Promoting Successful Inclusion
Through Collaborative Problem-Solving
Group 1
Nancy, Cece, Laura, and Kathy
Learning Objectives
• Identify factors that promote collaboration in
inclusive classrooms.
• Determine how collaboration problem solving
or CPS would enhance collaboration in the
inclusive classroom.
Successful Inclusion
• Hobbs & Westling, (1998). Inclusion, Inclusion, Promoting
Successful Inclusion Through Collaborative ProblemSolving. The Council for Exceptional Children, 12-18.
• Inclusion is a process, not an event. Problem solutions
evolve over time rather than occur randomly.
• Percentage of LD students in self contained settings has
decreased since the 1990s and there is more inclusion.
• Success depends on the teacher’s preparation and
attitudes and that there is an opportunity for collaboration.
• Needs adequate planning time and parent, community
support, adapted curriculum, cooperative learning, and
teacher collaboration.
Continued
• Collaborative Problem Solving or CPS is a way to
identify problems or barriers related to inclusion.
• Address problems together
• Collaboration has to be voluntary, have parity,
presumes mutually agreed on goals, requires shared
responsibility and resources where the team must be
collectively responsible for the outcomes.
• CPS provides a systematic process for identifying which
strategies or tactics might be useful.
• Top ten ways teachers collaborate.
Top Ten Ways Teachers Collaborate
• http://whatedsaid.wordpress.com/2011/05/18/10-ways-forteachers-to-collaborate/
• Open Door
• Talk
• Be Open Minded
• Include Your Students
• Make Learning Trans-disciplinary
• Share
• Focus on the Arts
• Establish an online communication forum
• Create an online communication forum
• Create a global collaboration (skype, etc..)
Tool
• Use the worksheet to identify five ways
teachers collaborate in inclusive settings that
are not already listed.
• Work in pairs.
Dover (2005)
• Essential that special and general educators collaborate in order to
provide instruction to students.
• Tips for collaboration in an inclusive classroom
• 1. Keep schedules of teacher’s planning times
• 2. Review student work together
• 3. Help each other prioritize instructional objectives.
• 4. Conduct interviews to complete paperwork
• 5. Offer direct assistance in the classroom.
• 6. Meet with others to review key student information.
• 7. Listen to the experiences needs and concerns of others.
• The author stressed that teacher collaboration is one of the most
important factors in having successful inclusion.
Carter, Prater, Jackson & Marchant
(2009)
• Effective collaboration between special education and general
education teachers increases the likelihood that students will be
included successfully in general ed. classrooms
• “CRIME” is one tool to train pairs of special educators and general
educators to work through the collaborative process to benefit
students in inclusion settings.
• “CRIME” was developed to help pairs of staff to effectively
collaborate together (Curriculum, Rules, Instructions, Materials,
Environment)
• Time to collaborate continued to be the number one barrier to
collaboration.
• Differences in defining disability was the number one issue to
collaborating effectively.
References
• Carter, N., Prater, M., Jackson, A., & Marchant, M.
(2009). Educators’ Perceptions of Collaborative
Planning Processes for Students with Disabilities.
Preventing School Failure, 54(1), 60-70.
• Dover, W. F. (2005). Consult and support students
with special needs in inclusive classrooms.
Intervention in School and Clinic, 40(1), 32-35.
• Hobbs, T., & Westling, D. L. (1998). Inclusion
Inclusion Promoting Successful Inclusion Through
Collaborative Problem-Solving, The Council for
Exceptional Children, 12-18.