Effects of a Collaborative Planning and Consultation Framework to Increase Participation of Students with Severe Disabilities in General Education Classes

Although many students with severe disabilities are enrolled in general education classrooms, general educators rarely receive strong training and guidance on supporting the academic and social participation of these students. A multiple probe across participants design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a collaborative planning and consultation framework on the academic engagement of four middle school students with severe disabilities and the instructional behaviors they receive from their general educators. The intervention package increased each focus student's academic engagement with classwide instruction and changed the types of instructional behaviors some general educators directed toward these students. Recommendations are offered for research and practice aimed at engaging general educators in the design and delivery of inclusive interventions.