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Teachers' attitudes toward inclusion are frequently cited as being an important predictor of how successfully a given inclusive school system is implemented. At the same time, beliefs about the nature of teaching and learning are discussed as a possible predictor of attitudes toward inclusion. However, more recent research emphasizes the need of considering implicit processes, such as automatic evaluations, when describing attitudes and beliefs. Previous evidence on the association of attitudes toward inclusion and beliefs about teaching and learning is solely based on explicit reports. Therefore, this study aims to examine the relationship between attitudes toward inclusion, beliefs about teaching and learning, and the subsequent automatic evaluations of pre-service teachers (N = 197). The results revealed differences between pre-service teachers' explicit attitudes/beliefs and their subsequent automatic evaluations. Differences in the relationship between attitudes toward inclusion and beliefs about teaching and learning occur when teachers focus either on explicit measures or automatic evaluations. These differences might be due to different facets of the same attitude object being represented. Relying solely on either explicit measures or automatic evaluations at the exclusion of the other might lead to erroneous assumptions about the relation of attitudes toward inclusion and beliefs about teaching and learning.
The goal of the present study was to analyze how students' attitudes towards inclusive education develop over the course of a school year and how these attitudes relate to students' peer relations. Sixth- and seventh-graders of 44 inclusive classes filled out a questionnaire at two measurement points within one school year to assess attitudes towards inclusive education and peer relations. Applying multilevel regression analyses it turned out that changes in peer relations over time were positively predicted by students' attitudes towards instructional adaptations for students with behaviour difficulties. Further, students with self-perceived behavior difficulties reported lower scores for peer relations compared to students without self-perceived difficulties.
Results are discussed with respect to structural factors and individual characteristics affecting inclusive education.