What is Inclusive Education?
Equitable access, meaningful participation, and success for every learner.
Inclusive education programs and services enable students with disabilities or diverse abilities to have equitable access to learning and opportunities to pursue and achieve the goals of their educational programs.
The Ministry of Education and Child Care “promotes an inclusive education system in which students with disabilities or diverse abilities are fully participating members of a community of learners. Inclusion describes the principle that all students are entitled to equitable participating members of a community of learners. Inclusion describes the principle that all students are entitled to equitable access to learning, achievement and the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of their educational programs. The practice of inclusion is not necessarily synonymous with full integration in regular classrooms and goes beyond placement to include meaningful participation and the promotion of interaction with others.”
Inclusive education programs and services enable students with disabilities or diverse abilities to have equitable access to learning and opportunities to pursue and achieve the goals of their educational programs.
School districts are mandated to design and implement individual education plans for students with diverse abilities. A students with diverse abilities is a student who has a disability of an intellectual, physical, sensory, emotional or behavioural nature, has a learning disability or has special gifts or talents. In BC, the students whose exceptionalities are significant, have a Ministry Inclusive Education identification.
These plans are called Inclusive and Competency Based Individual Education Plans (ICBEPs): An individual education plan designed for a student that includes one or more of the following:
- learning outcomes that are different from, or in addition to, expected learning outcomes set out in the applicable educational program guide,
- a list of support services,
- a list of adapted materials, instruction or assessment methods.
Inclusive Education services are designed to:
- complement regular education services
- support the needs of a diverse range of students
- provide assessment that links to effective intervention
- identify students’ strengths and provide opportunities to build on these
- consider resource requirements for ongoing planning and development
- support collaborative decision making among teachers/parents/others involved
Collaborative practice involves team members sharing their thinking and taking responsibility for their work to achieve success. Students themselves, and their parents are part of this team.
The collaborative decision-making process includes:
- assessment of the student’s strengths as a learner
- assessment of the learning environment
- analysis of the instructional content and techniques
- selection of intervention strategies that provide opportunities for success
Research shows that most students (80%) won’t need inclusive education services, while up to 20% may need extra support at some point. A smaller group (1%–5%) will require ongoing, intensive interventions.
Although inclusive education is often linked to students with diverse learning needs, it goes beyond special education. It affects all students and educators, everywhere and at all times. Ensuring success for all learners requires teamwork, not isolated efforts. True collaboration and mutual respect among everyone involved are essential.