Rebecca Leary - Special Education Inclusion

The topic that I have chosen to research for the research argument assignment pertains to the subject of special education inclusion. The reason that this topic interests me is because I was given the opportunity to work with special needs students at my high school during my senior year, and working with these students has definitely changed my perspective on what takes place in special education classrooms. I have seen the potential that some of these students possess, and some of these students’ maximum potential cannot always be reached in today’s special education classrooms. There is such an array of skills and abilities found in special education classrooms, and this range of skills can sometimes cause higher-skill students to be held back in their learning process. This is why inclusion is important in today’s schools. The topic of inclusion also sparks an interest in me because I one day would like to possibly teach in an inclusive classroom. In my research paper, I will argue that special education inclusion should be implemented in all schools for the benefit of not only special education students but regular education students as well. Some possible rhetorical sources that I will possibly use are photographs of inclusive classrooms because I know that photographs such as these are successful by tugging at the emotions of their viewers. Regarding scholarly sources, I will use print sources such as education journals or possibly find research on experiments/observations done in inclusive classrooms. From my research paper, I want readers to see that special education students deserve the opportunity to excel in education that is equal to that of regular education students. Special education students need the chance to acquire the skills needed to succeed in real world experiences, and secluding special education students in a separate classroom is not the proper way to do so.