Inclusion is an educational concept denoting that all children should be involved in the same classrooms irrespective of their health peculiarities. It denies the idea of organizing separate education for children with special needs. This approach can generate positive outcomes if essential elements are preserved. According to Grove et al. (2019), they include promoting diversity in the classrooms, developing strength-based curriculums, engaging students in active and productive cooperation, and others. Abidance by these requirements will ensure that inclusive practices lead to positive results.
Inclusive education offers both advantages and disadvantages for children with special needs and teachers. Benefits refer to the fact that the children witness a better development of their knowledge and skills through cooperation with their peers, while educators master various pedagogical techniques to work with diverse students. This approach is also advantageous for society because it makes individuals learn to be tolerant to others from early ages. Simultaneously, challenges arise because not all educational establishments have sufficient resources and materials. Finally, mental unpreparedness and a prejudiced attitude toward children with special needs are additional drawbacks of the phenomenon under analysis.
As for my opinion, I believe that including children with special needs in the general education classrooms is a productive practice. The rationale behind this claim is that it is unethical to segregate these individuals. To my mind, inclusive education helps such children adapt to society through cooperation with peers who do not have special needs. That is why it is reasonable to implement inclusive education principles.
Reference
Grove, C., Sharma, U., Leletas, S., Laktionova, A., & O’Toole, T. (2019). Five principles of inclusive education. Monash University. Web.