What is Inclusion?

I know it seems kind of silly to be having this entry now, after writing a couple of other entries . . . However, it's better late than never! I'm writing this entry because I think that although a lot of people think they know what inclusion is, and think they know how to be inclusive, also need to take the time to think about what inclusion really is once in a while . . .

I think a lot of the time when people hear anything about inclusion from someone (whether it be a parent, student, etc.) that they must be completely be against special education classes. I can definitely say that this isn't the case for me. Yes, I promote inclusion . . . But no, I don't have any motivation to completely shut down the special education classes at my school.

To me, inclusion means that you can feel accepted for who you are, and treated like an equal. With that being said, if you are a 15-year-old student who happens to have an intellectual disability, are you really being included if your peers are treating you like a little kid? Or, if you have an intellectual disability, and you're invited to a birthday party (for example) . . . Are you being invited because they want to do a favour for you and "include" you? Or are you being invited because they genuinely wanted you to be there? Should it be the first reason, I would hardly call that equal, and therefore, wouldn't necessarily consider that to be inclusion.

Another thing . . . It's about being and interacting with other people, not just being around them. So if students from the "DC Class" are walking down the hall, are they really being included if absolutely no one talks to them? Or if they're in the cafeteria with just their classmates and teachers, are they really being included if they aren't talking to any of their other peers?

Segregated classes are still very common within schools, and unfortunately have given other students the mindset that they need to be separated from everyone else, when that is definitely not the case. Students in special education classes are equals, and are just as worth your time as anyone else is. So include people who have disabilities because they deserve it; get to know them, find those common interests, and become their friend.