Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine in what ways the presence of special education students affects the reading achievement of general education students in third-grade inclusive classrooms as compared to third-grade general education students in traditional classrooms at the same school site. Methodology. This descriptive ex post facto study included eleven schools in Northern California that have third-grade inclusive and traditional classrooms at the same site. Reading scores of 155 general education students in inclusive classrooms and 162 general education students in traditional classrooms on the California Standards Test were analyzed. Eleven teachers in inclusive and traditional classrooms completed surveys (N = 22). Quantitative data were analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U. Ten of the eleven teachers in inclusive classrooms were interviewed. Qualitative data from open-ended questions on surveys and interviews were analyzed and presented in frequency tables. Findings. General education students in inclusive classrooms consistently outperformed general education students in traditional classrooms on the California Standards Test in Reading overall and on the three reading standards. Teachers in inclusive classrooms reported that differentiated individual and small group instruction, as opposed to whole-group instruction, was a necessary change to meet each student's instructional needs in reading. Conclusions. General education students in third-grade inclusive classrooms demonstrated greater academic gains in reading as compared to general education students in traditional classrooms based on the California Reading Standards Test and teacher observation. The use of continuous assessment to systematically differentiate and individualize instruction for all students in inclusive classrooms helped general education students make gains in reading achievement. Recommendations for further research. Replicate this study with a larger sample of third-grade teachers and students in inclusive and traditional classrooms to confirm the gains in reading achievement found in this study. Implications for action. Elementary school principals and their staffs should: (1) explore the gains in reading achievement general education students in inclusive classrooms made in comparison to their counterparts in traditional classrooms; (2) use small-group and individualized reading instructional strategies typically used with special education students to improve the reading achievement of general education students in third-grade traditional classrooms.