Teaching students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms: from policy to practice in Australian schools

It is important to understand that in the past inclusive education was mainly focussed on educating students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms. Now inclusive education does not just relate to the education of students with disabilities, it encompasses all students who learn differently because of their learning styles, sexual orientations, language backgrounds or learning abilities, including those with a disability. Inclusive education is about identifying and addressing barriers to participation of all learners in regular classrooms. While I fully acknowledge that inclusive education is about all students, a major focus of this paper is on the education of students with disabilities in regular schools.