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"Throughout Widening the Circle one finds this refreshing outlook: a commitment to increasing the knowledge and understanding of preschool inclusion, but without any undertone of 'We're the experts and we know best' when it comes to connecting with families, practitioners, and communities."
—From the Foreword by Carol Copple "This timely book meets the strong demand by the field for more information and strategies to implement practices that are inclusive and of high quality."
—Susan Fowler, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
"Replete with implications for practice, this volume will be a valuable guide to practitioners, administrators, and family members in making inclusion work in their own settings. The second generation of research on inclusion has really arrived!"
—Judith J. Carta, Senior Scientist, Juniper Gardens Children's Project University of Kansas
"A must read for early childhood educators. Through this accounting we get a glimpse of what inclusion can do for all children and a vision for how membership in school and in the world could be attained for children with disabilities."
—Don Bailey, Director, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
In this book, a distinguished group of early childhood special educators and researchers explores the barriers to and influences on inclusive education settings for young children. Chapters cover such timely topics as individualized instruction, social relationships of children with disabilities, collaborative relationships among adults, family perceptions of inclusion, classroom ecology and child participation, community participation, social policy, and cultural and linguistic diversity. Expert contributors, addressing each of these topics, draw useful implications for practitioners-providing helpful suggestions for modifying activities, materials, environmental supports, and teaching strategies. Based on a groundbreaking 5-year research study conducted by the Early Childhood Research Institute on Inclusion, Widening the Circle is a must read for all professionals working in inclusive settings.
