Inclusion is a process that provides children with special needs (SEN) the opportunity to be
educated together with their peers. It is based on the inclusion of the individual in both the
school and social environment and emphasizes the acceptance of mutual differences.
Inclusion does not only ensure the optimal development of the potential of some children but
strives for higher quality teaching and inclusion of all children. The majority of children with
special needs have the opportunity to be educated in regular elementary schools but children
with intellectual impairment, including children with Down syndrome (DS), are deprived of
this. Indeed, the Placement of Children with Special Needs Act (2011) states that children
with intellectual impairment have the option of being included in an adapted educational
program that is carried out together with their peers in regular elementary schools. This
enables education with an adapted course and curriculum, as well as transitions between
education levels. Unfortunately, this is not implemented in practice. Therefore,
comprehensive systemic changes in the field of education and legislation would be necessary.
The implementation of inclusive practice does not only depend on the latter but is influenced
by several factors. One of them is support on the school level. School management must
promote inclusivity and provide professional workers with professional training. The extent to
which inclusion is implemented in practice depends on the teacher's educational competence.
Peers also influence successful integration because they spend a large part of the day together.
An important factor is also the family which must provide support to the child during different
periods of growing up. It is also essential for successful inclusion that there is good
cooperation between professionals and the family.
The master's thesis is based on the presentation of an example of good practice. By the
obtained results, we have provided insight into the inclusion of a student with DS in a regular
elementary school and shed light on the factors that influence the success of inclusion.
In our master's thesis, we were interested in how various factors influence the implementation
of inclusion in practice, what the necessary conditions are, and what can be the advantages
and obstacles. We wished to investigate what sources of help were available to parents and
professionals and how much support they and the student with DS received in this process.
We wanted to show what challenges teachers face when teaching, what the effective
adaptations of the learning environment and work strategies are, how the characteristics and
special needs of a student with DS affect the educational field and social inclusion, and what
the role of the assistant and the family is.
For this purpose, we included the following persons in the research sample: seven teachers
who taught a student with DS, a provider of additional professional assistance, his assistant,
the student, his parents, and 22 classmates. We conducted a semi-structured interview with
the student. To determine the social position of the student with DS in the classroom, we
produced a sociogram. For the other participants, we wrote a questionnaire with open-ended
questions. We also analyzed documents from the student's personal folder. We processed all
the collected data qualitatively and supported the results with the theoretical insights of
various authors.
Based on the analysis of the collected data, we ascertained that the contribution of all
participants is necessary for successful integration: the parents, the school management with
professional workers, the assistant, peers, and, of course, also the will of the student with DS
and his abilities. We ascertained that support is needed on the level of the wider environment,
school, and classmates. In the process, parents and professional workers must cooperate. The
student with DS achieved his educational goals with appropriate adaptations and good support
from family and school. Through the research, we also ascertained that the student with DS
has fairly well-developed social competencies, has no major problems with integration into
the wider environment, and is well accepted by his peers. The biggest challenge for teachers
when teaching a student with DS is planning the work and adapting the content. At the same
time, they highlight this as very important because well-planned individual goals for each
subject are essential for work. Parents and teachers agree that the education of children with
DS needs more support from the government.
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