In an inclusion classroom, students with disabilities and other special needs are taught alongside non-

disabled students, instead of being segregated in a special education classroom. To help meet students'
needs, a special education teacher may work alongside a general education teacher in an inclusion
classroom. The role of a special education teacher in such a arrangement varies according to the needs
of individual students and how well the two teachers work together.

Lesson Planning

In an ideal inclusion classroom, the special education teacher and regular education teacher engage in
co-planning. They work together to design lesson plans to fit the needs of all students, with the special
education teacher focusing on the needs of the special needs students. In some cases, however, the
general education teacher plans the classroom lessons and the special education teacher adapts those
lessons to meet the needs of her students. She may also use the lessons to develop review materials or
plan one-on-one instruction with special needs students before or after the class.

Specialized Instruction

The amount of actual instruction a special education teacher gives in an inclusion classroom varies. In
some inclusion classrooms, the two teachers take turns presenting lessons. This may be done on a daily
basis, with each teacher taking a portion of the lesson, or the special education teacher may teach the
class one or two days a week. When not teaching the entire class, the special education teacher may sit
beside students and provide one-on-one help or additional instruction. To help students feel more
included as a part of the class, the special education teacher may not be in the inclusion classroom every
day, unless a student's needs require it.

Classroom Management

Even though the focus of a special education teacher's job is the special needs students in the class, he is
also responsible for helping the general education teacher manage the classroom. Other students must
listen to and respect the authority of the special education teacher. He also helps set the classroom
rules and routines, working with the teacher to create a classroom climate that benefits students with
special needs. It is also a special education teacher's job to be aware of individual students' behavior
plans and provide discipline accordingly.

Other Responsibilities

Special education teachers often have responsibilities that other teachers do not. These teachers must
regularly review and develop Individualized Education Plans – or IEPs – and hold meetings to discuss
these plans with parents, administrators, counselors and other individuals involved in the education of a
child with special needs. They must regularly administer skills tests and other assessments to determine
the progress of special needs students or to determine whether students who are not currently enrolled
in a special education program need their services. It's the special education teacher's job to make sure
that laws such as the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act are precisely followed and correct any
possible violations.

Specific Roles of Special Educators in Serving Students with Disabilities and their Parents

The main role of the special education teacher is to provide instruction and support which facilitates the
participation of students with disabilities in the regular classroom.
The special education teachers should:

 Serve as case managers and be responsible for the development, implementation, and
evaluation of students’ IEPs.

 Provide the necessary information to the classroom teacher prior to the child entering the
general education classroom regarding the student’s disability, medical concerns, and/or
equipment operation (ways to meet unique needs).

 Collaborate with the general education teacher in adapting the curriculum, providing
appropriate modifications, ensuring the implementation of modifications, and assessing overall
progress of the child.

 Develop schedules and supervise plans for paraeducators.

 With the general education teacher, develop and supervise plan for paraprofessional duties.

 Complete and maintain all assigned student’s records (i.e., IEP, ESYP, documentation, progress
report, behavior plan, etc.).

 Maintain contact with the assigned student’s parents or family.

 Maintain collaborative relationship and goodwill with general educators.

 May team teach lessons, either small group or whole class (Boyer & Mainzer, 2003).

nclusive classrooms might contain several students with special needs who are mainstreamed full time
into the general classroom, or one or two students who spend time each day in both a special education
classroom and a general classroom. Either way, your role as a general education teacher is to create a
community conducive to helping all students meet academic and behavioral goals; however, you should
not have to achieve this aim alone. Ongoing communication is essential for locating individuals, services
and materials to best support all of your students. In addition, some key planning and teaching
strategies can make a dramatic difference in reaching students with diverse abilities and skill bases.

Begin at the End

Backward planning is the most straightforward way to ensure that you align daily lessons and units with
your year-end goals. This is a multi-step process:

1. Consult the records of your students who receive special education services, particularly
their individualized education programs (IEPs), to determine overarching behavioral and
academic goals.

2. Figure out how these goals intersect with national and state standards and other year-end goals
for all of the students in your classroom.

3. Review your curriculum to figure out which units will help you meet which year-end goals.

4. Map out individual lessons within the units that align with these goals.

5. Formulate a to-do list of people and services to contact so you that can schedule support when
necessary. For example, if you plan to have students complete a cross-curricular research
 project, you need to know when you will schedule a visit to the school or public library so that
you can ask a parent or aide to support students with special needs.

6. Adjust lessons to ensure that they accommodate the needs and abilities of your students,

including those in special education programs.

Embrace Universal Design

One of the buzzwords in contemporary education is universal design. This approach makes your
curriculum accessible to all students, regardless of their backgrounds, learning styles and abilities. There
are several ways for you to accomplish this feat:

 Relay content in diverse ways (visually, verbally, written).

 Ask students to share what they are learning in diverse ways (speaking, illustrating, writing).

 Utilize multiple materials to engage students (software, art, theater, video, object lessons).

These approaches ensure that you reach all of your students with special needs, as well as deepen their
thinking and reinforce new information so it moves from short-term memory to long-term memory.

Apply Multiple Intelligences Theory

Universal design shares much with Howard Gardner’s Theory of the Multiple Intelligences, which
outlines students’ varied approaches for processing information (known as “intelligences”) and how
teachers can access these pathways. For example, in an inclusive classroom, a unit in the core
curriculum, such as one on the solar system, might feature vocabulary and abstract concepts that are
challenging for students with disabilities to master. A general education teacher can make these
concepts more comprehensible by employing various strategies and leading hands-on activities such as:

 Showing videos about the solar system.

 Making models of the planets.

 Interviewing an astronaut.

 Visiting a science museum or planetarium with an astronomy display and program.

 Looking at books with images of the solar system.

 Making up songs, poems, rhymes and chants about the cosmos.

 Drawing or painting images of stars, meteors, galaxies and planets.

 Acting out a scene of astronauts in flight.

According to Sarah Murray and Kylie Moore, in their article “Inclusion Through Multiple Intelligences,”
utilizing techniques that are suited to multiple intelligences “allows students to explore important
concepts using a range of domains, and find information based on their own abilities.”

Incorporate Life Skills Training

According to the National Down Syndome Society’s guide to implementing inclusion, some parents and
educators are concerned “that functional life skills cannot be addressed in general classroom
settings.” Indeed, integrating functional life skills into a general education curriculum can seem time-
consuming to a teacher.

However, integrating some basic, daily strategies can make a profound difference in your
students. Consider the classroom tasks in which you and your students regularly engage and how you
could make these tasks accessible and valuable to your special education students. For instance:

 Organizing school supplies, art materials, learning centers and the classroom library teaches
valuable life skills while making all students feel part of the classroom community.

 Creating backdrops and decorations for the bulletin board and other classroom displays teaches
responsibility while enhancing students’ spatial and visual intelligences.

 Being in charge of homework collection, attendance charts, computer equipment or record-

keeping teaches organizational skills.

Incorporating life skills training into your curriculum is not a one-time proposition. To effectively impart
these skills, you will need to model the required tasks and reinforce them on a regular basis.

Employ Collaborative Teaching Techniques

No classroom is an island, particularly an inclusive classroom. Opening up your room to volunteers,

teacher’s aides, service providers and the special education teacher gives you valuable opportunities to
engage in collaborative teaching.

In “Effective Teaching Practices for Students in Inclusive Classrooms,” Sue Land, M.Ed., reviews the
diverse applications of collaborative teaching in the inclusive classroom:

1. Interactive Teaching: Two or more teachers shift roles between leading whole-class instruction,
observing instruction and monitoring learning.

2. Alternative Teaching: One teacher leads small-group instruction while the other teacher works
with the rest of the class. This model works particularly well if a small group requires
reinforcement or reteaching to master a concept.

3. Parallel Teaching: Two or more teachers lead small, mixed-ability groups of students in the

same lesson. This approach functions well when teachers require a high level of focus and
participation from students.

4. Station Teaching: Two or more teachers lead or observe small groups of students as these
groups rotate through several learning stations. This technique helps students stay on task as
they complete shorter activities and transition clearly from task to task.

Formulate a Flexible Behavior Management Plan

Effective planning and teaching in an inclusive classroom depends upon having control of

your classroom. This does not mean that you must adopt an authoritative model laden with
punishments and rewards, but it does require that you be assertive and clearly communicate your
expectations and goals.
With many students, those with special needs and otherwise, a rigid behavior management plan will not
serve you in every circumstance. For example, if you have a student who has a shorter attention span
due to developmental issues, it is unfair to expect that student to stay focused on seatwork for as long
as students with longer attention spans. No amount of punishment or reward can extend that student’s
focus.

Instead, tailor your classroom environment to better suit diverse students’ needs. With students’ and
specialists’ input, create a checklist or action plan for students. It can list, with short phrases, symbols or
cutouts, how to review work, put away supplies and find an independent task to do, such as writing in a
journal, drawing in a sketchpad or reading a book from the classroom library.

Among the other behavior management strategies that support effective inclusion are:

 Posting a schedule and sticking to it.

 Displaying classroom rules.

 Diversifying instruction.

 Encouraging peer instruction and leadership.

 Using signals to quiet down, start working and put away materials.

 Giving students folders, labels and containers to organize supplies.

 Checking in with students while they work.

 Speaking to students privately about any concerns.

 Employing specific, targeted positive reinforcement when a student meets a behavioral or

academic goal.

The Power of Inclusion

Practicing these planning, teaching and management strategies is underscored by a recognition of the
unique gifts of all your students. You model respect for and celebration of who they are as
individuals. This appreciation transforms your room from a mere meeting place into a genuine
community.

Special Education Teaching vs. General Classroom Teaching

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General education teachers and special education teachers share many of the same duties. In fact, they
share many of the same students. This is because children with identified special needs often spend a
portion of the day in the general education classroom and a portion of the day receiving more intensive
services in a separate space. There are, however, significant differences in teaching role. The special
education teacher may serve as case manager for children with special needs. Case management
includes everything from providing direct services to carrying out administrative duties.
There are multiple special education teaching roles, and these will differ from general education
teaching roles in different ways.

Special Education Teaching Roles

A special education teacher may have a self-contained classroom or provide support in a resource room.
Some special education teachers team with general education teachers to serve children with special
needs in an inclusion setting. The special education teacher may be expected to serve a resource for
other teachers, helping them modify the curriculum, management system, and physical environment.

Children with very intensive needs often spend most of their day in a self-contained classroom. These
children may have intellectual disability, autism, blindness, and/or multiple disabilities, including
physical challenges. The child may use mobility or communication tools and may need assistance with
non-academic tasks. A special education teacher will generally have the assistance of instructional
assistants who provide academic support and handle other duties like escorting less independent
children to the bathroom.

The number of children in a special education room will vary from state to state but will generally be
small: eight or so. A teacher will to get to know a small number of children very well. Thus the position
may be suited for people who prefer depth over breadth in their relationships and daily routines. A
larger percentage of special needs students need intensive support managing their behavior and/ or
attention (even in cases where the disability is intellectual). On the plus side of management: A smaller
class size means fewer bodies moving through space at any moment in time. Maximizing attention can
mean maximizing learning.

A resource teacher may work with many children over the course of a day or week, but will generally
work with only a small group of them at any given time. He or she will be expected to be knowledgeable
of academic curriculum across grade levels, but academic teaching will be quite different than general
classroom teaching at the elementary level. There will generally be less breadth with more of a focus on
reading, writing, and mathematics.

Teachers who transition to special education should be prepared for significant changes in pacing.
Students in self-contained special education classrooms learn academic skills such as reading. However,
the increased need for repetition can give a different feel to teaching. A self-contained intensive needs
teacher may spend a significant portion of the day teaching functional skills. Of course teachers of young
children also spend some time teaching functional skills. One difference is that the special education
teacher will need to teach them in a more systematic manner — and document having taught them.

Case Management and Administrative Duties

A special education teacher is responsible for providing and coordinating individualized instruction.
Special needs students served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) have
Individualized Education Programs, or IEPs, which guide their learning. IEPs are developed by a team.
The general education teacher will often have a few special needs students that he or she must attend
IEP meetings for. The special education teacher will not only have more IEP students but will generally
have the leadership role in writing and reviewing IEPs. The document often runs more than 20 pages. As
a case manager, the special education teacher will be responsible for ensuring compliance with laws and
regulations – and will typically be responsible for scheduling and coordinating as well.
Paperwork is an oft cited area of frustration. General education and special education teachers both
have significant amounts of paperwork to complete, but again, there are some differences. Special
education teachers often find that more of their paperwork is “high stakes” and that less of it is
delegable. Special education teachers must maintain detailed records to show that children with
disabilities are getting the help they have been determined eligible for. They must also document
progress in a manner that would stand up under legal scrutiny. Even those children who are not yet in
the special education system are subject to documentation requirements.

On the plus side, the special education teacher will have fewer children to submit report cards for and
otherwise monitor. A first grade teacher in a general classroom setting may administer and record
individual reading assessments for 25 children twice each year, track down field trip permission slips for
25 children… and check 25 ‘home folders’ for parent notes each and every day!

All teachers are privy to information that is confidential. Special education teachers, though, find
themselves guarding more than their share of confidential information. The need to maintain
confidentiality can have bearing on who is allowed to volunteer services in the classroom.

A special education teacher will work as part of a team with many other staff members. The teacher will
coordinate with all IEP team members, including speech therapists, occupational therapists, and other
specialists. He or she will also work closely with instructional assistants, or “IAs’. Children who leave a
self-contained, high needs room to attend art, music, or other educational subjects often travel with an
instructional assistant. The special education teacher will need to coordinate IA duties – and have
frequent conversations about how children respond to educational and social activities in other areas of
the school.

At a Glance

 In an inclusive classroom, general education teachers and special education teachers work
together to meet the needs of students.

 This gives special education students the support they need while they stay in a general
education classroom.

 All students can benefit from inclusive classrooms.

When kids are found eligible for special education services, it’s common for their families to worry that
they’ll be placed in a different classroom than other kids their age. But most kids who are eligible for
special education spend the majority of their time in general education classrooms. Many of those
classrooms are what’s known as inclusive (or inclusion) classrooms.

In an inclusive classroom, general education teachers and special education teachers work together to

meet the needs of all students.

This is key. As Carl A. Cohn, EdD, executive director of the California Collaborative for Educational
Excellence, points out, “It’s important…to realize that special education students are first and foremost
general education students.”
Many schools have inclusive classrooms. In part, that’s because of the Individuals with Disabilities in
Education Act (IDEA). This law says that students who get special education services should learn in the
“least restrictive environment” (LRE). That means they should spend as much time as possible with
students who don’t get special education services.

Inclusive classes are set up in a number of ways. Some use a collaborative team teaching (or co-
teaching) model. With co-teaching, there’s a special education teacher in the room all day.

Other inclusive classes have special education teachers “push in” at specific times during the day to
teach (instead of pulling kids out of class to a separate room). In either case, both teachers are available
to help all students.

Studies show that inclusion is beneficial for all students—not just for those who get special education
services. In fact, research shows that inclusive education has positive short-term and long-term effects
for all students.

Kids with special education needs who are in inclusive classes are absent less often. They develop
stronger skills in reading and math. They’re also more likely to have jobs and pursue education after high
school.
The same research shows that their peers benefit, too. They’re more comfortable with and more
tolerant of differences. They also have increased positive self-esteem and diverse, caring friendships.

Read on to learn more benefits of inclusive classrooms.

1. Tailors Teaching for All Learners

All students learn differently. This is a principle of inclusive education. In an inclusive classroom,
teachers weave in specially designed instruction and support that can help students make progress.
These strategies are helpful for all students. Kids may be given opportunities to move around or use
fidgets. And teachers often put positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) in place.

Another key teaching strategy is to break students into small groups. When teachers use small groups,
they can tailor their teaching to the way each student learns best. This is known as differentiated
instruction.

Teachers meet the needs of all students by presenting lessons in different ways and using the Universal
Design for Learning (UDL) framework. For example, they may use multisensory instruction. In math, that
may mean using visual aids and manipulatives like cubes or colored chips to help kids learn new
concepts. (See more examples of multisensory math techniques.)

Some classrooms may have an interactive whiteboard. On it, kids can use their fingers to write, erase,
and move images around on the large screen. This teaching tool can also be used to turn students’ work
into a video, which can be exciting for kids and help keep them engaged.

2. Makes Differences Less “Different”

Inclusive classrooms are filled with diverse learners, each of whom has strengths and challenges.
Inclusion gives kids a way to talk about how everyone learns in their own way. They may find that they
have more in common with other kids than they thought. This can go a long way in helping kids know
that difference is just a normal part of life. It can also help kids build and maintain friendships.

3. Provides Support to All Students

In more traditional special education settings, many kids are “pulled out” for related services like speech
therapy or for other specialized instruction. An inclusive class often brings speech therapists, reading
specialists, and other service providers into the classroom.

These professionals can provide information and suggestions to help all students. If kids aren’t eligible
for special education but still need some extra support, they can get it informally.

4. Creates High Expectations for All

In an Individualized Education Program (IEP), a student’s goals should be based on the academic

standards for their state. Those standards lay out what all students are expected to learn in math,
reading, science, and other subjects by the end of the school year.

Differentiated instruction and co-teaching in a general education classroom make it easier for students
with standards-based IEPs to be taught the same material as their classmates.
In some schools, only certain classrooms are designated as inclusive. In that case, schools may assign
general education students randomly to inclusive or noninclusive classes. Other schools may choose
students who benefit from the emphasis on meeting the needs of all learners at all ability levels.

Investigate the supports and services that might be available in an inclusive classroom. Explore

the various models of collaborative team teaching. And read an interview with an inclusion
specialist about what inclusion looks like in action.

Key Takeaways

 All students benefit from the resources available in an inclusive classroom.

 The special education teacher can help all kids in an inclusive classroom, not just students who
need special education support.

 In an inclusive classroom, teachers often break students into small groups and teach them based
on their specific learning needs.

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