Human beings are incredibly resilient and miraculous creatures. People with special needs deserve an education like anyone else.

I think it is more about the parents and/or guardians mixing up the school system, for they have to accomodate them, or in actuality, they don't have to, but they end up doing so any way. It is similar to putting a child of homosexual and/or lesbian guardians into a Christian school, especially Catholic schools, for they do it just to snub the system. Also, you assume that the handicapped kids are cognizant of what is happening, for things like this should not be assumed. It goes to show that kids with special circumstances are often used as tools.

The theory is that kids with special needs can learn a lot from being around other kids. They learn what appropriate behavior is from being around "normal" kids. I don't have any problems with kids with physical disabilities being in the regular classroom. I have minor difficulties with kids who have learning disabilities being in the classroom. In most cases, they do benefit and the other kids benefit from learning to be kind to them and to include them. What I do have problems with is kids with serious mental illness being included as a matter of course. Some of them are harmless and there is no difficulty. Some of them are dangerous to themselves and to others. I truly believe this is where many of our school shootings are coming from. I think we need to have a mechanism for evaluating whether a child is dangerous or not, on a fairly regular basis in case their illness progresses and for getting them into an alternate educational situation or a hospital if their condition deteriorates. Unfortunately, that idea is politically incorrect these days, and it will probably take more than a few more school shootings before we consider it.

a "mainstream" education is very benifitial for them to learn how to function in our society. if you only left them in their own school, they wouldn't be able to see how "normal" people interact with each other. it is more about dealing with people than it is about learning math or reading. it is also really good for the "normal" people to learn some compassion and that people with special needs are still good people, with thoughts, feelings, emotions. the "normal" people can learn as much, if not more from them.