Today in my TE 448 class we talked a lot about special education and the importance of mainstreaming those kids, so I wanted to write a blog post in response. I feel it is very important that the special education students are placed in "normal" classrooms, rather than designated special needs classes for a variety of reasons. First of all, by being in the classroom with other kids their age they have a model of how students should behave in a classroom. If they are only exposed to other struggling kids they might have a much more difficult time learning the proper ways to act in a school setting. Also, it is extremely beneficial for the "typical" students to have the special needs kids in the class because they learn about different disabilities (physical or learning), and how to respond to different kids. They are still able to form friendships and help one another out, making your students well rounded individuals.
Lastly as talked about in my class today, the teacher has a HUGE role in making this a productive classroom. While mainstreaming would be very difficult, if the teacher sets an example that the special needs student belongs, other kids will follow. This was a great lesson I learned today and wanted to pass it on (especially for those of us that are general ed. majors, it is useful)!!
I haven't had a chance to learn much about special ed students, so it's always interesting to see some perspective and information.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed that class earlier this week! Seeing the part where the students were talking with the disabled student and rationalizing that everyone has bad days and it's okay to be upset really struck me. The students were acting very mature and using higher order thinking. Some adults I know get so wrapped up in their emotions and let it get to them yet those 8 or 9 year old kids were able to see the student acting up from a different perspective. I thought it was such a great example of how beneficial mainstreaming can be.
ReplyDelete