Mainstreaming in Education

Mainstreaming is a fairly new concept as far as educational thinking is concerned. Prior to this concept, mentally and physically handicapped children were removed from society and placed in institutions. This segregation of the challenged student ended on November 29, 1975 when President Gerald Ford signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EHA), also known as Public Law 94-142. The Act required the federal government to provide funding for all handicapped children from age three to twenty-one in order for them to receive a free public education. Before the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, United States public schools educated only one out of five children with disabilities. At the time the EHA was enacted, more than one million children in the United States had no access to the public school system. Before the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, United States public schools educated only one out of five children with disabilities. At the time the EHA was enacted, more than one million children in the United States had no access to the public school system. 1 The signing of this Act marked the beginning of mainstreaming.

The EHA has changed since its inception, being renamed Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The first design placed disabled children in the public schools within classrooms labeled “special education”.

In the 1980’s the Least Restrictive Environment was established. This model of mainstreaming allowed for students with minor disabilities to be integrated into a regular classroom while students with major disabilities were segregated in special classrooms with the opportunity to be in a regular classroom a few hours each day.

In 1997, the mainstreaming was once again revised to strengthen requirements, i.e., Individual Educational Plans must relate to the general education curriculum, children with disabilities must be included in state and district assessments and progress reports must be made to parents. Today all states comply with IDEA with all taxpayer supported schools being held responsible for the costs of providing an education for disabled children under federal law.

As with any new idea there are advocates and protesters. In the case of mainstreaming most of the protests came from parents of students without disabilities citing when slow learners are placed into a regular classroom the level of learning is decreased. This notion has been disproved. Data gathered from research proves that disabled children have the desire and self motivation to learn. Instead, the results of the study indicated it could be the students with low academic achievement, rather than the learning disabled child, who bring down the average students level of learning (Kastner et al. 52-56).

Another concern of the protesters was for the socialization of the child with disabilities citing they may experience social difficulties and become outcasts within the classroom. Again studies have found this to been untrue. Researchers have found that students with disabilities were well integrated into the regular classroom social setting (Farmer & Farmer 446).

Advocates of mainstreaming, on the other hand, point out by educating disabled and non-disabled students in the same classroom creates an opportunity for disabled children to gain access to the general curriculum.

Other advantages to mainstreaming are more intrinsic. Studies show that special education students who are mainstreamed have higher academic achievement, higher self esteem, a greater probability of attending college, and better physical health than special needs students in self contained special classrooms. They are more likely to graduate and find employment. In fact, graduation rates of disabled students increased by 14% from 1984-1997 (National Research Center on Learning Disabilities, 2005).

Mainstreaming promotes diversity and acceptance. The learning disabled child is motivated through competition to improve and the regular classroom child has the opportunity to take on leadership roles.

It is my belief that mainstreaming is a good thing for all involved, i.e., the students with disabilities, the other students in the regular classroom and the regular classroom teacher.

Moving out of the “special education” classroom and into a regular classroom opens up a world of opportunities for the disabled child, both academically and socially. The disabled learner experiences a desire to learn, which stimulates a sense of competition. The academic bar has been raised within the disabled child in a regular classroom and the desire to excel increases.

Being in a heterogeneous classroom, the student with disabilities develops better socialization skills (Willis 6). By educating both disabled and non-disabled students together promotes understanding and tolerance, better preparing all students