I found this article very interesting to step back and look at what is happening in our schools. Thinking about the forgotten dreams of leaders such as Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King where schools are named after them and now only black students attend. I found the comment interesting that if students that were very intelligent were attending schools where students are struggling, that it wouldn't hurt the advanced students, but help the lower students. I think it would be very interesting if these underprivileged students were challenged and we could see how well they could perform. I think about The Ron Clark Story, which has been on TV several nights. These students were in inner city Harlem and were the lowest students that were labeled as failures. Then one teacher could devote his energy and resources and make them the highest scoring class. It was very inspiring! Maybe if qualified teachers were teaching these underprivileged students they would be scoring higher on tests. The question is how do you draw these teachers to these schools when they are getting paid less, there's no supplies, and in most cases poor quality school structures?

You have it correct. I know that I would not want to go into those areas, teaching in schools that were not fit for habitation! Yet the kids, their families, and their teachers are there every day. I cannot fathom the dispair.

A major part of special education legislation (there is a connection) is to keep the kids in the regular classroom with an inclusion model so that they have access to the standard course of study. Essentially, you'd have "lower" kids in the classes. One of the BEST resources is to use kids who know the content to tutor their peers. It is a great resource for teachers and it helps the students gain confidence. Any and all kids, of all types of abilities, can learn from each other. The child who "knows it all" can help someone who struggles. They learn how to better articulate the information, learn the information better themselves, and develop necessary social skills to function in society (such as empathy and tact). How aren't those skills important to an OVERALL education?

The kids in the ghettos get the raw end of the deal and didn't ask for it. They didn't ask to be born and had they, I'm sure wouldn't have requested the lot they possess.

Lisa, our school does not utilize the full inclusion, but my husband's school has just started this. I like the idea of students not getting "pulled out" of class as much as they are. Inclusion helps them to be in the class and know what is going on at all times. I agree with you that students can utilize each other as a resource. I see this all of the time when I am pairing students for centers. Both parties benefit from helping each other.
I agree, students that live in poor communities often are coming from an unstable home environment to what is supposed to be a haven to learn. They aren't able to in most cases because the school building is to crowded or falling down.

Hi Lindsey,
Our school is also starting inclusion this year. EC as well as ESL are going to try inclusion. I think it will be a great experience for all who are participating.

I too am experiencing inclusion for the first time. We level for reading so out of a group of 14 low or nonreading fourth grade kids, 7 are EC. The EC teacher will work with these students and my principal wants to hire a teacher to work part time with the other students so that there will be a four to one student/teacher ratio for this group. My low reading group consisits of mostly minority boys. (Three girls) Most of them are from low-income socio-economic situations. They are the ones that need extra motivation and encouragement or statistically speaking they will not finish school or they will be in jail some day. If anyone has any suggestions or ideas for me as to how to keep them motivated to stay in school when they are on a PP or first grade reading level, PLEASE let me know. Also do you have any book ideas??

I love using peer tutors in my classroom. I have seen struggling children, that seem to really "relate" to a child that already understands a concept and feels very confident in "teaching" it to a friend, master a skill because of the peer tutor's help.

Anna, you do have a challenge to get your low level minority students up to grade level, motivated, and eager to learn. You are right, these types of students are ones that can easily drop out of school one day. Hmmm, can you think of anything that you hear them talk about that they seem to be interested in and find books to "fit" their interests? I had several students one year that became very interested in the Titanic after I put just one book on a bookshelf about it. Many of them were "fighting" for this book, and I finally had to locate more!

I have been ecperiencing inclusion every since I started teaching. What has always been a help to me is the tireless ec teachers. They give me tips and pointers on things to do to help struggling readers, etc. In fact, that's one reason that I got interested in this reading degree. This may be terribel to say, but I always have a few ec students in my advanced classes. At my previous school, we had three "tracks," low level, where most ec students would fall, "advanced," and then "honors." My ec students almost always outperformed all of my other students even if it meant that they had to work really hard. I always knew that the work I assigned was accessible on the basis of these students' performance. Is that terrible?
Anyway, my last year at my old school, we started co-teaching the low level classes with ec teachers, and I feel that experience helped me more than anything to really understand the needs of these students, and different and appropriate ways of modifying lessons and assessments.
I think inclusion is always the best if at all possible. but i do feel that there are some tsudents that a regular classroom teacher may not be able to best serve, especially in situations where there is no assistant or co-teaching situation.