Inclusive School Environments Reduce Labels of Being “Disabled” Causing Students to React Positively and Negatively to Their Classroom Environments

Different attributes to an Inclusive Learning Environments

Inclusive environments in today’s society give students with disabilities a place in the classroom, thus reducing the label of a child being called retarded or handicapped. These environments include placing students with special needs with other peers who do not have special needs. Inclusive environments allow children with disabilities to feel their contributions and ideas are well respected and valued equally in the classroom compared to their peers. Inclusive environments welcome the needs of all students’ disabilities and accept every child for who he or she is. A child is considered disabled by having impairments that are either physical or mental that prohibits them from reaching his or her full potential. Limitations that prevent children from being capable in society determine what type of disability a child has. 


The Adoption of Inclusive Environments Through the Passage of Legislation

Inclusive Environments started in 1975 with the passage of Education for All Handicapped Children Act, which guarantees that all students with disabilities recieve a free public education. This law mandates that all children receive a free and appropriate education regardless of their ability and to be included in least restrictive environments to educate students with a range of abilities. This law started inclusive environments in the classroom and led to the creation of Individualized Education Programs, IEP's, which are designed to meet the needs of a particular student in the classroom. From the creation of inclusive environments the 1990 Individuals with Disabilities Act was created to ensure inclusive environments were prevalent in the classroom and they set the restrictions of ages for students to be placed in inclusive environments. These laws helped create inclusive environments for students with disabilities in the classroom and are used to ensure the best possible benefits for children facing mental and physical impairments in school. 

 The Barriers that Prohibit Schools from Adopting Inclusive Environments

Inclusive environments are not possible in all schools due to barriers that prohibit students with disabilities to reach their full potential in the classroom. Students with disabilities move at a slower place than children without disabilities and when placed in inclusive environments a divide is made between the students. Teacher training and preparation is another problem because certain teachers aren't certified to teach students with disabilities. Teachers then have to change their curriculum and schedules to meet the needs of all students, which can change a teacher’s style of teaching. Keeping up the fast pace in the classroom is a barrier to some students who believe special education students will slow down their learning. There is also a negative social perception towards children who are disabled entering public schools because of their disabilities. Lisa Miller, Special Education Teacher through Montgomery County Infants and Toddlers, believes that there are certain barriers from teachers that prohibit schools from adopting inclusive environments in the classroom.

When teachers and administrators believe that a certain disability causes a student to not learn as fast or understand material, a negative stigma is placed upon that student. That attitude is portrayed throughout the whole year and places a barrier between the student and his or her education. Inaccessible schools also cause barriers that prohibit inclusive environments because of the needed accommodations for students with disabilities. Some schools do not have elevators or ramps to allow students transportation throughout the building. Some schools also lack resources to educate students with disabilities due to their lack of funding from the state and their minimal resources. Certain schools do not have the necessary resources to allow children with disabilities to be included in inclusive environments. 

Positive Impacts on Students Lives through Inclusive Environments

Inclusive learning environments create positive impacts on not only students with disabilities, but as well as students without disabilities. In the study, “The Impact of Social Interaction on Educational Outcomes for Learners with Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities” created in Virginia in 2012, a look into the impacts of inclusive environments is expressed. The effect of inclusion on academic achievement and social interaction persist on positive results. There was a positive correlation in the study between positive behavior support and academic achievement for students with disabilities.When students with disabilities have a chance to model peers work habits they have the ability to model them and recreate those habits to reflect on themselves.  Being in the classroom promotes social interaction and helps facilitate a feeling of acceptance and worthiness to all students. Lisa Miller, Special Education teacher through Montgomery County Infants and Toddlers, believes inclusive environments are beneficial for students with and without disabilities.

Students with disabilities who were placed in inclusive settings had slightly higher academic results than those not in inclusive settings. These environments foster achievement and success in the classroom among all students, not just students with disabilities. Also for students who had teacher-mediated intervention in the classroom prove to be more effective academic students which strengthened the whole classroom. A program called, The Circle of Friendship Program creates buddies; pairing students without disabilities with students with disabilities, instilling friendship and interaction among students of different abilities. These long lasting friendships prove effective in the classroom allowing students with disabilities to feel a connection to someone unlike themselves. Inclusive environments provide safety to all students ensuring them from harm or violence in the classroom. 

Negative Impacts on Students Lives through Inclusive Environments 

Basic Concepts Summer Camp for kids with disabilities 

Even though inclusive learning environments are often seen as positive, they generally have negative affects on children in the classroom. Inclusive environments allow all children of different abilities to be in the same classroom. However this can be seen as a negative by certain behaviors and outbreaks that cause disruptions in the classroom. It can take away the learning from students without disabilities provoking them to be more distracted and frustrated. For students with disabilities there will be a need for competition to feel they are smart enough to be in a mainstream classroom causing stress and anxiety for those particular students. 

Class sizes in inclusive environments are much bigger which can take away from the one-on-one attention students with disabilities are used to receiving, causing them to not have enough time to review concepts. Regular education students will always see students with disabilities as different, resulting in these students continuing to be labeled,  and feeling uncomfortable.  Students without disabilities will feel their learning is being harmed by other students Even though IDEA and Education for All Handicapped Children has been passed, there is always going to be a divide between regular students and students with disabilities, tension in the classroom. 

Spread the Word to End the Word: Reducing the Label

To help reduce the power of labeling a campaign has been started called Spread the Word to End the Word to get rid of the use of the R-word.The R-word, for many of you who don't know, is retarded and in today's society it serves the purpose of seeing someone as handicapped and/or disabled causing them to be ridiculed. This campaign asks all of its members to pledge to end the word. This campaign wants to get the R-word removed from legislation because it is offensive, hurtful and derogatory. Stand up and make a change today to help reduce the power of labeling by pledging to end the word. By starting this pledge the benefits of inclusive environments will be used as reducing the labels of children who are disabled. Inclusive environments can impact all students differently depending on their ability, even though they can be seen as negative their is always a positive which is to reduce the power of labeling students with disabilities.

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