Parents’ and Educators’ Perspectives on Inclusion of Students with Disabilities

Abstract

We, the authors, support inclusion in public education for most students of diversity, including many (but not all) students with disabilities, because disability is a unique form of diversity that requires special consideration in education. The way that various forms of disability are understood has fundamental implications for framing policies and their implementation. We briefly review the literature pertinent to parents’ advocacy, views of, and attitudes toward inclusion. We also review the literature about teachers’ attitudes toward inclusion, focusing on systematic reviews revealing nuanced views of inclusion and not monolithic attitudes. Nuanced views in both parental and teachers’ perspectives may indicate that effective instruction and appropriate education (as mandated by law in the USA) should take precedence over the place of instruction (bodily inclusion). We conclude that inclusion based on learning progress and outcomes rather than bodily inclusion in general education should be the primary concern of policy makers because the majority of parents and educators are more concerned about children learning academic and life skills than about where children are taught.