Children's thoughts on the social exclusion of peers with intellectual or learning disabilities.
Children say peers with ID are excluded for being different—use cooperative roles that hide speed gaps to fix it.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Laugeson et al. (2014) asked kids why classmates with intellectual or learning disabilities get left out.
They used concept maps and small group chats with late-elementary pupils in regular schools.
Children talked freely; researchers grouped their ideas into four big themes.
What they found
Kids said exclusion happens because the child is "different."
The four themes were: work too slow, act strange, need special tools, and get extra teacher time.
Students saw these differences as fair reasons to leave the peer out.
How this fits with other research
Ahrens et al. (2011) surveyed Chinese middle-schoolers and got the same core message: "they can’t keep up." The match shows the idea is cross-cultural.
Alvarez et al. (1998) tested an answer: cooperative learning. After six weeks, typical kids picked classmates with mild ID as partners more often. Their RCT extends the present study by proving that working together on shared goals shrinks the "difference gap.
Camodeca et al. (2020) asked adults about autism inclusion and also heard "different behavior" as a barrier. Same theme, new voice.
Why it matters
Use the kids’ own words when you design peer inclusion programs. If they think "slow work" is the problem, build quick-turn cooperative tasks where every member has a timed role. Five-week data already show this lifts acceptance; now you know exactly why it works.
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Pick one group lesson, assign each student a unique timed job, and rotate roles so the child with ID shines at a strength.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Previous research has shown that children with intellectual or learning disabilities are at risk for social exclusion by their peers but little is known of children's views on this topic. In this study, we used concept mapping to investigate elementary school children's thoughts on why they believe their peers with intellectual or learning disabilities are sometimes socially excluded at school. METHOD: Participants were 49 grade five and six children who attended inclusive classrooms. Interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed. We extracted 49 unique statements from the transcribed data, and then invited participants to sort the statements into meaningful categories. RESULTS: Sorted data were entered into matrices, which were summed and analysed with multi-dimensional scaling and cluster analysis. A four-cluster solution provided the best conceptual fit for the data. Clusters reflected themes on (1) the thoughts and actions of other children; (2) differences in learning ability and resource allocation; (3) affect, physical characteristics and schooling; and (4) negative thoughts and behaviours. CONCLUSIONS: The overarching reason for social exclusion focused on differences between children with and without disabilities. This study also provided evidence that children are effective, reliable and competent participants in concept mapping. Educational and research implications are discussed.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2014 · doi:10.1111/jir.12019