Download pdf - Creating Inclusive School Communities · Creating Inclusive School Communities Bruce Uditsky, M.Ed. CEO, Alberta Association for Community Living [email protected] There is only one

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

Bruce Uditsky, M.Ed.

CEO, Alberta Association for Community Living

[email protected]

www.aacl.org

There is only one child in the world and

that child’s name is ALL children.

Carl Sandburg

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

Four themes

!Building a supportive classroom community

!Collaborative teaming

!Providing access to the general educationcurriculum

!Cultivating social supports

Qualities of the inclusive classroom! Student is welcomed at school of choice

! Student is full member of a regular classroom andschool community

! Student valued, contribution recognized

! Parents as partners

! Relationships facilitated

! Builds on strengths

! Regular curriculum is modified to degreenecessary

! Instruction is adapted to degree necessary

! Appropriate support provided toteacher/classroom

Qualities of the inclusive classroom

! Appreciation and celebration of diversity in its manyforms - cultural, ethnic, learning styles, etc.

! Diversity enriches us all

! Use of a variety of instructional strategies, includingcooperative learning, small group instruction,experiential learning, multiple intelligences, etc.

! Lessons that allow for multi-level success for allstudents.

! Belief that all students can and will learn/succeed.

! Each student has a unique contribution to make;unique gifts and talents.

! Authentic assessment

! Student participates in all school activities

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

Qualities of the inclusive classroom

!Supports and resources delivered to theregular classroom

!Learning results from the collaborative effortsof everyone working to ensure each student’ssuccess.

!Students at risk can overcome the risk forfailure through involvement in a thoughtfuland caring community of learners.

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

A few questions!

What is the principle determining

factor as to whether a student with

intellectual disabilities will be

included in a regular classroom.

Why the controversy?

Why choose inclusion?

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

What are the roots of segregated

education?

What does the research say?

Creating Inclusive

School Communities

Research from the 1960s

! “Students in the “ideal” special education class learned no

more math and less reading than in a regular classroom”

Goldstein, Moss, & Jordon, 1965

! “Students with mild intellectual disabilities made as much or

more progress in regular grades as they do in special

education” Dunn, 1968

ResearchCarlberg & Kavale (1980) meta-analysis of 50 studies

! Students with mild intellectual disabilities lost 13 percentile

ranks when placed in special ed.

! Students with moderate intellectual disabilities lost 6

percentile ranks when placed in special ed

! However, some benefits appeared to be present for students

with learning disabilities and behavior disorders.

ResearchWang, Anderson & Bram (1985) meta-analysis of 50 studies/

3400 students

!Significant advantage to students in regularsetting.

! 100% inclusion worked better than part-timeintegration

! Special ed placements hurt rather than helped.

Research

!Baker, Wang and Walberg, 1994 - Review of

meta-analyses- “special needs students educated

in regular classes do better academically and

socially that comparable students in non-inclusive

settings” p.34

!Freeman and Alkin, 2000 - same conclusion

reviewed 36 studies

Research

! No adverse affects - Hollowood, Salisbury, Rainforth &

Palombaro, 1994; Sharpe, York and Knight, 1994

! Inclusion of students with severe disabilities enhanced

self-esteem, achievement and attendance of all students

(Cole & Meyer, 1991; Costello, 1991; Kelly, 1992:

Strain, 1993: Staub & Peck, 1994)

! Research on placement as a function of race, ethnicity,

SES - Scherer, 1992/93

Ability Groupings

! Grouping appears to be instructionally effective forsome students, but the psychological drawbacks mayoutweigh any advantages. Slavin 1988, EducationalLeadership

! Little or no benefits for ability grouping for high,average, or low achievers in 27 studies. Slavin, 1993,Elementary School Journal.

! Ability grouping is ineffective at best and harmful tomany students. It inhibits development of interracialrespect. Slavin 1993, Journal of Intergroup Relations.

! Heterogeneous and cooperative groups are more effectivefor learning (Johnson and Johnson, 2002; Oakes, 1985;Oakes & Lipton, 2003; Sapon-Shevin, 1994)

COST COMPARISONS

!! Study of 14,000 students district wideStudy of 14,000 students district wide “Inclusiveeducation costs 13% less than special educationclass placements” Halvorsen et al. , 1996

!! Interview Study of 14 School DistrictsInterview Study of 14 School Districts“Inclusion hasstartup costs but is probably cost effective over time.”“inclusion appears to be less expensive” McLaughlin, M. J &Others 1994

!! Study of 172 StudentsStudy of 172 Students “Inclusion saved 36.7% infinal year” Salisbury & Chambers 1994

!! Study of 2313 StudentsStudy of 2313 Students “Average cost is slightly[4%] less in the inclusion model” Roahrig, 1993

Academic Progress Study, April 2004 Cole,C.M, Waldron, N., & Majd, M. (2004). Academic progress of students across

inclusive and traditional settings. Mental Retardation, 42, 136-144

41.9%45.9%

ReadingStudents with

disabilities

progressing as

much as peers

35.9%43.3%

MathStudents withdisabilitiesprogressing asmuch as peers

Traditional

Model

272 students

Inclusive

Education

334 students

AchievementScores1 year pre/post



25.3%

21.2%

53.7%

37.3%

Reading Gain

Students with

disabilities

Other Students

24.0%

29.9%

38.4%

57.7%

Math GainStudents withdisabilitiesOther Students

Traditional

Model

272 students

Inclusive

Education

334 students




22.7%

28.4%

89.8%

48.7%

Reading GainIntellectualDisabilitiesLD

16.2%

24.4%

44.9%

37.9%

Math GainIntellectualDisabilitiesLD

Traditional

Model

272 students

Inclusive

Education

334 students


Academic Progress Study, April 2004 Cole,C.M, Waldron, N., & Majd, M. (2004). Academic progress of students across inclusive

and traditional settings. Mental Retardation, 42, 136-144

! Rather than providing clear and convincing benefits,

special placements were associated with worse learning

outcomes for students with mild intellectual disabilities,

students with specific learning disabilities, and students

without disabilities.

General Conclusions

! There is no rational basis for special placements ofstudents with disabilities

! Schools & Districts should not offer harmful options

! Research does not prove what is best for every individualstudent. It does show that overall special placements haveharmed students with disabilities more than helped them.

! In fact, special classroom placements have never beenconsistently supported by research.

! Some special educational methods are supported byresearch, special classrooms are not.

Demonstrated Effective

! Mnemonic Strategies

! Reading Comprehension

! Behavior Modification

! Direct Instruction

! Early Intervention

! Peer Tutoring

! CAI-Computer

None require specialclassroom placements!

Kavale & Forness, 1999

! Entirely a question of values

! The challenge to restructure schools is amoral as well as a cultural and professionalchallenge.

! Teaching is moral work

! Inclusive education is a moral issue

! Moral dialogue is often absent or negated

! Moral issues cannot be resolved by research, legislation

or social policy

! Courts, governments, bureaucracies, unions and

corporations are not moral agents or agents of cultural

transformation

!Requires teachers and educators to bemoral agents of change

!Classrooms are seen as public spaces notgated communities

! Inclusion is a school reform issue, not a

special education issue

!Work collaboratively to transform schools

into educational settings that welcome

everyone, all the time, everywhere

The learning team

A team approach is best for all students

Requires the capacity for collaboration

Collaboration is a challenge for many

Many approaches to teaming and collaboration

experienced team supporting less experienced

experienced team members assigned to less experienced

Collaborative teaching models

! Consultant

! Parallel

! Supportive

! Complementary

! Co-teaching

The learning team

Parents

Decision makers

Advocates

Knowledge

Lifetime of involvement & responsibility

Teachers

Knowing how to communicate; understanding

their perspective

The learning team

Paraprofessionals

! Decide with others

! Utilize and build capacity of school

! Individual decision

! Re-examine why

! Match child, needs and aide

! Peer capacity

! Classroom

! Resources

! Time limited

The learning teamParaprofessionals - be specific

Provide instruction as per teacher plan

Prepare, modify and adapt materials

Assist with assessment

Facilitate communication

Facilitate relationships

Record keeping

Personal assistance

Assist all children in the classroom

Classroom organization

Modeling

Assist school

The learning team

Paraprofessionals

Teacher competencies

!Communication

!Planning & scheduling

! Instructional

!Modeling

!Collaboration

!Training

!Management

The learning teamParaprofessionals

Need to be clear on inclusion

Needs to be assessed and identified need

Defined roles -e.g., communication responsibilities

Skill set appropriate to purpose

Clear on confidentiality and discretion

Knowledge of student

Aware of how teachers’ plan

Aware of teachers’ classroom routines and policies

Has appropriate level of authority in relation tostudents

Collaboration

Finding time for collaboration

Borrowed time

Rearrange the school day to get a 50-60 minute block

before or after school

Lengthen 4 school days and shorten 5th for planning time

Common time

Ask people when they want to get together and reorganize master

schedule accordingly


Tiered time

layer preparation time with existing functions - lunch,recess, report card preparation, free periods

Rescheduled time

staff development days

faculty meeting time

build one planning day into each marking period or otherscheduled times (e.g., once per month)

lengthen school year for teachers or shorten it for students


Freed-up time

!Community service component

!Schedule specials (drama), clubs, tutorials

!Engage parents and community members in

conducting sessions - cooking, photography

!Partnership with universities


Freed-up time

! Community service component

! Schedule specials (drama), clubs, tutorials

! Engage parents and community members in conducting interest

sessions freeing up time for teaches - cooking, photography

! Partnership with universities - student teachers taking classes

supervised by professors

! Principal or other leaders take class


Purchased time

!Hire permanent substitutes

!Compensate for vacation or holiday time

!Found time

!Use serendipitous times

!New Time

! Provide Incentives to use own time

Accessing the general education

curriculumKey - teacher creativity and planning skills

Enabling the student to participate in the educational

activities of and meet the academic standards set

for non-disabled peers

!Four levels of academic participation:

competitive, active, involved and alternative


curriculumCompetitive: participates in the same educational activities

as peers, with adaptations as needed. Academicexpectations are the same as those for peers. Progress isevaluated similar to peers.

Active: participates in the same educational activities aspeers, with adaptations as needed. Academicexpectations are different from those of peers.Progress is evaluated according to individualizedstandards.


curriculumInvolved: participates in the same educational activities as

peers, with substantially modified goals and objectives

to meet individual needs in cross curricular domains

(e.g., communication, social, motor skills). Progress is

evaluated according to individualized standards.

Alternative: Can’t apply FIO (Figure It Out) yet - plan

alternate activity in interim

Lesson planning

Subject area (language arts, science, math)

Specific topic to be taught (Romeo & Juliet,

dinosaurs, long division)

Curricular goals for most students (students will

identify the main plot elements in Romeo & Juliet

and analyze the motivations of the main

characters)

Lesson planning

Instructional plan for most students (teacher will

introduce plot structure analysis tool and provide

examples for its use)

Evaluation plan for most students (students will

work in small groups to analyze the play using the

tool; grades will be assigned to group projects)

Adapt/modify the lesson for students who require it

Lesson planning

Size

Adapt the number of items or amount of work the student is

expected to learn or complete

!Matthew writes a a 1 page essay rather than a 2-page essay

! Janice reads one sentence out loud for every two the partner

reads, because reading is very slow and difficult for her

! Seamus completes 5 of the 10 math problems required of the

students

Lesson planning

Time

Adapt the time allotted or allowed for learning, task completion,and/or testing

! Aaron has two math classes each day, one in his regular grade 3classroom and one in Mrs. Chan’s grade 3 classroom

! Stacy’s history teacher asks her a question at the end of eachclass. She prepares her answer that evening using herRealVoice, saves it, and uses her headlight pointer to “call itup” when asked the question the next day.

! Berta takes additional time to take an adapted science test, withhelp from her classroom assistant (time, difficulty and level ofsupport).

Lesson planning

Level of Support

Increase the amount of personal assistance provided to thestudent, using peers, teaching assistants, peer tutors, orcross -age tutors

! During science class, Letisha works with a capable non-disabled student who acts as a peer tutor

! Jamie and his friends work together to complete a social studiesproject on maps

! After reading and seeing a video about “Alexander and theTerrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day”, Jen’s teachingassistant helps her construct a message to participate in a groupactivity.

Lesson planning

Input

Adapt or modify how information or instruction isdelivered to the student

!When giving instructions for an art project, Mr. Marsh usespictures to illustrate the steps

! To accommodate George’s visual learning style, George andhis classmates watch a video about the building of the pyramids

! In Mrs. Thomas’ kindergarten, picture symbols are used to givechildren information about choices that are available

!Mrs. Shannon uses an overhead projector and model trianglesto teach high school students about the Pythagorian theorem

Lesson planning

Difficulty

Adapt the skill level, problem type, or rules about how thestudent can approach a task

!Beata takes a simplified science test

!Vicki uses a calculator to subtract amounts of moneyfrom a total budget

!Rachel throws a basketball from 3 feet than 6 feet inPE class

! Christian and Kathy use plastic egs and an egg container tolearn about fractions

! Robert uses a clear plastic page cover (a “magic cover”) topractice recognition of the letter “R/r” in his reading group

Lesson planning

Output

Adapt how the student is expected to complete a task or be

evaluated

! Terry cuts pictures of the four food groups out of magazines in

foods class, rather than completing a worksheet on this topic

! Arno uses slides and computer projection to review his high

school career and present his school-to-work transition plan in

Careers class

! Jamie makes an “All About Me” book instead of writing an

essay during a social studies unit on heritage and culture

! Lisa uses pictures to lead a group chant during morning circle

time in kindergarten

Lesson planning

Output

Adapt how the student is expected to complete a task or be evaluated

! Lutero and his classmates use a graphic organizer madewith Intellikeys and Picture Communication Symbols(Boardmaker) to show their understanding ot thecharacteristics of Big Bad Wolf

! Sandy uses Intellikeys to compose a poem called “Summer Is…”

! Sandy works in a group of four to complete a projectabout whales. Her role is to prepare a poster for the finalreport.

Lesson planning

Output

Adapt how the student is expected to complete a task or be evaluated

! Sandy participates in a class play about “Harry Potter and

the Philosopher’s Stone.” She plays the part of

Dumbledore by using a Step-by-Step Communicator 75.

! Mitchell completes a story map to show hiw

understanding of the story of Romeo and Juliet in high

school English class

! Catherine uses a SGD, a picture flip-chart, manual signs,

and tangible symbols to give a report on early

explorations to China

Lesson planning

Output

Adapt how the student is expected to complete a task or beevaluated

!Robert and his classmates use “tongue depressor

puppets” to answer questions during language arts

!Arthur draws a picture of himself using a pulley to

demonstrate his understanding of how pulley’s work

!Harry contributes to a group project by drawing a

picture of an energy helper

Lesson planning

Authentic assessment

! Exhibits - posters, models,artwork, computerpresentation, brochures

! Performances - play, poetry, music, short story, film,dance - different groups

! Journals and logs - reflective journal with picture, audio,video

! Demonstrations - teach another or the class

! Products - essay, charts, video, etc.Problem-solving process - mystery/detective, math, tooluse

! Graphic organizers - mind maps

Lesson planning

Participation

Adapt how the student is actively involved in the class

! In earth science class, Raymond is the class “weatherman.” He

phones the National Weather Services each morning to check

on the forecast and reports back to the class

! During a literacy activity, Dani participates by using a switch to

turn the pages of a computerized book

! Jim participates in choir by clapping and moving in time to the

music, rather than by singing

! Jenny participates in PE class by moving and exercising at her

own pace and in her own way

Peer mediated learning

Cooperative groups

! Cooperative structures (e.g., jigsaw, think-pair-share

! Peer partnerships

! Small groups (e.g, teacher or student directed)

! Peer or cross age tutors (provides 1-1 student assistance, learn

to interact, supportive, heightens engagement, time for more

extended practice, flexible, reinforcing, effective across ability

levels, improves attitudes through interaction)

! Train tutors, active learning, structured lesson, short, feedback, monitor

Facilitating relationships

Peter… he comes… he goes

Elementary student:

! “He comes in (our) classroom when we get to school…and when it’s after 9, then he goes up to his classroom.Sometimes in he’s in this class and the other times hegoes down to his room.. his class is room 10.”

! He can “ leave whenever he wants…he’s really in Room10. “Cause he stays in Room 10 the most.”

! Physical presence in the classroom appears to becritical for member status in elementary school.


What’s he doing here?

!Physical presence is not sufficient member status

in middle and high school

!Social affiliation with a subgroup of peers is

important

!Band, choir, sports, etc.

!Gender/race

!Class seating arrangements (groups)


! Social participation is less likely to occur if too muchadults supervision is provided!

! Teachers and others need to pay attention to the qualityof social interactions and intervene only when necessary

! Classmates need to see students engaging in the sameactivities as they do, as independently as possible

! Students with developmental disabilities often need anadult to act as a social “bridge builder”.

! Kids get to be friends by having regular, enjoyableopportunities to interact around mutual interests, both inand outside of school

Multi-level Instruction

! Choose several ideas or concepts to becovered in the lesson or unit.

! Develop a variety of ways to present theconcepts or information to the class.

! Provides the students with an opportunity toreflect on or to practice the new skill orinformation they have learned.

! Determine by what method the learning willbe assessed and how that progress will berecorded in the student's files.

Curriculum Overlapping

! Primary objectives for student withdisabilities maybe other than those forstudents without disabilities (e.g., scienceexperiment with student with significantdisabilities - goal maybe communication, turntaking, identification of differences)

An Ethic of Caring:

! Processes of deep social changerequire more than a shallow response

! The fundamental purpose ofeducation is a moral one - to foster anethic of caring

! Intellectual development is not thefirst priority of schooling

! Schools are multi-purpose institutions

! Educational policies and methodsmust be consistent with an ethic ofcaring

An Ethic of Caring:

! Schools should identify themselves asfamilies; teachers as parents

! Good teaching is a function of thedevelopment and continuity oftrusting relationships

! Teachers have a responsibility to helpstudents develop the capacity to care

! Caring communities require continuityin schooling; continuity of placewithin community

An Ethic of Caring:

! Interests should determineplacement

!A sense of belonging is one of achild's greatest needs

Professional Ideal :

A commitment to practice in anexemplary way

To practice toward valued social ends

A commitment to not only one's ownpractice but to the practice itself.

A commitment to an ethic of caring.

(MacIntyre, 1981; Flores, 1988; Noddings, 1986; Sergiovanni,1994)

Professional Ideal :By building community in schools weincrease the likelihood that capacitywill be tapped, conditions will becomeright, and the culture of the schoolwill be improved.(Barth, 1990)

Caring equals obligations that emergefrom the commitments to theprofessional ideal. Caring equalsobligations that emerge from acommitment to shared communityvalues and the moral guidance thatresults.

(Sergiovanni, 1994)

Professional Ideal :Ideals can renew us, help bring ustogether, give us hope, provide uswith direction - without them weforsake humanness, we forsakeour connections with others andthe search for a meaningful life.These are the very thingscommunity building seeks toprovide.

(Starratt, 1991)

The challenge torestructure schools is a

moral as well as acultural and professional

challenge.

! .