Pros And Cons Of Inclusion

Con
A con that has raised much concern about the use of inclusion within the classroom is that teachers are not properly trained nor receive adequate support to teach a student with a disability. With teachers already struggling to provide appropriate education for students without disabilities due to rigorous standards and mounting pressure to perform, with such a large burden it becomes unrealistic for teachers to provide the attention needed and deserved for disabled students within a regular education classroom. With lack of training in specialized education areas, teachers are unable to properly serve disabled children and in turn these students are unable to receive an appropriate education accompanied by specialized attention and care needed in order to suitably benefit educationally.
A second issue that has been brought forth as being detrimental is one that I have also seen as being a pro, the socialization aspect of inclusion. Opponents to inclusion feel that the socialization part of learning takes precedence over the student’s academic achievement. If this is so, then the disabled student would be missing out on necessary skills that would ensure academic progression while at the same time putting the regular
education students behind on meeting learning objectives. This becomes a double negative because not only will the disabled student not receive proper academic support but nor will their non-disabled counterparts.
Inclusion has been viewed as an unfair practice for students that are not disabled not only educationally but also emotionally. Teachers can tend to focus more on the students with special needs which leaves little time to provide interventions for non-disabled students. Not only can this be detrimental to the students learning but it can also promote an environment that is full of resentment and envy. Regular education students can become somewhat upset when they notice that their disabled classmates are receiving more one on one attention from the teacher than they are and this leads to a non-conducive learning environment.
Personal Position
Inclusion is not a one size fits all method for disabled or special education students and there are some instances where it is not appropriate. Some students may have difficulty transitioning into a classroom that has such a large volume of students. Students can become distracted and have difficulty learning and paying attention to the content being taught. This distraction causes the disabled student to become a distraction for the regular education students. If the teacher is weak with their classroom management, the classroom will become nothing more than a volatile environment filled with behavior problems. Then guess what, no one will be able to benefit academically due to constant interruptions. I personally feel that if implemented properly, inclusion can work beautifully not only for special education students but also for regular education students.
Having taught in a room that implemented inclusion, the disabled student benefited from learning alongside their peers. This allowed my regular education students an opportunity to teach another student strategies and content they had learned. The students loved to be a helper for the disabled student and I find that using student mentors helps to ensure that I can also appropriately serve the other students in the classroom. The use of mentorship helped give my regular education students a sense of responsibility and helped them create a warm and helpful relationship amongst the
students.
Socialization within the classroom is also another great aspect of inclusion. Inclusion provides disabled students an opportunity to learn appropriate rules, proper social skills, and a capacity for building friendships. It is vital for all students to not only learn the rules but understand why they are put in place. Inclusion also provides disabled students with a wonderful opportunity to socialize with their non-disabled peers. This helps them develop their social skills which are a necessity when it comes to building healthy relationships and friendships with others.