Courtney Skemp EDEX 650 Exceptional Children Article Reflection December 5, 2011

The idea of inclusion of students with disabilities is a topic of much discussion and debate. One of the key issues that has risen from inclusion is the effect that it may have on the average and higher performing students. In the article, High and Average Achieving Perceptions of Disabilities and Students with Disabilities in Inclusive Classrooms, the authors set out to examine the attitudes of the average and higher achieving students. In this small sample of Canadian students, the authors discovered that there was no significant difference in the way that average and higher achieving students felt about students with disabilities or the social impact of their presence. All of the students, from disabled to higher achieving, enjoyed similar activities and the same qualities of relationships. The main challenge noted was that the disable students participated in behavior that was deemed inappropriate by their peers. In this case, the higher achieving students were more likely to report a negative effect on their learning, whereas the average achieving students were less affected/bothered. Higher achieving students reported that they were bored in their inclusion classroom because they moved at a slower pace and more time was taken to deal with crises. Because the average achieving students noted little to no effect on their learning, it may be best to separate higher achieving students into accelerated programs because they were most affected. The idea of inclusion is to give disabled students a more enriching learning experience, but not at the cost of the learning of other children. I know where I went to school, elementary through high school, students were separated on the basis of intellectual ability. In elementary school, students were separated in reading and math classes. In high school, students were separated in many more classes, based on intellectual ability and personal interests. This separation allowed every student a fair chance at the education that was best suited to their abilities and interests, while making sure that everyone was included somewhere. It was also noted during the study that girls hold more positive attitudes toward disability than boys do. This is not a recent development, as previous studies have shown the same result. This more accepting attitude of females may be attributed to the more caring and motherly nature of females. As a teacher in the classroom, it is important to make sure that every child, regardless of abilities, gets your attention. This may be a difficult task considering some students need help more than others. They real key is trying to find that balance, and that is something that I will try to do from the first day.