Reflection
Chapter 15 and 16 focuses on the idea of inclusion of disabled students in the general classroom environment at both elementary and secondary education environments. Smith is quick to point out that a high percentage of disabled students are likely to attend a general classroom environment. In specific he points out that only 15 percent of students are likely to attend restrictive classroom environment. Allowing disabled students to attend general classroom environment is advantageous because it helps disabled students in building better personal relations with students without disabilities. It is prudent to also understand that students without disabilities also learn how to positively treat their counterparts who are disabled. One of the things that remain clear is that instructors in regular school environment are bestowed with the responsibility of making sure that the curriculum also benefits students with disabilities. Smith is specifically concerned with the inclusion of disabled students in secondary school environments.
Many of the secondary schools require a certain standard of academic achievement to allow students to graduate (Smith, 2008). In most cases students have to be able to attain a diploma to be allowed to graduate. However, it is worthwhile to note that students with disabilities may at times find it difficult to achieve the standards that are set in secondary school environments. The meta-question in this case is whether states should create special standards for disabled students attending regular secondary school environments. In addition, to the struggle of disabled students to achieve a certain standard, Smith also explains that disabled students are adversely affected by adolescence compared to their counterparts who are not disabled. In many cases adolescence affects the concentration of disabled students in the regular classroom environment.
References
Smith, Polloway, Patton, & Dowdy, (2008). Teaching students with special needs in inclusive settings, 6th Ed., Pearson, Boston, MA.
