Inclusion programs for preschool students with disabilities: history and outcomes

Inclusion has long been a topic of debate within the sphere of education. The purpose of this discussion is to provide a research proposal concerning inclusion programs for preschool students. Before we provide further details concerning the actual research proposal let provide some background information about preschool inclusion.

What is Inclusion?

Inclusion involves the practice of placing special education students in the same classrooms as general education students (Lombardi 1999). Historically, most disabled students have been served in segregated special education classrooms. In 1975, Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, was created and made provisions for the public education and general education to students with learning disabilities. Before this legislation was created only a limited amount of students disabled student were provided services in public schools (Snyder, 1999). After the legislation was enacted it became mandatory for school-age students with disabilities to be given a free appropriate education in the least restrictive environment. As a direct result of the aforementioned legislation there was a great deal of growth in the area of special education. In many cases this entailed some mainstreaming (Snyder, 1999). In addition, Since the 1980's parents of special needs students and special education professionals have been pursuing more integrated services for students with disabilities (Snyder, 1999).

By 1990, Public Law 94-142 was reauthorized as The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA). The reauthorization of this law has encouraged special educators to press for total Inclusion of all students with special needs. As opposed to placing diasbled students in the general education classroom and giving them special instruction in a resource room, "the supporters of total inclusion propose that all students with moderate to severe disabilities should be educated in the general education program. This movement has been endorsed and implemented by many schools and school districts and at the same time ignored and criticized by others. There are many pros and cons of the inclusion movement (Snyder, 1999)."

According to an article found in Topics in Early Childhood Special Education Inclusion at the preschool level is a rather new phenomenon. The article asserts that inclusion only emerged as a major service alternative for children and families in the 1990s. Inclusion has now, however, become a mainstay in the field of early childhood special education. By recent counts, over 50% of all preschool children with disabilities who are receiving services are in some form of inclusive setting (U.S. Department of Education, 1998). This movement from traditional special education programs, which were originally built on a downward extension of special education designed for school-age children to preschool-age children, to programs in which children with disabilities are surrounded by typically developing peers, is continuing to move forward (Odom 2000)."

In fact the article explains that school policy makers now consider inclusion to be the initial service alternative for disabled preschoolers as opposed to a service supplied as a result of parental advocacy (Odom 2000).

The article also asserts that positive outcomes are often reported for disabled children and normally developing children that are in inclusive classrooms (Odom 2000). Research has also suggested that disabled students perform just as well in inclusive settings as special education settings (Odom 2000). There has also been some research to suggests that disabled preschoolers perform better in inclusive classrooms (Odom 2000).

In addition when observational measures were used research has found that children with disability displayed more positive behaviors when they were place in general education classrooms (Odom 2000). In addition, inclusive classroom settings tend to also benefit general education students making them more sensitive towards disabled individuals (Odom 2000). In addition inclusion makes general education students more knowledgeable about certain disabling conditions (Odom 2000).

Prior research has also indicated that in inclusive programs disabled children tend to have less interaction with peers when compared to general education children (Odom 2000). In addition disabled children tend to suffer more reject than general education students even when they are in an inclusive setting (Odom 2000). Research has also suggested that inclusion programs are most effective when they begin early and there is parental involvement. The article futher explains that "School systems are more likely to place children with mild disabilities in inclusive settings than children with severe disabilities...However, there may be good reasons for including children with severe disabilities in general preschool settings. Hundert and colleagues (1998) found that children with severe disabilities who participate in inclusive settings appear to score higher on standardized measures of development than comparable children enrolled in traditional special education settings (Odom 2000)."

Methodology

As it relates to the proposed research the demographics will include a total of 16-four-year-old students. Ten of the students will be general education students and the remaining students will be special education students. Of the 16 students three will be African-American, four Caucasian and nine will be Hispanic. All of the students are from low income families. Challenges facing these students include speech delays, social-emotional problems, cerebral palsy (body not brain), English as Second Language (ESL). The Inclusion program takes place in two separate rooms and each room has a morning and afternoon session.

The classroom being researched will have an inclusion specialist who will offer classroom support twice a week. This support will provide general education teachers with support. This support is necessary as it relates to general education teachers who may not have much experience with special education students. Research suggest that general education teachers are usually eager to participate in inclusion programs but only when they are offered additional support. Odom (2000) reports that general education teachers are sometimes concerned with their lack of understanding about children with disabilities and may be particularly concerned when they have children in their classrooms with severe disabilities (Odom 2000).

According to Lombardi (1999) one of the problems often associated with inclusion is that the interventions created to address the special needs of an individual student are sometimes more intrusive than is necessary. For the purposes of the proposed research a specific tool will be used to assist inclusion specialist and general education teachers that are working together (Lombardi 1999). Such a tool will be instrument in making effective instructional decisions for special needs students in the general classroom (Lombardi 1999). This tool is known as the Levels of Intensity of Intervention Decision-Making Framework. This framework can be utilized by individuals or teams to create effective decisions correlated with instructional or curricular interventions for students that have special learning challenges (Lombardi, 1999).

In addition the specialist will provide the special education students with therapy that is consistent with their Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Goals on their IEP should be at mastery level. IEP's are a vitally important component as it relates to special education students. According to Odom (2000)

Individualized instructional techniques and curricula have been employed in inclusive settings and have produced positive behavioral and developmental outcomes. In a synthesis of our research findings, my colleagues in the Early Childhood Research Institute on Inclusion (1998) and I have proposed that specialized instruction is a necessary aspect of successful inclusive preschool programs. Such instruction may be naturalistic in nature (Rule, Losardo, Dinnebeil, Kaiser, & Rowland, 1998) in that it might blend with the activities and routines occurring in the classroom, although more specialized activities may be necessary at times (Odom, 2000)."

There will also be weekly planning meetings and monthly parent groups. Parental involvement will be assessed and measured as a very important aspect if the inclusion program. According to Odom (2000) parental involvement is essential to the success of any inclusion program. The author explains that in general parents have positive attitudes about inclusion programs. These positive attitudes are true of parents that have general education students and parents that have special needs students. In addition parents often asserts that there are certain benefits to their children associated with inclusion, including increased acceptance, chances to learn, and the accessibility of good developmental models. However, parents also express some concerns about inclusion, such as obtaining special services for their children (Peck, Hayden, Wandschneider, Peterson, & Richarz, 1989), as well as large class size (Wesley, Buysse, & Tyndall, 1997), and staff preparation (Green & Stoneman, 1989). In general, the positive appraisals of parents appear to overshadow the negative appraisals. The information about parents' concerns should alert professionals to issues that parents may feel are important for their children in inclusive settings (Odom, 2000)."

As a result of the role that parents play in an inclusion program, the research will include their opinions about the progress of the program and the changes that they see in their children. To this end, the researchers will give parents a questionnaire on the topic and/or a pre and post test to determine their understanding or approval of the program. In addition a Brigance test will be designed to demonstrate improvement over a nine-month period. The Brigance is a Diagnostic Assessment of Basic Skills that is designed for use with bilingual, ESL, migrant, and bilingual special education students in grades K-6 for whom Spanish is a first language. It can be used to establish language dominance, to determine whether a student is performing at grade level in academic subjects in his native language, and to distinguish whether or not a student's weaknesses are due to limited English proficiency or to a specific learning disability. The test has the following sections: 1) Readiness; 2) Speech; 3) Functional Word Recognition; 4) Oral Reading; 5) Reading Comprehension; 6) Word Analysis; 7) Listening; 8) Writing and Alphabetizing; 9) Numbers and Computation; and 10) Measurement. Not all parts of the test are administered to every student because the teacher/test administrator is encouraged to check off skills that she knows the student has mastered (Brigance Diagnostic Assessment of Basic Skills).

What is learned from the research?

The preliminary research that has been conducted concerning what inclusion is and the advantages and disadvantages of inclusion programs has been rather informative. The initial research provided information concerning the various laws for disable people. I learned through this research that disabled children have not always had the opportunity to get a public education but were instead placed in special schools. I also learned that legislation passed in the 1970's gave disabled children the right to attend public schools with their peers who were not disabled. The research demonstrated the progress made as a result of the passage of this law. It is apparent that the IDEA paved the way for more inclusive programs in public schools and has contributed greatly to the inclusion movement. The research demonstrated to me that over the past decade inclusion has been a topic of much debate and there is a great deal of controversy over the issue. On the one hand, those that are supportive of inclusion assert that it is beneficial to special education students because it allows them to interact freely with peers while simultaneously providing general education students with the opportunity to better understand children that are disabled. However, those that oppose inclusion programs assert that disable students can be disruptive in a general education classroom. They also assert that general education teachers do not have the appropriate amount of training to properly teach an inclusive classroom. Even when teachers are paired with inclusion specialist those that oppose inclusion assert that the training and experience of general education teachers is inadequate as it relates to having a successful inclusion program.

The research has demonstrated to me the need for inclusion in many public schools. According to the research inclusion is not only beneficial to special education students but also general education students. As it relates to special education students inclusion programs allow them to interact with their peers who are not disabled. Increasing such socialization skill is essential to academic development and achievement. In addition, general education students benefit from inclusive programs because they are able to have experiences with children that have disabilities. Such experiences afford them with the opportunity to understand better the nature of certain disabilities and to have more sensitivity concerning the needs of disabled people. In affording them such an opportunity students are given an education that will benefit them well after they are high school graduates.

Overall I have also gathered a greater understanding of the importance if individualized education programs. These programs are essential for special needs children because they offer them exactly what they need to address the obstacles that they may face in the educational environment. The research demonstrates that in an inclusion program IEP's serve as the bridge between special education and general education. The research also revealed that parental involvement is an essential component in ensuring that inclusion programs are successful.