The good inclusion game (GIG): Effective practice for inclusive education

Inclusion has become a guiding principle in education, although a lack of bespoke teaching methods frequently hinders successful realisation. We developed and evaluated the ‘Good Inclusion Game’ (GIG). The GIG, based on the ‘Good Behaviour Game’ (GBG), is a group contingency-based procedure for classrooms. We first conducted a brief pilot study that confirmed the GBG’s already proven benefit of decreasing disruptive pupil behaviours (e.g., talking-out and out-of-seat). However, findings showed that the rules of the GBG significantly reduced the opportunity for inclusive behaviours to occur. Consequently, we changed the rules with the aim of increasing inclusive behaviours (that is, communicating with each other and sharing items or information). The results from two classrooms are reported. An increase in inclusive behaviours was observed between all children, those with and without identified special educational needs. A notable collateral benefit of the GIG was that disruptive pupil behaviours reduced to a minimum, even without being specifically targeted. Replication studies are underway.
Key words: Learning disability, special educational needs, good behaviour game, good inclusion game, applied behaviour analysis.