EDU 221 Chapters 1 and 2

What is it? Inclusion is any opportunity for children with disabilities to play & interact with, grow & learn alongside children who are developing in a typical way. 1.1

1500s Attitudes Toward Disabilities: Historical Perspectives 1500s Only 50% of children reached adulthood Infanticide, abandonment, exploitation common Public sentiment: Children were full of evil 1.2

1700s Children maimed to be better beggars Strict discipline enforced Public sentiment: Children seen, not heard ∆ Children = workers ∆ Little thought given to persons with disabilities 1.3

1800s First kindergartens 80% of persons in poor housing had some disability First disability services ∆ School for the Deaf (1817) ∆ School for the Blind (1832) ∆ National Education Association subdivision concerning disabilities (1897) Public sentiment: Protect the handicapped 1.4

early 1900s Institutions – isolated, overcrowded, understaffed Residents – institutionalized for life, provided minimal care Community – developed apathy, fear, distrust Public sentiment – Persons with disabilities = menace 1.5

early 1900s New science of genetics produced faulty studies resulting in misconceptions —Mental retardation was mostly hereditary —Mental retardation caused social evils New laws removed rights of persons with disabilities Study of children as a science emerged 1.6

mid to late 1900s World wars ended & disabled soldiers returned home New compassion for persons with disabilities Civil rights movement unfolded Federal legislation supports rights of persons with disabilities Public sentiment: People with disabilities are people first 1.7

Practices That Interfere with Positive Attitudes toward Persons with Disabilities Isolating people who have disabilities Treating people with disabilities as incapable & dependent Seeing only the disability, not the person Using language such as cripple, idiot, retarded, deaf & dumb 1.8

Landmark Legislation Supporting Inclusion 1972Economic Opportunity Act amended 1975 Education for All Handicapped Children Act 1986 Education of the Handicapped Act amendments [renamed Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1990] 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 1997 Reauthorization of IDEA 1.9

Challenges to Implementing Inclusion Negative attitudes of parents, teachers, & community Lack of trained staff Continued physical inaccessibility of some buildings Lack of funding for additional staff, smaller class sizes, specialized materials & equipment 1.10