Special Education and Teaching Commons^™

Using Disability Studies In Education (Dse) And Professional Development Schools (Pds) To Implement Inclusive Practices, Brent Elder, Lesa Givens, Andrea Locastro, Lisa Rencher

College of Education Faculty Scholarship

This article highlights ways in which disability studies in education (dse) and professional development school (pds) partnerships can be used to provide students with disability labels more access to inclusive classrooms. The authors of this qualitative exploratory case study interviewed 16 teacher and administration pds steering committee members to better understand how students with disability labels could be supported through the development and implementation of dse-informed inclusive practices. The findings indicate that instituting proactive communication structures, providing ongoing dse-informed professional development to teachers, administration, and staff, and teachers taking inclusive action increased the number of students with disability labels accessing …