**3. Inclusiveness in learning**

Inclusiveness in learning from the general perspective is all about giving every child regardless of class and nature same opportunity to go to school with a view to acquiring the desired knowledge and skills for future development survival through all inclusive learning process. It was the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs Disability (UNDESAD) in 2018 that brought inclusion education to public purview as the theme of International Day of Persons with Disabilities an initiation that has been described as a clarion call for all children of all abilities for the sake of education to be in the classroom [15].

Inclusive education could be said to be one important avenue through which children are given that ample opportunity to go to school with the sole purpose of learning, developing the required skills to succeed in life. This implies that inclusion is carry every child along a message that is in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs). The realization of this philosophy will be better pronounced when students with learning ability are included in every aspect of the global educational program or process [16].

As an ambition plan of action of the international Community, the 2030 Agenda of leave no one behind, is aimed at creating a peaceful and prosperous world, where dignity of an individual person and equality among all is applied as the fundamental principle, cutting across the three pillars of the work of the United Nations: Development, Human Rights and Peace and Security. Its main purpose is to ensure the full and equal participation of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and creating a enabling environments by, for and with persons with disabilities. This implies that inclusion education is a global campaign against disparity of what type of child stays in a particular classroom and a particular school. It is all about therefore, all children, same classrooms and same schools whether with disability or not even speakers of minority languages [17].

Inclusion in education in a broad term means that all students should be able to access and gain equal opportunities to education and learning and on no ground should any child be discriminated upon as to denying him or her the right to effective formal education. This is built on the premise that special and personalized educational programs are more effective with children with special needs as such mixed experiences will enhance their social interactions leading to successful life. The idea behind inclusion in education is to make way for the utilization of special classrooms and schools for students disabilities. The underlining factor is that the protagonists of inclusion in education main intention is to move away from seclusion models of special education to the fullest extent practical. This on the believe that that it is to the social benefit of general education students and special education students alike, with the more able students serving as peer models and those less able serving as motivation for general education students to learn empathy [18]. It is pertinent to state that the application of these practices differs as some schools most frequently utilize the inclusion model for selecting students with mild to moderate special needs [19]. While those schools that implement to the fullest inclusiveness, though rare, do not separate "general education" and "special education" programs; rather, such schools are restructured in such a way that all students learn together [20].

It is very pertinent to state that inclusive education is quite different from the 'integration' or 'mainstreaming' model of education, which tended to be concerned with selected few while in inclusive education much attention is focused on optimal involvement of students with disabilities respecting their social, civil, and educational rights. The obvious is that when one is said to be included, it is not limited to physical and cognitive disabilities, but rather it includes the full range of human diversity with respect to ability, language, culture, gender, age and of other forms of human differences [21]. As has been noted, student performance and behavior in educational tasks can be profoundly affected by the way they feel, they are seen and judged by others. This is because, when one is viewed as inferior, the abilities seem to diminish [22]. It is on this ground that the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4 recognizes the essence for adequate physical infrastructures and the necessity for safe, inclusive learning environments [23].

### **4. Contemporary teaching and learning environments**

Unless you living under a rock, that is why you may not have noticed how dramatically the education system has changed in the past few decades especially in developed nations like the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK), Canada, Germany, Europe and others. The true picture is that the conventional teacherknows-all based learning system has been overtaken by higher-order thinking

#### *Effect of Inclusiveness and Contemporary Teaching and Learning Environments on Students… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.114104*

with future skills such as problem-solving and books being replaced by tablets or mobiles. All the same, one thing that has not drastically change in line with the trend in the education system is the environment where teaching and learning take effect. The truth is that some schools make use of contemporary classrooms well equipped with modern facilities such as smart boards; tablets, computers, among others, whereas, most schools are nowhere closer. Likewise, teacher in most schools still apply the old method of teaching which is standing in the front and lecturing the students all at once. In the present dispensation, both the pattern of delivering the lesson and environment negatively affect students as they are neither developed nor equipped with problem solving skills, innovative skills as well as creative and logical thinking in a world ruled by technology. The one way out of this morass, is the utilization of modern teaching environment enriched with technologies of our time.

The concept of contemporary learning and teaching environment has brought about transformation with schools in most nations of the world more so those of developed countries as they fuse the physical spaces with modern teaching approaches. In contemporary learning and teaching environment, teachers with flexible classroom spaces and integrated technology which facilitate the mix of independent, small-group and whole class learning which pave way for students' success. Ideally, contemporary learning environment is made up three basic elements. These are; connected devices (such as notebooks, tablets or even smartphones); audiovisual tools (including projectors and touch-screen displays); and purposeful furniture that allows students to learn in different ways at different times (such as standing desks, collaborative workstations and connected seating.

Inasmuch as the idea of equipping classrooms with modern devices is not anew lexicon, the trending fact is that most devices in students' possession are not optimally being utilized due the fact they are seen as distracter rather than effective tools needed for functional teaching and learning. In the past, what was common in most schools especially those of the developing nations was the use of laptops and tablets that were rarely connected to the internet as funds were not invested on acquiring these tools for teaching so available ones were self-provided. In situations where much have been invested in one-to-one programs, leaders have sometimes been disappointed by lackluster adoption, found it difficult to continue funding the programs over time or failed to make the networking upgrades necessary to ensure a high level of performance.

In the contrary, the assumption for designing contemporary learning and teaching environments is that students will have an uninterrupted and regular access to internet connectivity, supported by technology and teachers' training that will ensure that students' devices play pivotal role in the classroom in the course of teaching and learning. Furthermore, in contemporary learning and teaching environment audiovisual solutions directly support student learning and engagement. Audiovisual solutions depending on grade level and instructional goals, may include interactive whiteboards, document cameras, multi-touch digital displays, projectors and even microphone lanyards for soft-spoken teachers in larger classrooms. The idea is not to implement any single audiovisual tool with a one size-fits-all approach, but rather to outfit classrooms with the solutions that will best help teachers reach their students.

The Contemporary learning and teaching environment, so-to-speak a learning space (a classroom) that is more interactive, innovative, and connected with the primary purpose of helping students learn better and follow the modern ways of learning to meet future challenges. A modern learning environment basically comprises of but is not limited to: **audiovisual aids;** such as touch screen displays and projectors, **connected devices:** Such as tablets, notebooks, or smartphones [24]. Indeed, the three key aspects of contemporary learning and teaching environment are technology, flexible furniture and audiovisual tools which help propel classrooms and students into the future.
