Definition
Inclusion means that children with autism (ASD) learn alongside typically developing children in general education classrooms. For young children with ASD, those classrooms may be community-based child care programs, Head Start, or prekindergarten programs. For school-aged children, those programs are in their local elementary, middle, or high schools. When children with ASD are included, they have the opportunity to develop relationships and learn from and model the behavior of their typically developing peers (Fein and Dunn 2007). When children with ASD are fully included, they not only have the opportunity to learn academic and functional skills, they become accepted members of their community (Allen and Cowdery 2012).
Historical Background
The term “inclusion” began to appear in the 1990s (Odom and Diamond 1998). Before then, children who received instruction in general education classrooms were mainstreamed. Children who were mainstreamed were in general education...
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References and Reading
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Lieber, J. (2021). Inclusion. In: Volkmar, F.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-91280-6_163
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