Digital Communication in the Inclusive Classroom

Digital communication is being extensively used, and during COVID-19 pandemic, it has transformed the way teaching is delivered and how learning happens which became even more problematic for children with learning difficulties. The digitalization of education during the lockdown period has forced teachers, children, and parents to develop and enhance their digital skills to maintain and keep ensuring efficient learning. Digital communication can be provided in the educational system by the simple use of email or WhatsApp groups up to the integration of complex digitalized learning programs and software adapted to the specific educational needs of each student. Being digital natives, students nowadays seem more engaged if learning is mediated by the use of digital communication tools. They are opened and interested in participating in educational activities that are technology-based.

Creating an Inclusive Classroom Culture

The chapter discusses creating an inclusive classroom through a language socialization perspective. The authors suggest that to create an inclusive culture in a multicultural and multilingual classroom, language educators should engage in explicit language socialization practices that promote development of critical cultural consciousness and language awareness. They propose that in the process of creating an inclusive classroom, educators need to attend to affective, individual, and interpersonal domains. Specific practices for use in a language (including ESOL) classroom and a teacher preparation program are provided.

Equitable and Inclusive (Classroom-Based) Foreign Language Assessment Using Universal Design for Learning

In increasingly diverse learner groups, it must be ensured that foreign language learners can reach their full potential, so diverse learner needs have to be catered to in teaching and in assessment contexts. Providing accessibility of learning, teaching, and assessment is a matter of equity and has increasingly been embraced as a principle of foreign language assessment. However, accessibility of language assessment has often been seen as a retrospective accommodation rather than a flexible planning of language assessment from the start. The purpose of the chapter is to discuss the potential of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) for (planning) classroom-based language assessment (CBLA) procedures in order to foster equitable and inclusive language assessment. After clarifying relevant terms, the notion of accessibility will be applied to foreign language assessment. UDL as a flexible framework for individualized language learning will be presented and illustrated for a foreign language context before its potential for classroom-based learning assessment (CBLA) is discussed and exemplified.

“Here Comes a Thought”: Steven Universe as Social Emotional Curriculum

The emphasis on social emotional learning as a focus in schools has led to the development of new materials for curriculum in classrooms for teaching social emotional content and competencies. This paper conceptualizes the use of narrative television and animation, specifically, the cartoons Steven Universe and Steven Universe Future as powerful pedagogical tools for engaging social emotional learning in classrooms. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the efficacy of these cartoons as tools for classroom use given their emphasis on inclusivity, diversity, and their popularity with young people today. Utilizing the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning Competencies as a framework, the paper highlights selected episodes of the shows, and demonstrates ways the shows can be used to teach these competencies. As teachers continue to encounter ever-diversifying student populations, the use of media such as Steven Universe can help support inclusive classroom environments that engage the emotional lives and experiences of young people today.

The psychological climate of the classroom with students with disabilities: assessment diagnostics and ways to optimize interpersonal relationships

Актуальность статьи обусловлена необходимостью формирования в каждом классе с обучающимися с ограниченными возможностями здоровья благоприятного психологического климата. Цель настоящего исследования заключается в выявлении особенностей диагностики психологического климата школьного коллектива, в котором обучаются дети с ОВЗ. В статье проводится анализ полученных результатов интервью, определяющих отношения в инклюзивном классе; особенности взаимоотношений ребенка с ОВЗ в классном коллективе; деятельность учителей по формированию психологического климата школьного класса с обучающимися с ОВЗ. Выявлены трудности диагностики психологического климата класса с обучающимися с ОВЗ. Авторами предложены виды психолого-педагогической работы, направленные на оптимизацию межличностных отношений в школьном классе, в котором обучаются дети с ОВЗ. Статья предназначена для работников системы образования, исследователей. The relevance of the article is due to the need to form a favorable psychological climate in each class with students with disabilities. The purpose of this study is to identify the features of the diagnosis of the psychological climate of the school team in which children with disabilities study. The article analyzes the results of interviews that determine the relationship in an inclusive classroom; the features of the relationship of a child with disabilities in the classroom; the activities of teachers to form the psychological climate of the school class with students with disabilities. The difficulties of diagnosing the psychological climate of a class with students with disabilities are revealed. The authors propose the types of psychological and pedagogical work aimed at optimizing interpersonal relationships in the school classroom in which children with disabilities study. The article is intended for employees of the education system, researchers.

Fair and Equitable Grading for ALL Students in Inclusive Settings

Grading is a common practice in general education settings. Few teachers, however, are clear about how they should grade students with significant cognitive disabilities when those students are included in the general education classroom. Unfortunately, existing research provides minimal information to aid teachers and education leaders as they consider fair and equitable grading practices for these students. In this article, we examine the four criteria for high-quality inclusive grading outlined by The William & Mary Training & Technical Assistance Center for grading within the inclusive classroom: (a) grades are accurate, (b) grades are meaningful, (c) grades are consistent, and (d) grades are supportive of learning and discuss how these criteria could be applied to provide a more fair and equitable grading system for students with significant cognitive disabilities.

Utilizing Participatory Action Research to Build an Inclusive Classroom Community in France

Inclusive education is increasingly prioritized in legislation and policy across the globe. Historically, the concept of inclusion within educational contexts refers primarily to the placement of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. More recent descriptions of inclusive education focus on ensuring that all children can access and participate in physical, social, and academic aspects of the classroom. However, a growing body of research suggests that students continue to experience exclusion even within educational contexts that express a commitment to inclusion. In France, a growing number of private, independent schools seek to create the inclusive environments that, despite the ministry of education’s initiatives focused on inclusion, the public school system does not yet provide. One such school engaged in a participatory action research project to create an inclusive classroom that responded to the evolving needs and interests of the community, resulting in a sense of belonging for all members. As all classroom community members (students, families, and teachers) participated in the project of creating an inclusive classroom, the elements of participatory action research allowed inclusion to become a flexible, ongoing, and reflexive practice of identifying and responding to contextually specific needs of classroom members. Approaching inclusion as a participatory action research project in the classroom offers a promising approach to moving beyond interpretations of inclusion that fail to actively address pervasive inequalities and their impact on classroom experiences.

Teacher-Student’s Instructional Communication: A Case Study of Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (SwADHD) in Inclusive Classroom

The purpose of this study is to explore the types of instructional communication between general teacher (GT) and ADHD students (SwADHD) during activities of the: pre-instructional, instructional process, and instructional evaluation. Data collection was carried out by observation and interviews. The data analysis used was thematic analysis. The results showed that the types of instructional communication between GT and SwADHD were: verbal, non-verbal, and verbal-non-verbal. The three types of instructional communication aim to: improve the socio-emotional relationship between GT and SwADHDs, reduce negative behavior that often appears in SwADHDs in the classroom, and improve quality of instruction; to achieve quality educational goals according to their characteristics and needs. The type of communication used between GT and SwADHDs has a significant impact on teachers in developing individual education programs. These result in a more humane experience for SwADHDs both academically and non-academically.