Building Inclusive Classrooms

At Maple Bear Global Schools, we are always striving to make sure we are creating inclusive classroom environments where students with special needs are supported and are set up for success.

We do this by providing extremely high quality and specialized training for our faculty and our teachers. We equip our teachers with the knowledge and the tools necessary to plan for the success of all their students. Maple Bear is unique because of the quality of training we provide our teachers.

Canada is a leader in inclusive education

The Canadian movement towards inclusive education began in the mid-1960’s as the education community recognized that some children with special needs could be educated in schools. The concept of inclusive education progressed through various stages over several decades. Into the 1990’s, inclusion of special needs students meant they were fully participating in the regular school classroom.

Today, the Canadian public education system is known for its system of “inclusiveness”. This means all children are learning in the same classroom – those with special needs alongside those without.

Lesley Weisshaar, Maple Bear Faculty member since 2015, is a key advisor for the development of this training:

“Inclusion is often regarded more socially just for children with special needs. However, the research indicates that inclusion also results in stronger academic and social outcomes for all students.”

With the qualified expertise and experience in “inclusiveness” within our Canadian faculty, Maple Bear Global Schools is uniquely positioned to provide this specialized inclusivity training to our teachers and schools around the world.

Planning for students with special needs

At our latest Faculty Symposium in Winnipeg in June of 2019, we held our first Planning for Students with Special Needs Training for 27 faculty members. These trainers have a deep understanding of how to lesson plan for kids with special needs and will be sharing their knowledge with our schools around the world, beginning with our schools in Brazil which introduced federal legislation in 2013 which mandates the integration of students with special needs into the regular education system.

In Canada, we have learned that inclusivity can be done successfully over time. The concept of inclusion becomes a cultural shift in the school and in the classroom and it takes time to nurture.

Lesley says, “Inclusion is a process.  You don’t implement processes overnight and it will take time.”

Maple Bear is an inclusive community

At a typical Maple Bear school, children with diverse learning and behavior needs will learn in much the same way as their fellow students. Each school is continuously evolving to meet the changing needs of its students. Following multiple recommended strategies, the teachers will be able to foster practices that will allow students to be taught together.

But more importantly, by embracing an all-around school culture of positivity and acceptance, we create an environment where this sense of inclusivity is integrated throughout the school. And through the process of collaboration, assessment, planning and evaluation, the Maple Bear school team enhances the well-being of every child and helps them achieve their goals.