Regular and Special Education Mexican Teachers’ Attitudes toward School Inclusion and Disability

• Published in: European journal of educational research 2018-07, Vol.7-2018 (volume7-issue3.html), p.421-430
• Main Authors: Mezquita-Hoyos, Yanko Norberto, Sanchez-Monroy, Miriam Hildegare, Morales-Martinez, Guadalupe Elizabeth, Lopez-Ramirez, Ernesto Octavio, Reyna-Gonzalez, Maria del Roble
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Barriers; Comparative Analysis; Disabilities; Eğitim Bilimleri; Foreign Countries; General Education; Inclusion; Special Education Teachers; Teacher Attitudes; Teacher Characteristics; Teacher Surveys; Teaching Skills
• ISSN: 2165-8714; 2165-8714
• DOI: 10.12973/eu-jer.7.3.421

The aim of the present study was to elucidate Mexicans teachers’ attitudes toward school inclusion and disability.  To achieve this goal, 119 regular education and 88 special education teachers answered The Opinions Relative to Integration of Students with Disabilities scale.  Subsequent analyses revealed that attitudes to both groups were similar in terms of direction but dissimilar in magnitude factor. In addition, while the attitude structure in both samples involved three factors, these were unique to each group: Regular education teachers (Perceived Benefits and Negative Effects inside the Inclusive Classroom/Performance inside the Inclusive Classroom, Teaching Ability/Education System, Performance inside the Inclusive Classroom/Education System) and the special education teachers group (Perceived Benefits inside the Inclusive Classroom/Education System, Teaching Ability/Performance inside the Inclusive Classroom, Perceived Benefits and Negative Effects inside the Inclusive Classroom/Performance inside the Inclusive Classroom). Theoretical and applied implications of these findings are discussed in this paper.