Abstract
In 1975 the United States of America passed Public Law 94-142 guaranteeing the education of all children regardless of their disability. This legislation mandated that the education be free, appropriate, and take place in the least restrictive environment. The regular education classroom teacher, therefore, was faced with students he/she was not trained to teach. Research has concluded that teachers' attitudes are the greatest factor in the success of the inclusive process. It has also been shown that teacher training positively influences attitudes, skills, and willingness to participate in the inclusion of students with disabilities. Hence, teacher education programs should provide intensive training and experience to develop necessary skills for regular and special education teachers to be effective collaborators in planning, teaching, and evaluating instruction.
This session will explore, in a hands on manner, methods to employ in training teachers to use strategies that will promote successful inclusion of students with special needs in the regular classroom. At the end of this session, participants will be able to employ:
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