ATTITUDES OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS TOWARDS INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

Children with disabilities are facing many challenges in inclusive settings. Many barriers
like attitudinal and infrastructural barriers are creating hindrances in avail quality
inclusive education by children with disabilities. This study primarily focuses (i) to
compare general and special teachers on their attitudes towards inclusive education with
reference to its barriers and facilitators according to their- (a) Gender (b) Locality and
(ii) to compare general and special teachers on their attitudes towards inclusive
education with reference to its barriers and facilitators according to their - (a) Teachers’
category (b) School category (c) Teaching experience (d) Age (e) Academic
qualifications (f) Professional qualifications. A total sample of 238 (145 general
teachers) was chosen using a simple random sampling technique and (93 special
teachers) were selected using the purposive sampling technique. A tool “Teacher
Attitude Scale towards Inclusive Education” developed and standardised by Dr. Vishal
Sood and Dr. Arti Anand (2011) was used to collect the data. Results of the study indicate
that (i) Teachers were found significantly different on their attitudes towards inclusive
education according to their gender (male and female), their category (general and
special teachers), teaching experience, age, academic qualifications, and professional
qualifications. (ii) Teachers were not found significantly different on their attitudes
towards inclusive education according to their locality and school category (class I-V
and Class VI-VIII) (iii) Male teachers expressed positive attitudes than that of their
female counterparts; urban teachers also showed slightly positive attitudes as compared
to their rural counterparts and similarly, primary school teachers showed a little higher
level of attitudes towards inclusive education to their upper primary counterparts.
Regular inclusive pedagogical training for general teachers and provision of adequate
support services, infrastructural facilities, recruitment of required rehabilitation

professionals, and availability of equipments in schools are recommended by the
teachers.