INCLUDING STUDENTS WITH SEVERE DISABILITIES IN GENERAL-EDUCATION SETTINGS - GUIDELINES FOR CHANGE

A number of social, judiciary, and regulatory policies are intended to change current educational practices: educational change, however, do es not automatically occur as a result of policy adoption. Rather, edu cational change occurs as a result of leaders employing systematic pro cedures to bring about these changes. A growing philosophical, legal, and empirical data base supports the inclusion of students with severe disabilities in general education settings. This paper presents guide lines intended for educational leaders in effecting the change from se gregated to inclusive school settings. Five systematic phases, or guid elines, are presented. In order to bring about successful inclusion of students with severe disabilities, leaders develop networks, assess r esources, review options, install inclusion strategies, and provide a system of feedback and self-renewal.