Briefly discuss how you believe policies and legislation relating to inclusive education influence attitudes towards how society accepts difference. As I have eagerly anticipated encounters in my hands-on classes for the past three years, I carry with me the knowledge that I will find a class full of unique individuals. These students will have different cultures, family types, socioeconomic status, and learning needs, just to name a few of the differences. While this is the type of lesson I expect to see in today's society, it was not what I experienced during my early years of school. I remember that almost all of the students in my class came from typical households, and that it was unusual to have someone in my class who was from a different country or spoke a different language. I do not recall any student in our primary school group who had physical or intellectual disabilities. I believe the contrast between a classroom like mine in the 1980s and early 1990s and a classroom you would encounter in 2010 is a result of the implementation of policies and legislation related to inclusive education. Many of Australia's legislation and policies relating to inclusive education The concept of equal opportunity for all people originated from the first anti-discrimination initiatives initiated by the US government in the 1970s (Carpenter, 2010). The Education of all Handicapped Children Act of 1975 was intended to stop the desegregation of students with disabilities and it was this public law that started the movement towards inclusive education in many countries around the world, including Australia (Ashman and Elkins , 2009). Education Queensland has developed the Inclusive Educatio...... middle of paper ......ieved from https://learning.secure.griffith.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url = /bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_78878_1&frame=topQueensland Education (2005). Statement on inclusive education. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/learning/docs/inclusestatement2005Shaddock, A., Giorcelli, L., & Smith, S. (2007). Students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms: A resource guide for teachers. Canberra: ACT. Retrieved from http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/D3113371-7E2C-49FE-8017-8495030736BF/19755/InclusiveClassroomTeacherResourceFinal1.pdfUlrich, M., & Bauer, A. (2003). Levels of awareness: A closer look at communication between parents and professionals. Teaching Exceptional Children,35(6), 20-23.Westwood, P. (2007).Common sense methods for children with special educational needs. London: Routledge.