Inclusive Education Summit - A young male person of color with short brown hair, wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans, standing upright while leaning on crutches. He is beside a hand-painted sign that reads "We are all human beings" in bold, black lettering on a white background. The photo is outdoors in natural sunlight, with a slightly shallow depth of field to focus on the subject. Behind him, are a diverse crowd of people with disabilities,

We don’t want to be the same as you. We want the same opportunities as you.

I have spent my life working in education, and what I have noticed is that often, when people say they want to be inclusive, what they really mean is that they want to make it appear like they are including people with disabilities. But is that true inclusion? What does the disabled student gain from that? What do we hope to gain through Inclusive Education? Do we hope that, because of our efforts, countries around the world will simply work to include children with disabilities in classrooms with same-age peers? That’s too small of a dream to dream.

Why is it that every time we talk about inclusion, we mean including children with disabilities in classes with nondisabled students? Why doesn’t inclusion ever mean including nondisabled students in classes with disabled students? Is it not worthwhile to include nondisabled students in disabled classrooms? Then why don’t we?

I am a human being, just like every other person on this planet, and I have value. We must stop measuring the worth of our fellow human beings by their mental and physical abilities. Our worth doesn’t come from what we do but from who we are: human beings just like each of you.

Author

Amy Bodkin, is one of the moderators of Difference Between Inclusive Education & Special Needs.

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