Creating a More Inclusive Environment for Students with Disabilities

July 21, 2024

For decades, students with disabilities have been educated primarily in separate special education classrooms. However, research has shown that educating students with and without disabilities together is most likely to provide an opportunity for both academic and social growth for all students. When students with disabilities attend classes with students without disabilities, they benefit from opportunities to engage in social interaction and observe how other students interact with one another. These social interactions help develop students’ language and cognitive abilities as well as improve social behavior and academic engagement.

Interventions in schools tend to focus on students’ academic deficits; however, social deficits are just as important for students’ success academically and personally. For example, many students with disabilities experience difficulty regulating their emotions and communicating with their peers. As a result, these students often experience higher rates of peer victimization and lower levels of academic achievement than their peers without disabilities. It is therefore very important to create school-wide intervention programs focused on developing positive social skills and friendships among students.

In summary, creating and supporting inclusion through interactive approaches may be a highly successful way to promote the social development and overall well-being of students with disabilities. Research and practice in this area will need to continue to identify and develop strategies to best assist students with disabilities in reaching their maximum academic, social and emotional potential in an inclusive educational environment.