Integration in Early Childhood Education.
The issue of the integration of children with additional needs into schools and kindergarten has seen much lively debate over several decades.
It is accepted today that children with additional needs have a right to mainstream education if they and their family want this to happen. The practical aspects of service provision and how this is best achieved is the current focus and research can help guide teachers and families.
The differing philosophical backgrounds of the two disciplines, Early Childhood Education evolving from developmentally appropriate, child discovery models and Early Childhood Special Education from behaviorist, instructional, skill acquisition ones mean that research is helping the way integration develops.
A practical guide for teachers adapting a mainstream setting is…. The Inclusive (Early Childhood) Classroom by Patti Gould and Joyce Sullivan. Published by Gryphon House 1999.
In the field of Special Education, much work has been done based on the deficit model where the child is taught skills he/she is lacking in order to enhance development. In segregated settings, skill mastery may not transfer to other settings. Generalisation of skills into different environments is very important if what is being taught to children is to be of maximum value.
Normalising a child’s educational environment helps with generalisation, motivates the child in the development of self help skills and provides important opportunities for social skills and language development as well. This means there are many benefits for a child and his/ her family when the education community integrates the child.
Successful integration needs adequate resources in the form of personnel and equipment. It also needs commitment of the part of the staff and families involved.
At Birrahlee Kindergarten in Lane Cove, children with additional needs have always been part of the school community and we have integrated children with additional needs in language, physical, cognitive and behavioural areas of development.
A Special Education teacher is an important part of the team working with the classroom teacher and additional aide. In conjunction with the child’s family and others that may be involved with the child, we develop an individual plan to achieve the goals that the families want. The child may need adult support in the classroom and this is decided on an individual basis but he/she follows the daily routine joining in music art and craft and all the play activities offered and modifications are made if necessary. The other children are a useful resource and can be taught to assist interactions without ‘doing it all’ and they really enjoy this. Some of our most joyful moments in the classroom have come when one of our special children achieves a goal and the whole class is proud of that achievement.
Integration is more than just normalising education for children with disabilities it is about accepting people for themselves and learning to value people for who they are and their many abilities and for learning about ourselves.
By Josephine Mutch, Principal Birrahlee Kindergarten, Lane Cove NSW March 2001