Knowledge and Attitude Towards Inclusive Education of Children with Learning Disabilities: The Case of Thai Primary School Teachers * (original) (raw)

Thai Secondary Teacher Attitudes Towards the Inclusion of Students with Learning Disabilities

Humanities & Social Sciences Reviews

Purpose of Study: The purpose of this study was to examine Thai secondary teacher attitudes towards inclusion of students with learning disabilities in general education classrooms. Methodology: The researcher collected quantitative data using a questionnaire with 28 Likert-type scale questions, adapted from the Opinions Relative to Integration of Students with Disabilities (ORI) as well as information related to training in special education, experience, and workload. The participants were comprised of a representative group of 370 secondary teachers from all regions of Thailand. Most participants indicated that they were female general education teachers and had a Bachelor’s degree. Main Finding: Through multiple linear regression, the findings showed that Thai secondary teachers generally held a positive attitude towards the inclusion of students with learning disabilities into general education classrooms. All three independent variables (hours of training, years of teaching exp...

Educational Attainment and Years of Teaching Children with Special Needs As Factors in Teachers' Attitudes Toward Inclusive Education in Thailand

International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research, 2023

Due to the growing trend in education of mainstreaming children with special needs, it was learned that there are hardly any recent studies that have been conducted to ascertain the attitudes of teachers toward inclusive education in Thailand. It is believed that a teacher's attitudes may in fact play a significant impact upon students with special needs. This study focused on teachers handling inclusive education in Thailand. Through convenience sampling, 67 teachers of 10 different nationalities from private and government schools in Thailand volunteered to be the respondents of the study. The Kern Survey of Teacher Attitude Regarding Inclusive Education (KSUTAIE), a 42-item, 4-point Likert scale instrument was administered on the respondents. The instrument measures 5 subdomains namely, Student Variables, Peer Support, Administrative Support, Collaboration and Training. With respect to the respondents' scores in these five subdomains, Student Variables yielded a verbal interpretation of agree, Peer Support produced a verbal interpretation of strongly agree, Administrative Support yielded a verbal interpretation of agree, Collaboration produced a verbal interpretation of agree and Training yielded a verbal interpretation of agree. A significant low positive relationship was established between the respondents' years of handling children with special needs and the subdomain of Student Variables. When the respondents are grouped according to educational attainment, the analysis of variance revealed a significant difference with respect to the subdomain of Student Variables.

Thai Secondary Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Inclusion of Students with Learning Disabilities into General Education Classrooms

2019

The purpose of this study was to examine Thai secondary teachers' attitudes University of Northern Colorado (UNC). This process would not have been possible if Kasetsart University (KU), Thailand, did not give me this opportunity by funding me a scholarship to pursue my doctoral degree. Thus, I would like to give a big thank to KU and Kasetsart University Laboratory School as well. In addition, I would like to thank special persons in my life, my mother (Supen Jamsai), a strong single mom who believed in giving love, prayers, and encouragement her daughter. My sister, Pattareeya Jamsai, who has always been on my side. Thank you, everyone in my family, who has helped me reach this point.

Knowledge and Attitude of Primary School Teachers Towards Inclusive Education of Children with Specific Learning Disabilities

Journal of Social Work Education and Practice, 2019

The study titled "A Study on the knowledge and attitude of primary school teachers towards inclusive education of children with specific learning disabilities" intended to determine the level of knowledge of primary school teachers on specific learning disabilities and inclusive education, to assess the attitude of primary school teachers towards inclusive education of children with specific learning disabilities, to study the association of teachers' knowledge and their attitude towards inclusive education with selected professional variables, to compare knowledge and attitude of primary school teachers based on educational sub-districts and teaching section, to find the relationship between knowledge and attitude of primary school teachers towards inclusive education of children with specific learning disabilities. The tools used consists of a questionnaire, to collect demographic and professional profile and to assess teachers' knowledge of specific learning dis...

Comparing Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes toward Inclusive Education in Thailand and Japan

Creative Education, 2020

Background: Several studies have shown that classroom teachers can strongly influence the implementation and potential success of inclusive education (IE). Therefore, assessing teachers/pre-service teachers' attitudes toward IE with an objective scale is a key issue for many academic publications. This study compared differences in pre-service teachers' attitudes toward IE between Thailand and Japan and discussed these differences mainly from the perspective of differences in their educational systems for children with disabilities. Method: This study's survey utilized a modified version of the Attitude Toward Inclusion Instrument. The study participants were 109 and 221 pre-service teachers who were enrolled in teacher preparation programs in Thailand and Japan, respectively. Result: The basic concepts and ideologies of IE were similarly and widely accepted in both countries. However, Thai pre-service teachers were more likely to strongly perceive that education in special schools would have a negative impact for students with disabilities and that IE would have a positive impact. On the other hand, Japanese preservice teachers had a more negative perception of the feasibility of IE compared to Thai teachers. Discussion: We attributed this result to the difference in the popularity and credibility of special education in the two countries. Japanese pre-service teachers held a more positive attitude toward special education compared to their Thai counterparts. However, this attitude may have caused Japanese pre-service teachers to become more concerned about IE, which could be a barrier to expanding IE in Japan.

Attitudes and Concerns of Teacher Educators towards Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities in Bangladesh

2012

This study examined the attitudes of teacher educators towards inclusive education in Bangladesh secondary schools in order to further understand the challenges faced by countries that are economically marginalised in implementing educational reforms that even developed countries sometimes struggle with. Twenty teacher educators from Bangladesh participated in the qualitative study designed to explore participants’ understanding and perspectives of inclusion. Teacher educators’ attitudes towards inclusive education was generally positive, however participants were unsure how to implement inclusive education. The findings are considered alongside the Bangladesh government’s objective of inclusive education and further research opportunities are identified.

Teachers ’ Knowledge and Attitude towards Inclusive Education: Basis for an Enhanced Professional

2015

The success of inclusion or organised placement of children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms largely depends on teachers ’ attitudes towards students with special educational needs (SEN) and their knowledge on how to properly educate them. In quite a number of studies, the attitude of teachers towards educating students with SEN has been put forward as a decisive factor in making schools more inclusive. If mainstream teachers do not accept the education of these students as an integral part of their job, they will try to ensure that someone else (often the special educational needs teacher) takes responsibility for these students and will organise covert segregation in the school (e.g. the special class). This study uses descriptive survey method to investigate international school teachers ’ knowledge and attitude towards inclusive education of SEN students in the Eastern Seaboard region of Thailand in the school year 2013-2014. Fifty-two male and female general education...

BRAC Primary School Teachers’ Teaching-efficacy, Attitude, Sentiment and Concern towards Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Regular Classrooms in Bangladesh

2015

BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee) is the largest non-governmental organisation in Bangladesh that is involved in the provision of education to 6,74,229 children, including 25,637 children with disabilities (BEP, 2014). The aim of the research reported in this paper is to explore BRAC Primary School teachers' teaching efficacy, attitude, sentiment and concern towards the inclusion of children with disabilities in regular classrooms in order to inform future efforts and developments with inclusive education. 400 randomly selected BRAC primary school teachers from 48 districts of 7 regions of Bangladesh participated in this research. The Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practice (TEIP) and Sentiments, Attitudes, Concerns regarding Inclusive Education-Revised (SACIE-R) (Sharma, Loreman, & Forlin, 2012; Forlin, Loreman, & Sharma, 2011) scales were utilities in this study along with a demographic questionnaire. The results show that BRAC teachers have relatively high level of overall teaching efficacy, moderately positive attitude and generally low concern towards inclusion of children with disabilities. The study found no significant relationship between the background and demographic variables used for this study and BRAC teachers' teaching efficacy and attitude. The study also revealed a significant difference in BRAC teachers' concern based on students' disability type, and a significant positive relationship between teaching efficacy and attitude and concern. Based on the findings, the study suggests further collaboration between government and BRAC to create the conditions for higher teacher efficacy and positive attitude towards inclusion of children with disabilities providing school support, resources and extensive training opportunities.

Teachers’ Knowledge and Attitude towards Inclusive Education: Basis for an Enhanced Professional Development Program

International Journal of Learning and Development, 2014

The success of inclusion or organised placement of children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms largely depends on teachers' attitudes towards students with special educational needs (SEN) and their knowledge on how to properly educate them. In quite a number of studies, the attitude of teachers towards educating students with SEN has been put forward as a decisive factor in making schools more inclusive. If mainstream teachers do not accept the education of these students as an integral part of their job, they will try to ensure that someone else (often the special educational needs teacher) takes responsibility for these students and will organise covert segregation in the school (e.g. the special class). This study uses descriptive survey method to investigate international school teachers' knowledge and attitude towards inclusive education of SEN students in the Eastern Seaboard region of Thailand in the school year 2013-2014. Fifty-two male and female general education and special educational needs teachers who work full time in four international schools in the region completed the Modified Opinions Relative to the Integration of Children with Disabilities (MORID) survey. The respondents had moderate knowledge on inclusive education and revealed neutral attitude towards inclusion. There is a need for schools to provide more special educational needs training, sufficient learning support providers and educational resources as well as in-depth specialisation courses that provide specialised practices for implementing the SEN strategies in their classrooms as well as offering teaching strategies on how to bridge theory and practice. Learning Support Programmes and the actual delivery of these programmes should be developed in terms of individual education plan (IEP) provision, curriculum modifications and classroom adaptations that are appropriate for students with special educational needs.

Inclusion and Students with Learning Disabilities

Advances in Special Education, 2016

Purpose of Study: The purpose of this study was to examine Thai secondary teacher attitudes towards inclusion of students with learning disabilities in general education classrooms. Methodology: The researcher collected quantitative data using a questionnaire with 28 Likert-type scale questions, adapted from the Opinions Relative to Integration of Students with Disabilities (ORI) as well as information related to training in special education, experience, and workload. The participants were comprised of a representative group of 370 secondary teachers from all regions of Thailand. Most participants indicated that they were female general education teachers and had a Bachelor's degree. Main Finding: Through multiple linear regression, the findings showed that Thai secondary teachers generally held a positive attitude towards the inclusion of students with learning disabilities into general education classrooms. All three independent variables (hours of training, years of teaching experience, and hours of workload) were significant predictors of teachers' attitudes towards inclusive classrooms, though the hours of workload was the strongest predictor. Applications: The study was conducted to better understand the variables that are meaningful to teachers' attitudes toward inclusion.