Understanding inclusion from the inside out: How inclusive education fulfilment, perceptions and agency shape teacher competence

Abstract

This study examined the extent to which inclusive education fulfilment (IEF) at the school level influences teachers' professional skills for inclusive practices (PSIP) in Oman, and whether this relationship is mediated by teachers' perceptions of inclusive education (PIE) and teacher agency for inclusive practices (TAIP). A total of 298 elementary and middle school teachers participated in the study. Data were collected using Arabic versions of validated instruments and analysed using structural equation modelling. The final model showed that IEF had a significant direct effect on PSIP, and that this relationship was partially mediated by PIE and TAIP. Specifically, IEF significantly predicted PIE and TAIP; both PIE and TAIP, in turn, significantly predicted PSIP. A serial mediation path from IEF through PIE and TAIP to PSIP was also significant. The total indirect effect accounted for a substantial proportion of the total effect of IEF on PSIP. Multigroup analysis revealed no significant gender-based differences across most model paths, except for the pathway from PIE to TAIP. These findings underscore the dual role of institutional efforts and teacher-level psychological constructs in shaping inclusive professional practice and offer insights for policy and practice in inclusive education within the Omani context.