martinez

ENGL 1302 283

Dr. Jason Dew

February 23, 2024

Inclusion in Special Education

In America, a proper education entails inclusion when necessary and free education.

Children with and without special education needs are included. Integration or inclusion is for

students to be involved in the mainstream classroom, school community and be an active

member in their school. As Farrell said, “children fully included should take a full and active part

in the life of the mainstream school, they should be valued members of the school community

and be seen to be integral members of it.” For children with special education needs, inclusion is

more difficult and harder but not impossible. Since inclusion is fought for as a fundamental

"human right" for students with and without special education needs (SEN), all educational

systems aim to achieve it. Integration was assessed in terms of appearance, behavior, human

rights, relationships, peer acceptability, self-image, and skills in both SEN and non-SEN

children.

Bakker and Bosman conducted a research study on three Dutch groups of students; one

group is low achieving students in regular education with no help, second group is low achieving

students in regular education with help and lastly the third group is low achieving students in

special education. What was tested among these students was appearance, behavior, and skills.

Tests used were a self-image scale and a sociometric questionnaire. The self-image scale tested

self-confidence relations to teacher and school, physical appearance, sport achievement, and

relations to classmates. What they found was that with the first two groups of low achieving
students in regular education with and without help they did not show a difference on whether it

is important for peer acceptance. Students' self-perception and performance level were closely

correlated. The two groups of students attending regular classes with and without help showed

that they did differ from the self-image scale. The results showed that the students with help

opted out for four out of the five dimensions on the scale. They had a better self-image than

students without help. Having the help made them feel confident and right. Doing well in school

helps students feel like they have nothing to worry about so they can worry about other things

like personal things, sports, family and friends. All students want is to be accepted by their peers

and “fit in.” It can be hard for any student but a student with SEN can be even more challenging

as they can be easy targets to bully, ignore, and pay attention to. That is why it is important for

integration or inclusion to bring both students with and without SEN. This is where inclusion

comes in for both students with and without SEN like Bakker and Bosman said having both

students integrated will get them talking to each other, get to know each other and then they start

to have a sense of belonging with their peers and in the school. Students in special education

were significantly more popular with low achieving students. The popular helps students with

their self-image and it really is nice to see regular students be friendly and kind to special

education students. It is not easy, but explaining to the students that being kind and respectful is

all that matters, and everyone deserving a friend is what is important.

Inclusion and the least restrictive enviornment works for students with and without

special education needs. High and low achieving students who are attending regular classrooms

and special needs classrooms with and without aid is what is being looked at. The factors that

were being considered for integrating children with and without special education needs were

social interactions, motivation, and acceptance. Results from the studies could either be negative
or positive. Inclusion should be challenged and fought for these children. If not educators,

students, and the public then who will? And for some inclusion is not enough of a word to

combine students with and without SEN. As said from Nakken and Pijl, “Inclusion is simply

taking an active part in the school” meaning they could just have a group of students with and

without special needs in a special setting than having all children in a mainstream classroom like

a homeroom with third or fourth grade. Putting students with SENs in a regular homeroom

classroom will provide them with more motivation and interest in waiting to learn, pay attention,

and even work hard enough to get the acceptance of their peers.

In the article by Ruijs and Peetsma they discover and discuss the effects students have

when put in inclusive classrooms with students without special education needs. As well as find

out what the parents and teachers think when it comes to their children and inclusion for them in

their schools. Inclusion for both students with and without special education needs may be a

positive or also a negative effect. The negative effect is that the students with special education

needs do not like being combined in a regular class setting it may even upset them because they

may not all interact the same and the students with special education needs may feel “different.”

The positive findings are that students with special education needs find it motivating to be with

peers without special education needs. But it is also up to the teacher to prepare their students for

interacting with each other. Preparing both students with and without special education needs can

help them both be prepared and not through off guard that may cause fights and dislike form the

get go. There may be some downs to combining both students with and without special education

needs, but it is really in the best interest of students. For students with special education needs it

is important that they are comfortable and familiar with students without special education needs.

This will help them grow up to learn to interact, talk, be respectful and understanding of their
people’s opinions, ideas, and discussion. And for students without special education needs it may

be their first time meeting a SEN student and learning to interact with someone who may not

interact the same, the students may use a helping talking device or sign language to

communicate. This interaction can help both sides by seeing firsthand their struggles and

strengths and becoming friends or at least friendly and respectful.

Inclusion is a beautiful and wonderful thing for both students. It will bring them together

and teach them compassion, understanding, and that there are people out there who are differnet

and beautiful. Although they are occasionally harsh and very honest, children are taught early on

that just because someone is different, it does not mean that they should be treated any

differently. Inclusion is a part of the school experience and meeting students with special

education needs can be for the better life changing. When I personally met special education

needs students in high school, they motivated me to become a special education teacher. These

students are so bubbly, kind, and funny. Anyone would be lucky to meet them.

Works Cited

Bakker, J. T. A., & Bosman, A. M. T. (2003). Self-image and peer acceptance of Dutch students

in regular and special education. Learning Disability Quarterly, 26(1), 5–14.

https://doi.org/10.2307/1593680

Han Nakken & Sip Jan Pijl (2002) Getting along with classmates in regular schools: a review of

the effects of integration on the development of social relationships,

International Journal of Inclusive Education, 6:1, 47-61, DOI:

10.1080/13603110110051386. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603110110051386

Peter Farrell (2000) The impact of research on developments in inclusive education,

International Journal of Inclusive Education, 4:2, 153-162, DOI:

Rujis, M. Nienke, Peetsma, T.D. Thea. (2009) Effects of inclusion on students with and without

special educational needs reviewed. Educational Research Review 4. 67-79.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/educational-research-review