Inclusive Habits

• Chapter 3 provides practical tips on cultivating inclusive habits
• It also provides advice on implementing inclusive practices in the classroom
• The chapter is based on the 2002 Booth and Ainscow framework

New Normal

• Diversity is the new normal
• Inclusive practices must be dynamic and collaborative
• Educators should always check for the presence, participation, and achievement of their learners
• Differentiation plays an important role in inclusive education practices
• Differentiation proactively assists children with disabilities in individualized learning
• The focus is on the child’s strengths and abilities
• This allows individualization of subject content, learning process, and products to address the needs of the learner

Chapter aims

• The ability to respond effectively to the educational needs of students with additional needs
• The ability to create safe, inclusive, responsive, and culturally aware learning environments for all students

Frameworks

• In 2002, Booth and Ainscow created an Index for Inclusion
• The Index aims to direct educational institutions toward developing their own next steps and action plans to restructure and become more inclusive
• The index takes on the social model of disability as its starting point
• The index builds on good practice
• It organizes index work around a cycle of activities
• The activities guide schools through stages of preparation, investigation, and development

Three Dimensions of the Index

• Creating inclusive cultures involves establishing inclusive values
• Producing inclusive policies involves developing school policies for all
• Evolving inclusive practices means orchestrating learning and mobilizing resources
• The three dimensions are interconnected
• They are chosen to direct thinking about school change
• Laying down and establishing an inclusive culture is the backbone of the framework
• Without it, it will be difficult to get people to shift policies and practices
• A non-supportive culture would most likely result in resistance from the school’s direct stakeholders
• The three dimensions branch out into sections to further guide schools into implementing more direct

Dimension A: Creating Inclusive Cultures

• Section A.1 looks at building community
• Section A.2 looks at establishing inclusive values
• This dimension creates a secure, accepting, collaborating and stimulating community
• Everyone is valued as the foundation for the highest
• It develops shared inclusive values
• These values are conveyed to all new staff, students, administrators, and parents
• The principles and values in inclusive school cultures guide decisions about policies
• This guides practice in classrooms, so that school development becomes a continuous

Dimension B: Producing Inclusive Policies

• Section B.1 focuses on developing the school for all
• Section B.2 looks at organizing support for diversity
• This dimension makes sure that inclusion permeates all school plans
• Policies encourage the participation of students and staff from the moment they join the school
• The policies reach out to all students in the locality
• They minimize exclusionary pressures
• All policies involve clear strategies for change
• All activities which increase the capacity of a school to respond to student diversity are considered support
• All forms of support are developed according to inclusive principles
• Support is brought together within a single framework

Dimension C: Evolving Inclusive Practices

• Section C.1 means orchestrating learning for all students
• Section C.2 means mobilizing resources to support learning
• This dimension develops school practices which reflect the inclusive cultures and policies of the school
• Lessons are made responsive to student diversity
• Students are encouraged to be actively involved in all aspects of their education
• Staff identify material resources and inner resources within each other
• Staff also identify resources within students, parents, and local communities
• These resources are mobilized to support learning

Creating Inclusive Cultures

• Creating inclusive cultures is a shared responsibility between society and schools
• Inclusive education is an ongoing collaborative process that needs to be dynamically revisited
• For it to truly work, its essence has to resonate to all stakeholders

Educational Reform

• Stakeholders are those who are invested in the welfare and success of a school and its students
• Stakeholders include the teachers, administrators, school staff, officials, and other workers
• Stakeholders also include the parents and their families
• Collective entities like local businesses, advocacy groups, the media, and socio-cultural institutions are stakeholders
• Other organizations that may be directly or indirectly involved in education are stakeholders
• Stakeholders play a major role in connecting what is being taught in a school to its surrounding community

UNESCO Findings

• In 2017, UNESCO reported that there has been significant global improvement in accessing education
• Improvement was noted specifically at the primary level for the last 15 years
• The 2016 Global Education Monitoring Report reveals that there are still an estimated 263 million children and youth aged 6 to 17 around the world who are still not in school
• The report also confirmed the continuous plight of women against gender discrimination
• With increasing globalization and international migration, the problem pertaining to inclusive education and how it affects PWDs could not be more real

Stakeholder's Role

• The rights-based approach to educational programming "insists that no right can exist without a corresponding governmental obligation"
• Governments and communities are starting to understand how they are accountable to children with additional needs
• Fulfilling their right to education and providing access to quality education must be safe
• Legally defining terms and formalizing a system for setting up inclusive schools in areas where there are none to begin with ensures uniformity and universality
• Consistency of implementation is needed for the eventual success of inclusion
• The government needs to set the parameters for inclusion
• The government has identified key people and professions
• Important factors leading to the success of inclusive education include staffing and responsibilities, teacher training and compensation and incentives.
• Collaboration of the Department of Education is key
• The government recognizes the need for teacher training both in the special needs education and general education levels
• The government also pushes for the use of evidence-based teaching frameworks, and provision of student assistance

Identifying Needs

• UNESCO's Guide for Inclusion (2005) advocates for the identification and removal of obstacles
• Transforming prevailing attitudes and values can be done on a systemic level
• The Philippine government seems to be in consonance with this aspect in the light of its existing legislative policies

Barriers to Inclusion

• Attitudes, values systems, misconceptions, and societal norms can lead to prejudices
• Prejudices and/or actual resistance to implement inclusive practices
• Physical barriers such as the lack of building, facility, transportation, or road accessibility affect one's mobility
• Curriculum barriers involve a rigid "one-size-fit all" type of curriculum
• Rigid curriculums do not allow room for individual differences and can significantly stunt one's learning and opportunity for growth
• Teacher training and low teacher efficacy affect how inclusive practices are implemented
• Poor language and communication as well as language barriers may affect implementation
• Lack of funding can limit the training of more teachers
• Adequate funding can allow the development of more appropriate programs, instructional materials, or facilities
• A lack of supportive polices can unify beliefs and mobilize resources
• Centralized systems may have some type of detachment in terms of implementing policies
• Too much focus on performance-based standards means schools have refused inclusion
• The refusal stems from fear that learners with additional needs will pull down their academic success

Mainstreaming vs Inclusion

• Special Education vs. Mainstreaming vs. Inclusive Education cultures vary in their ability to create inclusion
• It is important to determine distinctions among frameworks and practices.
• It is important to understand how different special education, mainstreaming and inclusive education are from each other
• Special education assesses, instructs, and evaluates students individually and intentionally
• This type of educational setting is beneficial to those with very specific needs
• Mainstreaming shares more similarities with inclusion than with special education
• Both look at integrating the child with additional needs into a general education setting

Inclusive Policies

• The premise of inclusion starts with an acceptance and embracing of diversity
• It is difficult to start a movement if this practice is not rooted on a culture that assumes the right perspectives and values
• A societal change in attitude need not be initially present in a community before inclusion can be fully practiced.
• It must be viewed as a perspective or an ideal to work toward
• Just very recently, the pre-service education curriculum was restructured
• Restructuring was completed so that special needs education units are not only given to special needs education majors but to other education majors as well

Education Steps

• Involve other sectors of society to facilitate societal shift and inform policy
• Collaborate with members of the inclusive education team with their own strengths and weaknesses,
• Collaborate to benefit the child with additional needs
• Recognize the shift in the roles of the teachers
• Role of special education (SPED) teachers not reduced to only as needed
• Use the SPED teachers' role and trainings, their insights, and their skills to ensure a good inclusive program is provided to children
• Include transitions in planning
• Systemic changes must be well-planned or they may hinder the shift to inclusion and cause resentment from all stakeholders
• It is key to respect all current practices
• Booth and Ainscow (2002) recommend that schools reflect on their current policies and practices to check their readiness for an inclusive set-up
• Booth and Ainscow also devised a questionnaire that would help administrators, faculty and other stakeholders
• Examine different aspects of the school and the delivery of its services
• Schools may look at elements such as student admissions, accessibility to utilities and facilities, support available, learner accommodations, exclusionary or discriminatory incidents, and bullying cases

Evolving Inclusive Practices

• Evolving inclusive practices is the third dimension to Booth and Ainscow's framework for schools (2002)
• Administrators must first try to create an inclusive culture among its stakeholders, then build better, more all-encompassing policies
• Administrators must ensure inclusive teaching practices are applied
• The term "evolving" assumes that there are already have strategies in place which must be tweaked
• Advancement and positive growth means look at existing strategies

Effective Class Practices

• Two effective evidence-based inclusive practices that can be used in the classroom:
• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
• Differentiated Instruction

UDL

• In architecture, universal designs refer to structures that that can be used by customers or clients with a wide range of needs (Dukes & Lamar-Dukes 2009 as cited in Salend 2011)
• Ensure accessibility for all
• Refers to the design of instructional materials and activities to make the content information accessible to all children (Ros & Meyer 2006 as cited in Turnbull et al. 2013)
• Best used in a general education classroom where learners are different
• Multiple means of representation: providing learners various ways to access and engage with course materials and information
• Multiple means of action and expression: encourages students to demonstrate their learning through various forms (e.g., exams, multimedia, concept maps, papers, projects)

Nine UDL Principles

• Equitable Use: Inclusive Practices are designed to be useful, appealing, and safe for all students and families - Use culturally responsive teaching strategies and materials
• Flexible Use: Inclusive practices are designed to accommodate the individual preferences, abilities, and needs of all students and families - Utilize technology
• Simple and Intuitive Use: Inclusive practices are designed to be easy for all to use and understand - Establish classroom rules and routines
• Perceptible Information: Inclusive practices are designed so that they communicate valuable information to all through various formats - Utilize technology
• Tolerance for Error: Inclusive practices are designed to minimize errors and unintended consequences by providing safeguards and warnings to assist
• Low Physical Effort: Inclusive practices are designed to be used comfortably and efficiently without much effort from all
• Size and Space for Approach and Use: Inclusive practices are designed for use by all, regardless of their mobility, physicality, or way of communication
• Community of Learners: Inclusive practices are designed to promote social interaction with collaborative discussions.
• Inclusive Environment: Inclusive practices are designed to foster acceptance

Differentiated instruction

• Differentiated instruction is a teacher's response to students varying needs, interests, and learning styles
• It refers to a systematic approach to planning curriculum and instruction
• It is a way of thinking about the classroom with the dual goals of honoring each student's learning needs and maximizing student's learning capacity
• Teachers, when they differentiate instruction, use a variety of teaching and learning strategies that are necessary to meet the diverse needs of students

Importance of Differentiation

• Teaching and learning experiences need to be designed in a way that provides opportunities for students to learn and demonstrate their understanding in varied ways
• Differentiating instruction helps ensure that learners are engaged in respectful tasks and provide diverse means of learning that reflect their strengths

Elements of Curricula

• Content
• Process
• Product
• Learning Environment

Differentiated Instruction Achieved Via

• Varied levels of difficulty
• Varying levels of instructional support
• Multiple grouping arrangement
• Involving student choice

Teaching Advice

• Teachers must know their curriculum
• Teachers must identify which are non-negotiable and negotiable learning objectives and tasks
• Teachers must know their student's interests, readiness level, and learning styles/profile
• A class profile can provide an overview of the class's characteristics and needs
• Identify and plan what and how to differentiate the material

Strategies

• Strategies can be organized by identifying what aspects are part of the content, process, product, and learning environment
• Varied pacing and reading options
• Tiered activities can be based on readiness and interest
• Learning contracts can be utilized

Classroom Managed Via

• Routines can be established during differentiated learning to provide structure
• Explain to the students the reason for differentiation
• Ensure the message is understood by all
• "Anchor activities" helps students complete assigned tasks and maintain a productive work environment
• Assign roles during small-group activities to ensure accountability and a positive learning environment. Roles include facilitator, recorder, summarizer/timekeeper, and presenter
• Implement routines for collaborative work
• Have a plan for "quick finishers" i.e. set up anchor activities.
• Provide a clear indication of when to ask for help