Cultivating Belonging Through Inclusive Education

I am the queen of procrastination. It might look like I get things done, but it’s usually after hours, or even days, of putting them off, which is usually precipitated by either reorganizing my house or scrolling mindlessly through social media. I’m sure some of you can relate. Social media includes a ton of behavior modification components. If you know a few things about behavior analysis, then you know that variable, or sporadic, reinforcement is one of the strongest forms of reinforcement. Why do you think people sit in front of slot machines or play the lottery? It’s because they’re thinking, “What if this is THAT moment that I get rewarded???”

So, this was me today – while I should have been trying to get some thoughts together about my week and how to set up my schedule, instead I was surfing social media. True to form, however, I happened upon a posted video of Brené Brown, and I absolutely loved what she had to say (:o a reward!!!). She said, “Belonging never asks us to change who we are. The opposite of belonging is fitting in because fitting in is assessing a group of people and thinking, who do I need to be? What do I need to say? What do I need to wear? How do I need to act? …and changing who you are. True belonging never asks us to change who we are. It demands that we BE who we are. If we fit in because we’ve changed who we are, that’s not belonging.”

VALIDATION TIMES TEN!

The moment that I heard those words, my brain immediately went to inclusive education and how as an advocate for more than two decades, the biggest challenge and the most rewarding outcome is that which comes from inclusive education, which is THE TICKET to a meaningful life of belonging. I have been doing this long enough to see kids come into the system at three years old and leave the system as high school graduates, and without any reservation, I am here to tell you that the best outcome students are the ones who are included during their educational years. For some, that means included all day, every day. For others, that means a portion of the day because they need the delivery of a specialized approach to support their learning within the general setting (which is the point of special education anyway – to give the student what they need and get them back into the regular setting). Every student is different, and every student has rights that protect and promote their ability and access to a rigorous education, which should naturally help foster a sense of belonging. There is no better way to do that than through inclusive education with the support that the student needs.

Learn to Assess and Act

So, what is a parent, or even a teacher, to do when they are faced with a system that proclaims that placing students in segregated settings alongside other students with disabilities is a good thing? The following is by far not an exhaustive list, however, I do believe that these will, if nothing else, get you to start thinking about what matters most.

• Consider the data. The evidence of educational research is clear. The most meaningful and significant progress is found in students who are included in settings alongside typically developing peers, with access to the standard curriculum. For more information on the research and what the Department of Education actually says about inclusion, check out the Florida Inclusion Network website. “Building Inclusive Schools (BIS) is a 10-hour independent study course that provides information to assist district and school administrators, teachers, and other stakeholders in creating and supporting an inclusive school culture for all students.” Use what the system says that they believe in to advocate for what you know is right.
• Understand that it will not be easy. Quite often when I sit at iep meetings advocating for inclusive education, whether it’s auditory or not, I can intuitively feel the grumbling of some of the members of the team. Because I have been doing this long enough, I understand the significant commitment that is involved in true inclusion. Inclusion is most certainly not placing a child in a regular education classroom and hoping for the best. It requires planning, supporting, strategizing, scheduling, and sometimes thinking way outside the box for the success of the student. But, after all, isn’t that why they became teachers?
• Visualize the future. Can you honestly look at any child and think that the goal for that child is a segregated setting as an adult? If you can, then this is clearly not the article for you. The pathway to inclusive employment, living, housing, and relationships is through inclusive education. Separating children does not promote a society of diversity, compassion, or wisdom. However, it does promote fear, discrimination, inequality, loneliness, depression, and in some cases even abuse, and trauma.
• The need for social capital is real. I know a guy named Al Conduci and he is an amazing presenter and author on Social Capital, so if you ever get the opportunity to hear him speak, take advantage of that. He has done a ton of research about how the number of people that we know directly correlates to the job opportunities we receive, the number of real relationships that we have and our overall happiness as human beings. If the only people that we know are special ed teachers, aids, nurses, and personal care assistants, how empty our lives will truly be. Real relationships come by being and feeling as though we are meaningful components of our communities, but that is nearly unattainable when we are segregated.

Inclusion is most definitely a topic that the education system would prefer to steer clear of, and frankly, many parents would as well. It is much easier to place students in those “special” classrooms and in those “special” programs than to have to do the work that is required to create inclusive environments that welcome all students. If the goal that you have for your child is to be able to obtain a job wherever they choose to work or to live in a home of their own, with roommates or with the family members of their choice, then the best pathway to get there is by providing whatever level of support they need during their years in school to be and feel included. It is not an easy journey, but it is well worth the effort.

For more specific inclusive strategies, you can check out a list here. Feel free to pick and choose the ones that seem most appropriate for your child and their school.