Icelandic education policy has a strong focus on inclusive education, but available Icelandic evidence indicates a lack of well-defined procedures in schools and municipalities aimed at inclusive education. Research literature has placed emphasis on the central role that school leaders play in developing inclusive schools. The purpose of this…

This dissertation presents the results from a mixed methods study designed to understand what beliefs urban middle school general education teachers hold when it comes to supporting students with disabilities (SWDs) in an inclusion classroom including classrooms that implement the integrated co-teaching (ICT) model. The quantitative portion of…

The purpose of this mixed method study was to investigate practice-based evidence by comparing secondary level general and special education teachers' perceptions of co-teaching experiences. Three research questions were answered to determine the perceptions of effective co-teaching methods in secondary inclusive classrooms: (1) Using the…

Having collaboration between general and special education teachers is key to having a successful inclusive classroom. This collaboration will lead to having a thriving learning environment for all students because two classroom teachers work together cooperatively to create the successful environment for each of their students. Co-teaching is a…

As schools reopen their doors and students return to the classroom, what will the "new normal" of special education look like? The pandemic exposed educational inequities and areas of urgent need--and now, schools have a unique opportunity to press pause and reimagine their practices. This book helps K-12 school leaders and educators…

Administrators who espouse a commitment to inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms can significantly improve inclusion and co-teaching within their schools. Administrators are instrumental in leading schools to effective inclusion and co-teaching practices (Smith & Leonard, 2005). Those who support inclusion and…

Classroom teachers are responsible for creating inclusive classrooms wherein every learner has the opportunity to succeed. Challenges include insufficient training and education in the areas of student exceptionalities, changing funding models and potential budget cuts, and effective coteaching. Steps must be taken to bridge the gap between what…

Too many students still experience the factory model evident in most U.S. high schools, which were designed to put young people on a conveyor belt and move them from one overloaded teacher to the next, in 45-minute increments, to be stamped with separate, disconnected lessons 7 or 8 times a day. While these factory-model designs may have worked…

School administrators are instructional leaders responsible for ensuring high quality inclusive education for all students including those with disabilities. In this article, the authors review legal mandates, discuss inclusion of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in practice, and obstacles to effectiveness. Recommendations…

In times of widening participation, Australian universities trade on notions of diversity, framing themselves as hospitable places of access and inclusion. In this space, Academic Language and Learning (ALL) practitioners may be seen as extending the welcome of the university through practices aimed at addressing students' diverse needs. These…

Several instructional strategies have been recommended for use in heterogeneous classrooms, but the frequency of their actual use has remained largely unknown. Therefore, an electronic survey was sent to Finnish comprehensive school teachers (N = 2276) in order to assess the prevalence of three selected inclusive strategies: co-teaching, group…

This dissertation explores the extent to which the beliefs and practices of teachers who work in a "struggling" school can be shifted towards inclusiveness through an action research based professional development program. The school was struggling in that it was charged with the education of children who are marginalized by a range of…

Co-teaching is an instructional strategy that can be implemented by educators in several different ways. This paper considers how frequently co-teachers implement different approaches to co-teaching and what factors are associated with the implementation of these approaches. This study found that teachers most frequently reported implementing an…

How do you support busy school leaders and teachers to take advantage of the strong body of evidence now available about effective teaching, school, and leadership practices? How do we grow our understanding of teaching, school, and principal leadership practices nationally, so that the system can learn and improve? What are the strengths and…

Blackstone Valley Prep, a K-12 charter school network, admits students from across four racially and socioeconomically diverse communities in the northeast corner of Rhode Island. The network integrates students within classrooms, regardless of performance level. Its culturally responsive curriculum aims to reflect and incorporate the range of…