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The Power of Inclusive Classrooms is a passionate, even radical argument for creating school and classroom environments where all kids, including children labeled as “disabled” and “special needs,” are welcome on equal terms.

In opposition to traditional models of special education, where teachers decide when a child is deemed “ready to compete” in “mainstream” classes, Mara Sapon-Shevin articulates a vision of full inclusion as a practical and moral goal. Inclusion, she argues, begins not with the assumption that students have to earn their way into the classroom with their behavior or skills but with the left of every child to be in the mainstream of education, perhaps with modifications, adaptations, and support. Full inclusion requires teachers to think about all aspects of their classroom—pedagogy, curriculum, and classroom climate.

Crucially, Sapon-Shevin takes on arguments against full inclusion in a section of straight-talking answers to common questions. She agrees with critics that the rhetoric of inclusion has been used to justify eliminating services and “dumping” students with significant educational needs unceremoniously back into the mainstream with little or no support. If full inclusion is properly implemented, however, she argues, it not only clearly benefits those traditionally excluded but enhances the educations and lives of those considered mainstream in myriad ways.

Through storytelling and argument, Sapon-Shevin lays out the moral and educational case for schools that do not separate kids on the basis of difference.

“Widening the Circle is an ambitious, impassioned argument for inclusive schools powered by a vision that goes far beyond the mutilated version of 'mainstreaming’ common in American schools today. To Sapon-Shevin the current state of affairs is a caricature of inclusive education, reductive and impoverished, a place where every student is defined by a putative deficit, imprisoned in a label. Her goal — breathtaking in its sweep — is to break through the walls of the prison, and to set us all free. She shows us that huge questions of democracy and freedom can be discovered in a simple game of musical chairs, that our deepest values are enacted in our everyday classroom practice. A dazzling manifesto and call to arms.” —William Ayers, author of Teaching toward Freedom and To Teach

“Widening the Circle is packed with sharply observed challenges to conventional ways of thinking. It digs beneath classroom strategies to find larger truths about difference, exposing the moral implications of segregation in the process. One by one, Sapon-Shevin skewers the philosophical and practical objections to inclusion. Her book should be read by all educators, not just those in the field of special education.” —Alfie Kohn, author of The Schools Our Children Deserve and What Does It Mean to Be Well Educated?

“I love the spirit that infuses the book and the constant reference to the connection between school values and larger democratic values, as well as its attention to the nitty-gritty of classroom life. A book both practical and thoughtful.” —Deborah Meier, author of The Power of Their Ideas

"With a profound vision and a gift for storytelling, Sapon-Shevin leads educators to think of social justice in terms of classrooms that are truly inclusive, and in the process, challenges and broadens the very ways that we think about inclusion: of whom, in what ways, for what purposes. Essential reading for all educators." —Kevin K. Kumashiro, Director, left for Anti-Oppressive Education

“This book is well-researched, well-argued, and well-written, with a passionate voice that supplements its views with personal anecdotes that make the book a compelling and enjoyable read.” —Teacher Magazine

“There's a disarming, almost folksy quality to this easy to read book, and you find yourself getting stirred up by the common sense logic of how inclusion presents an opportunity to studeents without disabilities to get to know, support, and share experiences that will benefit them throughout their lives . . . We need more books like this one.” —Teachers College Record

Summary: Widening the circle:The power of inclusive classrooms

Rating: 5

this is probably one of the best books I have read on inclusion. I have purchased eight of these books over the last two years to give to administrators and teachers in an effort to help promote inclusion in the classroom. It has been widely accepted and enjoyed.

Summary: EXCELLENT !! A MUST READ

Rating: 5

I am a stay-at-home mom and a parent of a child with a disability. I have been trying to educate our community and school district about the importance and benefits of including students with special needs in the regular education classroom. Using grant money, I have ordered 100 copies of this book and given them to parents, teachers, principals and all of the school board members. If you are interested in Inclusion, this is a MUST read.

Summary: Benefits for All from Inclusive Classrooms

Rating: 5

Widening the Circle is a book that speaks to all of us and asks us to think about what kind of education is necessary to preserve a democratic society. Offering an inclusive definition of inclusion- encompassing race, gender, class, sexual orientation, as well as ability- Sapon-Shevin describes the multiple benefits of including all children in the mainstream of education. These include learning to live together in community, embracing difference and learning from the many different ways of being smart. Her conceptual principles and personal accounts together show how,without sacrificing anyone's educational success,truly inclusive classrooms can both enable all children to achieve academically and to develop the experiences and values for maintaining a democracy. This book is very accessible and useful for teachers, administrators, parents and general readers alike.

Summary: Excellent and useful

Rating: 5

This is definitely a book with a message: ALL MEANS ALL. Each of us matters. If you have had the experience of being excluded or isolated because of who you are, or know someone who has, this is a good read. It is free of edu-speak, passionate, and has lots of good stories making points in response to common objections to school inclusion. It presents the big picture that disability is an interesting way to be alive along with other aspects of us that society may limit with restrictive labels (race, class, gender identity, ethnicity, etc.) Teachers and parents will find thought provoking and practical ideas in this book.

Summary: impassioned, funny and full of stories

Rating: 5

I read this book because I'd met the author at a Children's Music Network event. The book sounds like Mara: impassioned, funny, and full of stories. What she is impassioned about here is including students of all abilities in a regular classroom, and teaching so that everybody learns what they can. It's not only good for the physically- or learning-challenged students, it's good for everybody. We all have different learning styles, so we can profit from a variety of teaching methods, and we all live in a world where we deal with people with different abilities. I see a lot of classrooms in my vocation as a storyteller and songwriter, but I didn't know a whole lot about education of children with disabilities, so I passed the book on to a friend who raised three kids with polio. She essentially agreed with Mara's thesis, that children given the help they need to survive in a regular classroom do better in life than children who are separated out.

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2.5 out of 5 by Book123