Table of Contents
Introduction
Qualitative Inclusion In Education
Inclusive education “is a process of strengthening the capacity of the education system to succeed in all learners”. The holistic system of education is important to link educational inclusion to broader objectives for the educational reforms which can contribute to the Sustainable development goals. A quality system of inclusion benefits all the learners with no discrimination towards a person or group. It’s supported the values of democracy, tolerance, and respect for difference.
Inclusive education may be a ground-breaking approach in education to rework the system of education so as to respond to the range of learners needs by enhancing the standard of education through effective teaching-learning strategies, promoting diagnostic & remedial instructional techniques to varied learners, embracing learner-centered methodologies, developing suitable content & learning materials. Strengthening the links between teachers, students, parents & social to the maximum extent is important for developing an inclusive teaching-learning environment.
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Inclusion in education is related to the (Booth and Ainscow 2011, 3rd edition):
- Placing inclusive values into deeds.
- Viewing every life and each death as of equal worth.
- Providing Support for everybody to feel they belong to.
- Increasing involvement for both adults and youngsters in learning and teaching activities, the connection and communities of local schools.
- Reducing marginalization, prejudice, impediments to learning and involvement.
- Restructuring traditions, strategies and practices to react to pluralism in ways in which value everyone equally.
- Linking education system to local and global reality.
- Learning the reduction of barriers for a few children to profit children more broadly.
- Viewing disparities between the youngsters and amongst adults as a resource for learning.
- Affirming the right of children to an education of the high-quality in their area.
- Improving schools for staff and parents/guardians as well as children.
- Highlighting the development of educational communities, their values, as well as accomplishments.
- Nurturing mutually sustaining relationships between schools and surrounding communities.
- Which recognizes that inclusion in education is one aspect of integration into society.
Developing Trends
In the wake of era of Post-Independence in India, important changes have taken place in broad areas such as Inclusive education. These initiatives by GOI are Kothari Commission (1966) which highlighted the importance of educating children with disabilities (Pandey 2006) followed by Integrated Education for Disabled Children (IEDC) in 1974. The National Policy on Education (1986) followed by launching Project Integrated Education for Disabled Children (PIED) within the year 1987 by the NCERT paved thanks to integrate the learners with special needs into the mainstream schools, which is that the milestone in Indian Education System. This was followed by District Primary Education Project (1994-95) for inclusion in primary levels for youngsters with mild & moderate disabilities. Another milestone within the Indian Educational system is launching of Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA 2001) to realize the goal of Universalisation of education which (UEE) safeguards & provides quality Educational access to CWSN regardless of degree, kind & sort of disability. This was followed by various amendments in Educational act in our Indian Constitution like Free & Compulsory education to all or any children from 6 to 14 years abetted in mainstreaming Education for all. This cemented the gaps in Education for youngsters with special needs (CWSN).
In 2005 Ministry of Human Resource & Development laid clear directions for Inclusive Education within the National Curriculum Framework (NCF 2005) by implementing action plan on inclusion in education of youngsters & youth with special needs, this was further reshaped & designed as Inclusive Education of the Disabled at the Secondary Stage (IEDSS) (2009 – 10) for providing support to students of classes 9 & 10. This further subsumed as Rashtriya Madhyamik Siksha Abhiyan (RMSA) from 2013. of these versions within the Government policies are directed to develop confidence, integrate life skills, teach social values & help CSN in effortless socialization. This led to progressive Social change not only in the behaviour of the individuals but also within the mindset in parallel to substantial changes within the policies of educational institutions. It becomes a challenge to varsity communities to create strong classroom community despite their distinguished strata within the Inclusive Classroom. Teaching learning in an Inclusive classroom is becoming increasingly difficult in an environment of unease, doubt & discomfort leading to unattaining desired learning outcomes. On contrary by creating a robust, unified classroom community where members of the classroom not only include diversity but adapt to lays foundation for strong co-operative inclusive classroom.
Inclusion In Aps’s
Inclusion in education isn’t an experiment to be hypothesized & tested but a worth being imbibed deep within the minds of learners & educators since the inception of APS’s
Inclusive education is when all students, no matter any challenges they’ll have, are placed in age-appropriate general education classes to receive high-quality instructions, interventions, and support that enable them to satisfy success within the core curriculum (Bui, Quirk, Almazan, &Valenti, 2010; Alquraini & Gut, 2012).
APS’s aides at reaching out all the learners, through its proactive approaches, policies & practices with emphasis on full participation of CWSN altogether activities alongside other students & respect for his or her social, civil & educational rights. CWSN are educated within the regular classes & are treated as a sort of a full member of the class community by overcoming the challenges of inclusion as well as avoiding discrimination & exclusion. Inclusive education has become the approach of 21st century APS’s, building on relevant concepts, universal human values & desired skill set by providing top quality education for all, with excellence & equality
Educational Inclusion is considered multidimensional technique, allowing the sovereignty of the individuals by ensuring the chance alongside the standard at every step of educational system to supply students with self-belief, capacity to participate within the futuristic society regardless of differences or disabilities.
As diversity plays a pivotal role in APS’s, by balancing the tutorial & Social inclusion Army Public Schools set the best example of Social also as Educational Inclusion. APS’s operate at the facilities that students with disabilities are as fundamentally competent as students without disabilities. Therefore, all students are often full participants within their classrooms and in the school. Where Imparting knowledge & specific 21st Century skills to the CWSC in their Least Restrictive Environment, alongside peers without disabilities to the very best degree of possibility, with general education/academic the location of first choice for all students.
The driving principle of APS’s Inclusive Education Cell, is to make all students feel welcomed, appropriately challenged, and supported in their efforts. This includes proper multidisciplinary team of normal teachers, special educators, school management also as parents.
APS’s are doing their best in the field of education by including Students with Special Needs in regular classrooms & providing highest standards of education.
Plan Of Action For Children With Special Needs (CWSN)
The term special needs may be a catch-all phrase which may ask a huge array of diagnoses and/or disabilities. Children with special needs may have been born with a syndrome, terminal illness, profound cognitive impairment, or serious psychiatric problems.
The designation “children with special needs” (CWSN) is for children who may have challenges which are more severe than the standard child and will possibly last a lifetime. These children will need extra support, and extra services. They’re going to have distinct goals, and can need added guidance and help meeting academic, social, emotional, and sometimes medical milestones. Children with Special Needs are major a part of schools in today’s time. With the inclusive model in disability government ensures that no CWSN should be treated any not up to other students.
Army Public School’s follows the principles of inclusion and consistently work for the betterment of CWSN within the schools. With dedicated team of teachers who add collaboration to form sure that students get holistic education in and out of faculty.
With a well-planned & structured Plan of Action for the youngsters with Special Needs and for referred cases reported by teachers, alongside consistent endeavours of the students, staff & parents the immense task of inclusion has become facile
Plan Of Action
Checklist
The teachers of all the classes are to be given checklists of (i) Behavioural problems, (ii) Academic issues. These checklists contain points which distinguishes the maladaptive and normal behaviour.
The teachers to be guided about the usage of the checklist in classroom. If any student behaves inappropriately or shows the characteristics listed in checklist then he/she should be mentioned to the counsellor or a special educator.
Referral To Concerned Person
Referred cases are to be handled by counsellor or special educator. One to at least one session to be given to students and therefore the behaviour to student to be observed and points are listed down.
Assessment (Unofficial)
The assessment test to be given to students after building an honest rapport with them. The results of the assessment decide during which areas the scholars wanted intervention.
Intervention
Before sending students for Psychometric and Psycho Educational testing, special educators to take sessions of the scholars. If the condition of scholars improves then they’re not sent for further testing, if they still show signs of some specific disability then they’re should be sent for further testing from school.
It is suggested that specialised monitoring for the early intervention for the scholars who are on the danger of developing learning disorder is essential in the formative years of education. Teachers of pre & primary classes to focus on phonics, writing, reading skills to diagnose learning difficulties in the learners & bridge gaps & recommend the remedial measures for those pupils who are lagging behind in order and to simplify the conceptual understanding during or after school hours results in stitch in time saves nine.
Counselling Of Parents/ Guardians
The counselling of parents or guardians of CWSN may be a challenging job but considerably required. The parents are counselled in order that they will accept the very fact that their children have some special needs. Collaboration with parents is extremely much important to enhance the condition of CWSN.
In addition to the above steps, teachers also are required to be very sensitive for CWSN and check out their best to incorporate them in school. Integrated lesson plans & activities to be prepared, extra attention should be given for the students who are lagging, observation of students on regular basis, discussing the performance of student with the subject teachers.
The major disabilities which are there in APS’s are-
- ADHD.
- Specific Learning disabilities (dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia).
- Autism.
- Hearing Impairment.
- Visual Impairment
- Intellectual Disability.
Our teachers believe that each one student have something to supply within the classroom which we are more happy learning together.
Curriculum Diversification
In the present-day scenario, the main inclusion within the mainstream classes in Indian point of view are often handled to some extent through Curriculum Diversification. Diverse curriculum within the middle level, helps in increased cognitive attainment by dropping the risks of data overflooded youth of present generation, which leads to lack of interest within the academics even to abled bodied children. Through the introduction of Vocational/skill training within the school curriculum, less privileged CWSN will be prepared to cope with their peers within the formal educational groups leading to increased aspect of inclusion. Curriculum diversification appropriately addresses to the needs of the slow, differently abled (CWSN), average & high achievers’ thanks largely to deviation from average students supported their psychological, physical & metal abilities leading to variations of socio-economic & Genetic factors. It provides individualized learning environment catering to the requirements of diverse classroom with CWSN, by getting to upkeep the eye span of the heterogeneous classroom environment.
Pedagogical Strategies
From the pedagogical perspective of education for enhanced teaching learning process in inclusive classroom, it is essential to have coordination between learning style of the child and the practice of teaching-learning strategy in the classroom. As not only for normal children, for CWSN, learning style is psychological aspect which helps them to figure out their learning approach in a certain way like auditory style, visual style, analytical (by breaking the concept into simpler tasks), kinaesthetic (psychomotor skills) & holistic (all senses). Pedagogical strategies will equip the educators with effective strategies with higher level of impact in the classroom & also helps the learners equally by providing sovereignty & control of self-learning styles. Following are the few aspects of strategies which can be effortlessly incorporated in their teaching-learning process:
Erasing the Isolation of CWSN & assisting them in overcoming their physical, motor, cognitive hitches through active involvement of educators with well-planned multiple instructional patterns
- By rpresenting the content in variable visual formats, auditory format & graphic patterns to cater to the needs of Inclusive classrooms.
- By providing adequate opportunities to the students to express themselves & to express their learning.
- Appropriate planning of the lessons with emphasis on critical & creative thinking as major outcomes along with incorporation of various Life skills.
- By reiterating/summarizing all the main concepts before & after teaching-learning activities & involving all children in the teaching-learning process.
- By adapting suitable assessment tools for process evaluation
- By engaging CWSN with the peer group or in the psychomotor activities for concretized learning experiences (Corwis & McLane 1998)
- By using suitable educational programmes/software, meeting the needs of inclusive classroom will be much effective.
- Inclusion will be most effective when the educators are collaborative & consultative (Carter, Prater & Merchant 2009).
- By participating in professional development programmes, resource sharing & professional networking also helps the educators in better inclusion of the classroom (Obiakar et al)
- By providing varied educational patterns in extreme cases with the help of parents or with professional support
Scope For Further Research
- Developing Pragmatistic approach in dealing with needs of CWSN in the Inclusive classroom situations for adaptive inclusion through content accessibility, developing new strategies for encompassing inclusion rather than fragmented. Policy level changes will aid in emerging standards for varied activities across the grades of an inclusive system.
- Analysis & review of standards of Inclusive school systems regularly & giving necessary support & feedback/incentives for enhanced performance of schools dealing with innovative pedagogical strategies in the inclusive environment. Also, on Influence of teacher expectations on the standard of learning
- Restructuring typology of learning aims which are suitable for current & future requirements for enhanced achievement in the inclusive classrooms. Following Holistic approach education at all levels, by sharing, cooperating & collaborating of materialistic & developing the content/curriculum by building productive partnership between all the stakeholders of Inclusive environment.
- Most important aspect of Inclusive education is Perception training along with Diagnostic & Remedial teaching to be incorporated in the Teacher training modules which enhances the capacity of teachers remarkably which aids to manage the challenges professionally & concurrently educators will be able to address the intricacy of learning needs of diverse learners.
Suggestions & Concluding Remarks
- Modification in the Curriculum as per the needs of Inclusive society & altering the duration of teacher training for upsurge the stance of teachers/educators towards inclusion. Regular review of qualitative educational policies by the government as well as school authorities to facilitate smooth inclusion. Proper allocation of funds & utilization for teacher training in the inclusive setup. By incorporating adequate Physical education/sports classes under expert training & guidance, for honing psychomotor skills through well structured & implementation of Sports Programme in Inclusive classrooms. It is suggested that the class size in the inclusive setting should be drastically reduced to cater to the needs of the CWSN.
- Also, by having Early Intervention Programmes in the Primary & Pre-primary educational setups to detect the problems much early for taking suitable corrective measures which on a long run will yield desired results. By providing proper guidance in the inclusive classroom by the peer group, teachers, parents and quantified involvement of all the stakeholders of the society along with the government proves to be effective in delineate the progress of Inclusive education.
- One of the recommendations is removal of prefix “Inclusive” from “Education” which sends more practical signals for seamless inclusion.
“Every child is gifted; they just unwrap their packages at different times”
Our job is to teach the kids we have. The ones we used to have. Not the ones we would like to have. The ones we have right now. All of them.” Inclusion …yours, Mine, Ours.
