Why all children should be welcomed in regular classrooms – especially children with disabilities!

How would you feel if you were shut away in a place and not allowed to be with everyone else?  This happens everyday for many students with disabilities and is wrong for a great many reasons. First, it is a human rights violation!  Decades of research have proven that children with disabilities learn better when they are together with all of us.  So why would this be taken away from them? In addition, all kids become more empathetic if they grow up together with children who are different to them.

Every single child has a right to an “inclusive education”. This right to learn together with everyone from your community is found in a United Nations treaty, which Australia and 175 other countries signed. In 2016 the United Nations said the treaty established a fundamental human right for every child to learn in an inclusive classroom and that being put in a separate “special” classroom is not inclusive, but in fact segregation.

For over 40 years research has shown that kids with disabilities learn more in regular classrooms than in “special” classrooms. One reason is because teachers in regular classrooms expect more of all their students. In addition, kids with disabilities can learn more from other kids that are not disabled by working together and the other way round.  So “special” schools do not help kids with disability learn faster or more.

Kids who have experience of other kids who are different from them when they are young are more likely to grow up being tolerant and understanding of difference. This is because kids naturally try to help and understand other people, especially before they develop prejudice from others, like adults. “Special” schools put all the kids with disabilities in one place and make it hard for other kids to learn about disability or difference. This all means that “special” schools actually decrease tolerance and empathy in our community.

In my view, there is no good reason to keep “special” schools. They were created a long time ago when people thought kids with disabilities couldn’t learn, would never get a job and couldn’t live in the community. Times have changed and kids with disabilities have the same rights as all other kids, to go to the same schools as everyone else. Italy closed all its “special” schools in 1978. This shows us it can be done!

Laura 🙂

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If you think our politicians should listen and make all our schools inclusive for ALL children, add your NAME by filling out this contact form!

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Vanessa Badaraco, Western Australia

Erosha Bakmiwewa, ACT

Michael Barwick, 63 years old, Queensland 

Claire Bellamy, Western Australia

Bonnie, 19 years old, Western Australia

Carly Bowker, Queensland 

Hush Boyagoda, Australia

Lisa Bridle, Queensland 

Charlotte Brosnan, Western Australia

Nicole Buffoni, 37 years old, New South Wales

Emily C, New South Wales

Steven Capp, 40 years old, Victoria

Fernando Casterá, 43 years old, Uruguay

Jodie Castle, Queensland 

Mana Ciuffardi-Marcos, New South Wales

Genevieve Clements, 10 years old, Western Australia

Jason Clymo, 23 years old, Victoria

Danielle Clyne, Western Australia

Lyn Cohn, Queensland 

Vanessa Comiskey, New South Wales

Robyn Cooney, Victoria

Emma Connor, Western Australia

Jacinta Conway, Victoria

Sacha V. Corlett-Anderson, 42 years old, New South Wales

Julie Cowell, New South Wales

Jo Crowley, 40 years old, New South Wales

Buffy Davies, Western Australia

Bree Davis, Western Australia

Kate De Bruin, Victoria

Jose De Sousa, Western Australia

Lia De Sousa, Western Australia

Kristy Devereux, Western Australia

Angel Dixon, Queensland

Lucy Doherty, New South Wales

Nina Fiore, New York, USA

Amanda Fletcher, New South Wales

Elspeth Froude, New South Wales

Martina Fuga, 47 years old, Italy

Alys Gagnon, Victoria

Jane Gilkes, New South Wales

Jaymie-Lee Glanville, 24 years old, New South Wales

Beth Haller, MD/USA

Deb Haller, Queensland 

Antonia Hannah, New Zealand

Jenny Harrison, New South Wales

Matt Harvey, Queensland 

Sarah Hegney, Western Australia

Naomi Hermans, Western Australia

Aine Hillbilly, New South Wales

Yasmin Hinde, 9 years old, New South Wales

Sharon Horan, Queensland 

Jackie Hunt, Western Australia

Robert Jackson, Western Australia

Freya Jamieson, 27 years old, Western Australia

M B Johnson, Queensland 

Taina Karru-Olsen, Seattle, WA, USA

Ally Khan, Victoria

Veronica Kostov, Argentina

Brian Lampacher, Western Australia

Gillian Lampacher, Western Australia

Kathryn Lampacher, 17 years old, Western Australia

Kirsten Lampacher, 19 years old, Western Australia

Carly Lassig-Cutler, Queensland

Nick Lassig-Cutler, 38 years old, Queensland

Danielle Lawless, New South Wales

Samantha Liddelow, 11 years old, Western Australia

Bonnie Lofberg, 25 years old, New South Wales

Amelia Loh, 10 years old, Western Australia

Ray Loh, Western Australia  

Sally Lowe, Western Australia

Zuriel Loh, 6 years old, Western Australia  

Christin Lucas, Ohio, USA

Robert Lucas, Ohio, USA

Lisa MacDermott, Victoria

Fiona MacDonald, Victoria

Alex Macgregor, 16 years old, Western Australia

Lara Maia-Pike, Queensland 

Laura Mair, Queensland 

Catia Malaquias, Western Australia

Helena Malaquias, Western Australia

Jasmine Malki, Victoria

Amanda Malseed, Western Australia

Jennifer Maskell, ACT

Gill McKinlay, Western Australia

Helen McLennan, Queensland 

Fiona McGowan, New South Wales

Kerry McVittie, New South Wales

Janelle Measday, 37 years old, South Australia

Delvene Mercer, Western Australia

Luke Milton, Western Australia

Julianne Moss, Tasmania

Kristina Myhre, Western Australia

Mary Naim, New South Wales

Annette O’Sullivan, New South Wales

Georgie Osborne, Victoria

Christine Ord, Western Australia

Melissa Owens, New South Wales

Drea Panetta, 7 years old, Western Australia

Julius Panetta, 8 years old, Western Australia

Rossana Panetta, Western Australia

Sam Panetta, Western Australia

Assunta Papalia-McKenzie, Western Australia

Sannet Petersen, South Australia

Victoria Pirolo, New South Wales

Jane Podmore, Western Australia

Jen Prior, Western Australia

Suresh Rajan, Western Australia

Amaia Roberts, 10 years old, Western Australia

Kyle Roberts, New South Wales

Geraldine Robertson, Tasmania

Michelle Robins, Western Australia

Sally Robinson, New South Wales

Adele Rose-Morgan, Wales UK

Lin Rubright, USA

Andrew Ryan, 9 years old, Western Australia

Matthew Ryan, 11 years old, Western Australia

Lila Salman, Western Australia

Di Samuels, New South Wales

Nicky Sandover, Western Australia

Liz Simpson, New South Wales

Julia Smith, New South Wales

Jacqueline Specht, Canada

Rachel Spencer, 43 years old, New South Wales

Lisa Stafford, Queensland 

Delphine Stagg, South Australia

Carly Stewart, Victoria

Alicia Stojcevski, New South Wales

Amy Suijdendorp, Western Australia

Julia Sutherland, Western Australia

Steph Svendsen, Western Australia

Loren Swancutt, Queensland 

Stacey Tancredi, Queensland

Rod Thompson, 40 years old, New South Wales

Stacey Touma, New South Wales

Marion Trabe, New South Wales

Emilie Traeger, South Australia

Cam Tregaskis, 12 years old, Victoria

Anh Tu, Queensland

Kathy Turner, South Australia

Lea Weber, 20 years old, Bavaria, Germany

Regina Weber, 53 years old, Bavaria, Germany

Julie Webster, New South Wales

Lei Wiley Mydske, Washington state, USA

Diana Williams, CA, USA

Jennifer Williamson, New South Wales

Gina Wilson-Burns, New South Wales

Nicki Wright, Western Australia

Yoko Yamashita, 43 years old, Japan

Isy Yates, Western Australia

Lynne Young, Victoria