Future Trends

Thirty-five years ago, special education was seen more as a “solution to” rather than a “problem of” social justice in education, but not for everyone and not for long (Florian, 2008). Sociological critiques of special education showed the injustices that can occur in systems with separate forms of provision for learners who deviate from what is considered to be the norm (Florian, 2008).  In today’s society, a designated special education program may not necessarily meet all the needs of these particular students.  We live in an inclusive world where people are not separated by their differences so we need to prepare children with special needs to be able to cope and adjust to an environment that they may or may not be used to dealing with. For example, it’s not unlikely to think a special needs child will go on to college after high school and colleges are not equipped with designated special programs that will cater to their specific needs. Inclusive classrooms will better prepare special needs children for the college environment and beyond.  I think that by putting special needs children into inclusive classrooms it will allow them to gain the skills they need to learn in different settings. 

It is often argued that a lack of knowledge on the part of classroom teachers, attributed to a lack of training, is one of the main barriers to inclusion (Florian, 2008). Evidence on teaching practice and pedagogy in special and mainstream education suggests that the teaching strategies used in mainstream education can be adapted to assist students who have been identified as having special educational needs (Florian, 2008). It is suggested that teaching strategies should be arranged along a continuum from high to low intensity, rather than being arranged according to their association with a particular type of special educational need. The emphasis seems to be on the use of a strategy rather than apparently different teaching approaches. This is important because it challenges the notion that mainstream classroom teachers do not recognize or know how to implement effective teaching practices for pupils with special needs. A central challenge for teachers who wish to develop inclusive practice is to consider the way they think about the problem of inclusion. Individual teachers may not be able to change the organizational structure of schooling, but their work can be informed by the knowledge that it is possible to support the learning of all students (Florian, 2008).

Inclusive education is based on the principle that local schools should provide for all children, regardless of any perceived difference, disability or other social, emotional, cultural or linguistic difference. The debate over inclusive education is a double edge sword for some because it leads to the question as to what would be the role of specialist teachers and what should be the nature of their expertise if all special needs children were now included with general education teachers. As a special education teacher I feel that there will always be a need for special teachers in the education system because I think the catalyst to making inclusive classrooms work is for specialist teachers to co-teach alongside general education teachers.    

Florian, L.(2008). Special or inclusive education: future trends. British Journal of Special Education, 35 (4), 202-208. Retrieved May 4, 2011, from the Academic One Source Database.