What is the difference between mainstreaming and inclusion?
“Mainstreaming” used to be considered the least restrictive environment appropriate for a special education student and allowed a student with disabilities to be pulled out of the regular classroom for special instruction until his/her academic skills increased to the same, or very nearly the same, level as same-age peers in the regular (general) classroom. The student with disabilities would then be “mainstreamed” back into the general education setting. More recently, the least restrictive option is considered “inclusion,” which emphasizes changing the system rather than the child. Proponents of inclusion insist that it isn’t necessary for a student with disabilities to be “at grade level” in order to receive instruction in the general education setting, but rather that our educational system, structure and practices need to shift and become more flexible, more inclusive, and more collaborative in order to better accommodate students with learning differences.* Q: Can you initiate th
