Sl. Odom et Ke. Diamond, INCLUSION OF YOUNG-CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN EARLY-CHILDHOOD EDUCATION - THE RESEARCH BASE, Early childhood research quarterly, 13(1), 1998, pp. 3-25
Citations number
121
Categorie Soggetti
Psychology, Developmental","Education & Educational Research
Increasingly, early childhood programs include children with disabilit
ies and typically developing children. The purpose of this paper is to
review the recent empirical literature that underlies the practice of
inclusion at the early childhood level in order to provide a context
for the research articles appearing in this issue of ECRQ. We first de
scribe the definitions of inclusion, rationales for inclusive classes,
and demographics of inclusive programs and staff. Using Bronfenbrenne
r's ecological systems theory as a conceptual framework, we review res
earch related to variables proximal to the program (i.e., microsystem
and mesosystem levels) such as classroom practices, children's social
interactions, teacher beliefs, and professional collaboration. Next, w
e examine research associated with variables occurring more distally f
rom the classroom program (i.e., exosystem and macrosystem levels): fa
milies' perspectives, social policy, community and culture. We conclud
e this review with an examination of research that illustrates the inf
luence of variables a one level of the ecological system on those occu
rring at a different levels and recommend directions for future resear
ch.