Last week we all heard the story of young Alex Barton, a five year-old boy from Florida who was voted out of his class by his fellow students. As someone who grew up in an inclusive educational setting I was very disturbed that such a thing could happen. And yet, in 2008 and a time where the disability community proudly trumpets progress and improvement on a number of fronts, Alex's story shows us how far we have to go.

I know this story broke well over a week ago but between my obsession with hockey and being a Detroit Red Wings fan who had time for nothing else but watching the Stanley Cup Finals, and a recent column by Kate Riley that appeared in the Seattle Times, I thought I'd offer some observations.

First, as Riley points out, this is an opportunity for learning that has been lost. One of my greatest frustrations with educating others about disability is with parents who perhaps unknowingly teach their children that disability is a hands-off, shameful and embarrassing thing. How many times have you heard mom tell her curious young child not to look at the person with a disability while at the store or in the mall? How many times have you watched dad pull a child away who asked you about why you use a cane or ride in a wheelchair? It happens all the time. Unfortunately for the children in Alex's class, they've had another important figure in their lives instruct them that disability is a bad thing.

Second, the students in Wendy Portillo's class learned that people who are different are not acceptable. The 14-2 vote to remove Alex from the class happened because of behavioral issues and the teacher wanting Alex to understand how his actions were impacting other students.

I think that inclusion is a good thing. It offers young people with disabilities the opportunity to engage with non-disabled peers and to have fuller participation in activities. Further, it offers non-disabled children a chance to learn that people who are different are still normal and that society is made up of a variety of people of different races, ethnicities and abilities.

Incidentally, at the time this happened Alex was undergoing testing to determine if he had a disability. Last week the results of this testing indicated that he has a disorder on the autism spectrum. Hopefully the outcome of this diagnosis will include steps that will help him thrive in school and a safe environment that will continue to allow him to engage with other children without disabilities who need to know that he's no different than they are.