Current educational policies advocate for an inclusive school that includes all students equally, regardless of their social, economic, or cognitive situation. The purpose of this chapter is focused on carrying out a coexistence improvement program aimed at 3rd grade primary students with the purpose of influencing in the knowledge and full integration of all its members. Students with special educational needs (SEN), specifically derived from some type of disability, have demonstrated their desire and need to remain in the group-classroom that corresponds to them and not be segregated to specific classrooms of ordinary centers. Not only do these students express their desire, but also, many scientific studies indicate that the inclusive school is much more beneficial for the development and integration of these students in society. Through the project-based learning method, we will influence the integration into the ordinary classroom of those students who have some special educational need.
Top1. Introduction
Students with special educational needs (SEN) have demonstrated their desire and need to remain in the group-classroom that corresponds to them and not to be segregated in special education centres or, in the best of cases, in specific classrooms in ordinary centres. Not only do these pupils express their wish, but also many scientific studies indicate that inclusive schooling is much more beneficial for the development and integration of these pupils into society, as recognised by Ainscow & Miles (2018). However, such organisational measures have been weighted by relatively recent educational legislation and therefore the school is still in the process of preparing to address this issue satisfactorily.
School should not only be conceived as a meeting point for the transmission and acquisition of competences and curricular content, but also as the ideal place for pupils to learn certain attitudinal aspects that will enable them to integrate more and better into society in the future. Therefore, we are talking about an inheritance from society in relation to civic, moral, and social values which are closely linked to the participation of the individual in the society in which he/she lives as well as in the personal development of his/her social and emotional facets.
We currently find ourselves in a society that is characterised by its diversity, understanding such differences in terms of abilities, attitudes, motivations, personal beliefs, social origin, etc. These differences are also manifested at school since the students are heterogeneous. Starting from the premise that the school aims to train future responsible, tolerant, participative citizens who are committed to society, it is essential that the school begins to address this issue through educational interventions that promote full inclusion.
Bassedas (2010, p. 142) comments that “the coexistence of students without exclusions in educational centres makes it possible to develop attitudes and values that favour a plural and diverse society, with citizens who are competent but at the same time cooperative and respectful of differences”. The pace and effectiveness of pupils’ learning varies according to each individual and is not subject only to cognitive abilities. According to Muntaner (2019, p. 119) “the incorporation of students with intellectual disabilities in the ordinary classroom forces the teacher to propose and apply didactic and teaching methods different from those used so far”.
Inferring collaborative learning of a linear nature, learning where no student stands out from the rest and where the contribution of each one of them is necessary to achieve the final objective, seems to be the right decision. In this sense, it implies that all pupils will be placed on an equal footing in terms of conditions, duties, and responsibilities, indirectly encouraging the valuation and appreciation of the work of all members of the group. In general, it favours the introduction of simple and effective ideas, strategies, and interventions, which can be implemented with relative ease (Gallego Vega, 2012).
This topic seems somewhat arduous for teachers due to the lack of training in this new reality that the entire educational community is facing today or to the not very extensive bibliography on the subject. Dominguez (2019) states that we cannot forget that students with disabilities are present in the ordinary classroom, and everything seems to indicate that they will continue to be more and more present due to the increase in diversity in our society.
The approach to this issue therefore requires an inclusive prism, because although it is true that the specialist teacher in therapeutic pedagogy is responsible for providing the necessary specific support to the generalist teacher, providing him/her with the resources and specific educational strategies that can compensate for the deficit that the student with a disability may suffer, the latter must also be responsible for the social competence of all his/her students.