Dewey Heersink: In the district that we are in (Delaware) my son is serviced in a full-inclusion classroom. He is mildly on the autistic spectrum. The class has no more than 33% identified the rest NT's. His class had 19 students max. allowed is 22. 5 students were identified. Both teachers are dual certified, and there is a paraprofessional as well.
Willa Holte: You could look at your department of education website.You may also call your local human service agency (example Easter Seals) and ask them if they have any information about modifying the classroom.
Abraham Ladick: Yes IDEA law is definately being broken here.More and more schools are doing this, without regard to following the laws because they know they can get away with it.They are doing this for administrative convienence, and not for what is best for the children.If a child can not suceed and recieve FAPE in an inclusion class setting, they are not suppose to be in this setting at all and ! THIS is why this is ILLEGAL. I am not sure what statute of the IDEA law mandates this, but it states that the child in special ed is to be in the 'least restrictive environment' which means the child has to be as close to a reg ed classroom setting as possible. This works for some kids, but not all. If a child that will be going to this setting will be coming from more restrictive setting such as a special ed /resource class, this means that the child did NOT suceed in the regular ed class. And they want to put the child right back where they did not suceed? Thank you so much for helping the kids, this is VERY rare in public schools. I hate to say it, but if you fight it you will be silenced. You an anomously contact your state dept of education to let them know what is going on, they are suppose to audit these situations....Show more
Rona Espalin: You don't say whether you teach at a public school or not; this could make a huge difference. The following applies to! public schools:There is nothing that violates IDEA legislatio! n about this practice as long as the 12-16 special education students are able to make meaningful academic progress in that environment. That's known as 'FAPE' (a free and appropriate public education). What could be problematic is who the 12-16 regular education students are. Are these students with behavior problems or learning problems but they haven't been identified as needing special education? Ideally, the regular education students in the classroom should be average achievers with average social skills and no significant behavior problems. Your students with disabilities will need to have typically-developing and typically-achieving peers to learn from. That's why most of the research on inclusion is positive--when appropriate supports are provided to the students with disabilities. THey can't just be placed in a regular education class without support. Most special education programs are "mixed-categorical" meaning that you can, legally, have students with! a variety of disabilities in the same type of program. Again, as long as the special education students continue to proffer benefit in this program, there is no IDEA violation.The only legal violation that could potentially arise here is a caseload issue. Each state has a maximum caseload for each type of program (e.g., learning support, emotional support, autistic support). That means the special education teacher in that classroom will have a maximum number of students s/he can serve in the class....Show more
Nikki Sypult: Inclusion refers to the practice of keeping all kiddos in the classroom and groupings that they would fall into naturally as any other student of their age/grade level in there given school.Inclusion is meant to support all the special needs of the student (that includes extra help) in that environment.What you are explaining is more akin to "reverse mainstreaming" where typical students are brought into a special education group to provide s! ome modeling and support for the students with special needs.The suppor! t you need comes from IDEA 2004, and the facts are at Wrightslaw. Your description details a violation of the spirit of inclusion, and likely violates the students' right to proper supports. You can probably find something to sink you teeth into on this site....Show more
Avis Brantner: True inclusion is adapting a general ed classroom or environment so that all children can participate fully. Look up the "no child left behind" act. Also research "Including Samuel"...Show more
Timmy Bustard: I can see about your concern.. schools here in Texas have autism units separate of special education classrooms but basically in the same department. Contact other special education teachers that are teaching through the summer .. they will be happy to answer an email regarding this..if they can find time.. secondary teacher cannot replace having 1 teacher's aid per four kids. If your district has special needs or autism coordinator.. call them before school starts... they ! work through the summer..to see about supplies and getting extra positions opened for teacher's aids, training and development. ..curriculum and supplies.. The adhd should not be in that class unless its really really severe. The classroom will have to be altered to keep the kids safe...door cover handles..to keep doors closed.. and handicapped restrooms installed..(extra wide restroom for teachers to monitor students as necessary). and extra equipment installed if any of your students are using pull ups/changing areas with privacy..... there isn't enough information about each case.. so I cannot make any other recommendations past get a hold of a special education coordinator.. for your district.. if your small school is private.. you can still consult with the local public school district.local autism organizations. or teacher's union about needs concerning those students. plus you didn't mention if this was high school, junior high or elementary.....Show more
Shar! olyn Claybourn: Different schools interpret inclusion differently; no t! wo schools do it the same way. Ideally there should be more regular ed kids in there than ESE, but if you are a small school this may be more difficult to do. What your school is doing is not illegal, but administrators need to ask themselves if it's in the best interest of the children involved.You are correct, though, if instruction is disrupted, reduced, or slowed down by the special ed kids you may have parents calling to complain, switch their kids, or pull them out of school altogether. If other kids in other classes make fun of the 10 for being in with the ESE kids, or the regular ed kids aren't with their friends, chances are the parents will call, the regular ed kids will be unhappy, and behavior/attitude problems will occur. There may not be anything you can do to change the make up of the class, so it is imperative that you and the other teacher get along well and work together. If you can meet before school starts, work out a behavior management system, crea! te any visuals you might need, think about seating charts, instructional group arrangements, etc. it would be helpful.I would focus on and be most concerned with the BD and kids with autism. Unless their LD is severe, most LD kids can integrate into a regular class. This is much harder for BD and ASD kids, and they are typically the ones who are going to disrupt the class with behaviors, so anything you can do to prepare for them before they get to class would be helpful. Good luck!...Show more
Palmira Lochridge: What they are doing is a great idea. Inclusion just means including everyone in the class; there is no number associated with the concept. The two teachers will co-teach; one will be the "regular ed" teacher, and the other will be the "special ed" teacher. Parents shouldn't be upset about anything other than their children being able to learn by peer-teaching others at times (and remember, there's an old saying that "you never TRULY learn something unti! l you've TAUGHT it"). You should not have a severely autistic child in! that classroom, but all the other labels you've referred to are gonna be fine. you have to be a strong teacher with very specific classroom management plans that you follow through with EVERY TIME. If this is the first time your school has tried "inclusion," all teachers should definitely be given beginning of the year (or summer) continuing education classes. My best friend and I used to team teach 7th and 8th graders (me, regular Ed. English; she, special Ed. everything!) - it was one of the best experiences of my teaching career. She now works for the special programs dept. in a neighboring county here in WV. I wish I could give you her name and number so she could do some inservice training for your school. It would definitely alleviate your anxiety and prepare you for the coming year. Is there any way you could contact me? You really sound concerned, and I hate that for you because this will be a GOOD experience; I promise, but ONLY if you get the information,! training, and continuing support you need to know HOW to do it correctly!...Show more
Cristopher Gavalis: My son(autistic), next year (7th grade), is going into regular classes but has been in inclusion classes nearly all of his life. From what I understand, inclusion means that there will be a regular and special ed teacher in the room. It also never meant that half of the children would be disabled in one way or another...just a few....kind of "sprinkled" to allow them the opportunity to be in a more "regular" class so that they can experience and learn from "normal" kids. You definately need to check with your local legislation/government and see what your states laws are. Best of luck!...Show more
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