I will get the discussion going. Is my school ready for full inclusion? I don't think so. I don't think all of our teachers are on board. I recently heard a general education teacher state that if she wanted to teach special education students, then she would have gotten a certification in Sped. She has a good point.
I don't think that our students are ready for inclusion. I teach mostly sixth graders at a middle school. These students have recently transitioned from elementary schools, where inclusion is not a major part of their experience. I worry that the transition to a newer, larger school and the transition to full inclusion will be too much for our students. I would like to see our resource students phased into inclusion classes in the younger grades.
What is your inclusion experience? This is my third year of co-teaching one math class a day. The rest of my day is spent teaching resource.
What do you see as the main benefit to inclusion? I began co-teaching at the same time that the new math standards were "rolling out". I have been fortunate to work with an experienced math teacher, making it much easier to understand and teach the new standards. I have been able to take what I have learned into my resource classes. Both groups of students are being exposed to the general education curriculum.
What do you see as the main disadvantage to inclusion? We are forcing some students into inclusion who are just not ready for it. The students are not used to the faster pace, and increased work. The result is discipline problems. Classroom managment has been a major concern in my inclusion class.