Existing systems might be unsustainable.  Timelines and expectations may be untenable. But the act of putting kids with and without disabilities in the same learning environments is not the issue. Implementing inclusive practices from scratch can seem daunting. But inclusion is doable when it is implemented with fidelity; and at the end of the day, it benefits all students.

When you’re thinking about how you may implement inclusive practices in your school next year remember: 

I KNOW I KNOW that statement may seem radical to those who have been in education a while.  “Inclusion” can be a bit of a loaded term depending on who is using it.  I am a product of two people who worked in and around education.  Growing up, I sat on the peripheral of my parents and their friends in education and listened to their conversations about the state of the education system.  I understand what educators have been through over the last couple of decades, and I know how fatigued teachers are, especially after the last few years.  

When I started my own teaching career, I was able to join in on conversations with school staff as a colleague.   Ultimately I realized there are three groups of people in education.  Those who have had negative experiences implementing inclusion, those who are ignorant of what inclusion can and should look like, and those who believe in the significance of inclusion when implemented with fidelity.

I’ve heard all of the arguments, including:

• Putting those kids in gen-ed classes takes up too many resources from the other kids and their teachers.

• The content is going to go over their heads.  They won’t get anything out of it.

• Putting these kids in electives takes a spot away from a gen-ed kid that deserves it.

• It’s just too much work.

 I have eight years of personal experience and hundreds of stories of how inclusion has benefited students and staff in my school.  In 2022, we have enough data, both peer-reviewed and anecdotal to show how inclusion, implemented with fidelity benefits ALL kids.  

Over the last couple of years, our nation has been discussing racial inequality, and the things we need to do as a society to end racism and discrimination.  This conversation is a huge and necessary one.  I urge all educators to remember that the segregation and discrimination of people with intellectual disabilities are just as much of a civil rights issue as racial inequality.   Take a moment to read these arguments again, but as though they were said about a non-white student being placed in a classroom:

• Those kids need to focus on their own educational environment.  Putting them in gen-ed classes takes up too many resources from the other kids and their teachers.

• The content is going to go over their heads.  They won’t get anything out of it.

• Putting these kids in electives takes a spot away from a gen ed kid that deserves it.

• It’s just too much work.
  

This summer, take some time to think about what is working in your school regarding inclusion, and the implementation of special education services. Then think about what could and should be improved.  Identify what staff members are ready to make improvements, and then find a way to get that conversation going.