Investigation related to teachers’ attitude towards inclusive education

Abstract

The article substantiates the impact that teachers have when the state policy meant to reform and / or modernize education is being implemented, Consequently, it is of great importance for the policymakers to understand preservice and in-service primary (elementary) teachers’ attitude to educational reforms. Today, general secondary education schools need to create an inclusive educational environment that is safe for all students, regardless of the severity of their disability. It is extremely important to prevent the social isolation of children with special educational needs (SEN); to promote the realization of educational potential during the implementation of the individual curriculum and other functions regulated in the teacher’s job descriptions. So, it is necessary to investigate teachers’ attitude towards inclusive education as an innovative paradigm that reforms teaching and learning in modern schools. The article analyses published research findings that Ukrainian researchers who explore the topic of teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education (see the website of the Vernadsky National Library). It is concluded that researchers in Ukraine are unlikely to have investigated questionnaires that help to identify teachers’ attitude and concerns about inclusion. The authors presented research findings of foreign researchers, who describe approaches to studying the features of teachers’ attitudes to inclusive education, methods and steps in collecting and processing information. The term «attitude» is clarified, its component structure, which serves as a basis for the development of questionnaire, is explained. The factors that form the positive and negative attitude of teachers towards inclusion of children with special educational needs in the general secondary education setting are highlighted. The further study is likely to investigate preservice and in-service primary school teachers’ attitude towards inclusive education using questionnaires developed by American and British researchers and adapted to the peculiarities of education in Ukraine.