Special needs students in regular classrooms? Sean's story

Description

This is the story of an eight-year-old boy with Down syndrome who was part of a battle over "inclusion," the practice of placing mentally or physically challenged students in regular classrooms. Teachers felt inadequately trained; teachers and parents asked whether "inclusion" was in the best interests of all students-those with and those without disabilities; and the future of special education schools was in question. The program chronicles Sean's first year in a regular classroom setting and also follows the story of his friend Bobby, who also has Down syndrome but whose parents chose to keep him in the special education school. Sean's mother thinks a regular classroom will help him adjust to the real world; Bobby's mother equates placing a mentally challenged child in a regular classroom with "putting a five-foot-two kid on the varsity basketball team and expecting him to do well. The program talks to students, parents, teachers, and administrators on both sides of the issue.

Runtime

45 min

Subjects

Genre

Date of Publication

[2008], c1994

Database

Films on Demand

Direct Link