According to research, negative attitudes and perceptions towards people with disabilities begin to emerge early in one's development creating one of the most difficult barriers encountered by children with disabilities; those expressed by their peers. As a result, young people may begin to label others around them, differentiating between the…

This paper presents narratives from two parents about the exclusion of their disabled children within early childhood and primary school settings. Interpretations of particular "kinds of participation" that appear to be accepted as inclusive are explored. We argue that these interpretations have disabling effects on the children's…

This paper analyses the descriptions of families of children with disabilities as contained in introductory special education texts over the last 50 years. These text books are typically used in pre-service teacher education courses as surveys of the education of "exceptional children". The textbooks reflect the mainstream professional…

The purpose of this study was to confirm and extend prior research on the attitudes and experiences of typical college students towards students with intellectual disabilities who were enrolled in an inclusive postsecondary program. College students enrolled in a Disability Studies Internship class completed surveys, journals, and participated in…

Migrants and refugees settling permanently in a new country face significant social, linguistic and cultural challenges. However, they also bring intercultural strengths and skills which, if acknowledged and enhanced, can support successful settlement and inclusion in a pluralistic society. This paper describes the underpinning rationale and…

Despite previous research and recommendations in South Africa, secondary-school teachers still encounter economic, social and cultural challenges in implementing differentiated learning activities in the classroom. The diversity of learners with learning barriers inevitably leads to an increase in workload for the teachers. This article draws on…

Almost one in four (3.9 million) students who are enrolled in postsecondary education programs in the United States are also raising a dependent child (Miller, Gault, and Thorman, 2011). These parents are preparing themselves to compete in an American economy in which high skill levels are required to earn a wage sufficient to support a family…

Changes in legislation and the policies of education (e.g., NCLB 2002, IDEA 2004), the potential benefits of response-to-intervention (RTI), and government funds to support early intervention have made RTI a prominent issue in current education. To prepare teachers for implementing RTI, there are several government-sponsored online professional…

With the increasing trend of inclusionary educational practices with students diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder, comes a need to determine the effectiveness of such placements. This purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences and attitudes of general education teachers regarding the inclusion of students diagnosed…

For the past 30 years, educators have been challenged with mainstreaming students with disabilities into regular classrooms. Research has shown that teachers often lack the knowledge and training to implement inclusion programs effectively. Guided by Bandura's social cognitive theory, with a particular focus on self-efficacy, this mixed…

Since implementing No Child Left Behind, schools have improved student achievement while also preparing students for the 21st century. Schools continue to strive for 100% proficiency in all subgroups by 2014, but achievement gap exists for students with disabilities. This study used a causal comparative research design to test the concept of…

Schizophrenia as mental illness is defined in terms of diagnostic criteria which do not include the full range of psychosocial difficulties that shape the lived experience of persons with this diagnosis and affect their quality of life. The biopsychosocial approach found in the World Health Organization's International Classification of…

Teachers creating instruction for inclusive classrooms prepare for a wide variety of student achievement levels, student preferred learning styles, and personal student emotional needs. Differentiated instruction and formative assessments allow teachers to tailor instruction of state standardized objectives to individual student needs to raising…

Catholic schools in the United States have grappled with how to serve students with disabilities without the funding sources available to public schools. This mixed methods case study examines the driving forces, restraining forces, and social justice issues that influenced the development of an inclusion program at one Catholic elementary school.…

Bangladesh is a signatory country of major international declarations of inclusive education (IE). Over the past two decades, it has enacted policies and legislation in favour of IE. Contemporary literature suggests that having legitimised guidelines does not always ensure practices that are aligned with the principles of IE. This paper aims to…