Abstract
Debates about inclusive education for students with special needs challenge Catholic educators to develop a rationale consistent with Catholic theology and Church teaching. Guided by the rationale, arguments are made for the role Catholic schools, seminaries, and Catholic higher education should contribute to realize an inclusive Church. Contemplative practice offers a process for engaging Catholic identity with school practitioner decision making for implementing inclusion. This article posits that the rationale for Catholic special education reflects an authentic understanding of Catholic identity within Catholic learning communities.
Highlights
A contemplative educator asks the question, “Why aren’t children with special needs enrolled in our school?” Or perhaps asks, “Where are Catholic children with special needs receiving their education?” Or he or she might ask, “What message is sent to our faith community, especially to persons with special needs, when the Catholic educational experience excludes their participation?”
The Church teaches a positive anthropology that each person is a reflection of the divine, and as such, each is bound together in a community of faith that must respect and care for one another
Parents have the primary responsibility for the education of their children, and for their integration into the larger society. This responsibility is shared by Catholic schools and by the whole Catholic community
Summary
Debates about inclusive education for students with special needs challenge Catholic educators to develop a rationale consistent with Catholic theology and Church teaching. John Paul II (1999) told this conference that every person had basic rights that are “inalienable, inviolable and indivisible” and that those with disabilities should “be welcomed by society and, according to their abilities, integrated into it as full members” (§4). The U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB, 2005) indicated that it was the responsibility of the whole Catholic community to continue to strive toward the goal of making Catholic elementary and secondary schools available, accessible, and affordable to all Catholic parents and their children, including those who are poor and middle class, and to look for ways to include and better serve young people who have special educational needs. As with other Catholic families, parents of children with special needs want this integrated faith learning experience for their children
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