¶ … Mainstreaming
In education, the practice of teaching mentally or emotionally handicapped children in regular classrooms with non-handicapped children is known as mainstreaming. There has been an increasing interest in this practice since the 1960s due to numerous factors. For example, recent research shows that many handicapped students learned better in regular than in special classes. In addition, there have been charges that racial imbalances existed in special education classes. The federal Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, which states that all handicapped children have the right to a "free and appropriate" education in the "least restrictive environment," has been frequently interpreted as supporting the expansion of mainstreaming (Columbia University Press, 2003).
Mainstreaming has worked well with those segments of the special student population whose disabilities are compatible with a classroom setting and is felt in general to better prepare handicapped students socially for life after school. It has also helped other school children gain a better understanding of those with disabilities. It has been controversial, however, with students who have emotional or behavioral difficulties that may be disruptive to the entire class. In addition, some argue that children with special needs cannot be given adequate attention in an integrated class.
This paper aims to prove that mainstreaming handicapped children in appropriate and beneficial to all students. It will examine existing literature on the topic to determine the most effective method of mainstreaming and how to improve the mainstreaming process.
About Mainstreaming
More and more parents and educators are supporting the process of mainstreaming, which is best described as "social trend of bringing exceptional people into the world of non-exceptional people" (Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation, 1986, p.3). For students with severe handicaps, which may include mental handicaps, sensory impairments, physical handicaps, or chronic health problems, it is widely believed that they can learn but might require a lot of guidance, teaching of basic life skills, or assistance with daily activities (Stanviloff, 2002). The rationale for including these students in the regular...
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ELLs frequently disappear in these comprehensive settings. Similar interpretations about mainstreaming have been made in other English-speaking countries such as Australia, Britain and Canada, where ELLs are also categorized and served under a larger authority of diversity education or literacy education intended for native English speakers who may have learning requirements very dissimilar from their own (Harper and de Jong, 2009). Teaching approaches are founded on theories. ESL teachers often
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