Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T13:53:20.918Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Teachers’ Experiences of Inclusion of Children with Developmental Disabilities across the Early Years of School

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 July 2016

Suzanne Carrington ,
Donna Berthelsen ,
Julie Nickerson ,
Jan M. Nicholson ,
Sue Walker  and
Katrina Meldrum
Suzanne Carrington
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
Donna Berthelsen*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
Julie Nickerson
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
Jan M. Nicholson
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia Judith Lumley Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
Sue Walker
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
Katrina Meldrum
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
*
address for correspondence: Donna Berthelsen, Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove QLD 4059, Australia. Email: d.berthelsen@qut.edu.au
Get access

Abstract

This study reports data from teachers in regular classrooms about their experiences of inclusion for 143 young children with disabilities. Children were recruited from early intervention programs and their experiences were tracked across 3 years, from a Preparatory year to Year 2 of school. Children's teachers rated the appropriateness of the child's placement in their classroom as high to very high. However, most teachers rated the resources and supports available to support inclusion as only adequate. Teachers perceived a range of benefits for the child, peers, and themselves from inclusion but also identified significant challenges, including time pressures and increased responsibilities, as well as various behavioural and developmental concerns that had an impact on all children's learning. Challenges identified deserve continued attention for successful inclusive practice.

Keywords

inclusive educationchildren with disabilitiesschool transitiongeneral education classroomsteaching practices
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools , Volume 26 , Special Issue 2: Developmental Disabilities , December 2016 , pp. 139 - 154
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ainscow, M., Booth, T., & Dyson, A. (2006). Improving schools, developing inclusion. London: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL). (2011a). Australian professional standards for teachers. Retrieved from http://www.teacherstandrads,aitsl.edu.au/ Google Scholar
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL). (2011b). Australian Charter for the Professional Learning of Teachers and School Leaders. Retrieved from http:///.aitsl.edu.au/verve/_resources/Australian_Charter_for_the_Professional_Learning_ofTeachers_and_School_Leaders.pdf Google Scholar
Avramidis, E., & Norwich, B. (2002). Teachers’ attitudes towards integration/inclusion: A review of the literature. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 17, 129–147. doi:10.1080/08856250210129056 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boeije, H. (2002). A purposeful approach to the constant comparative method in the analysis of qualitative interviews. Quality & Quantity, 36, 391–409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlson, L., Hemmings, B., Wurf, G., & Reupert, A. (2012). The instructional strategies and attitudes of effective inclusive teachers. Special Education Perspectives, 21, 7–20.Google Scholar
Cologon, K. (2013). Inclusion in education: Towards equality for students with disability. Sydney, Australia: Children and Families Research Centre, Institute of Early Childhood, Macquarie University.Google Scholar
Cook, B.G., Tankersley, M., Cook, L., & Landrum, T.J. (2000). Teachers’ attitudes toward their included students with disabilities. Exceptional Children, 67, 115–135.Google Scholar
Curcic, S. (2009). Inclusion in PK-12: An international perspective. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 13, 517–538.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Boer, A., Pijl, S.J., & Minnaert, A. (2011). Regular primary school teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education: A review of the literature. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 15, 331–353. doi:10.1080/13603110903030089 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Entwisle, D.R., Alexander, K.L., & Olson, L.S. (1997). Children, schools, and inequality. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.Google Scholar
Ferguson, D.L. (2008). International trends in inclusive education: The continuing challenge to teach each one and everyone. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 23, 109–120. doi:10.1080/08856250801946236 Google Scholar
Fram, S.M. (2013). The constant comparative analysis method outside of grounded theory. The Qualitative Report, 18, 1–25. Retrieved from http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR18/fram1.pdf Google Scholar
Frankel, E.B., Gold, S., & Ajodhia-Andrews, A. (2010). International preschool inclusion: Bridging the gap between vision and practices. Young Exceptional Children, 13, 2–16.Google Scholar
Glaser, B.G. & Strauss, A.L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Chicago, Il: Aldine. Google Scholar
Guba, E.G. & Lincoln, Y.S. (1998). Competing paradigms in qualitative research. In Denzin, N. & Lincoln, Y.S. (Eds.), The landscape of qualitative research (pp. 195–220). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
IBM Corporation. (2013). IBM SPSS statistics for Windows, version 22.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp. Google Scholar
Jansen, H. (2010). The logic of qualitative survey research and its position in the field of social research methods. Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 11, Article 11. Retrieved from http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1002110.Google Scholar
Jordan, A., Glenn, C., & McGhie-Richmond, D. (2010). The Supporting Effective Teaching (SET) project: The relationship of inclusive teaching practices to teachers’ beliefs about disability and ability, and about their roles as teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26, 259–266.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jordan, A., Schwartz, E., & McGhie-Richmond, D. (2009). Preparing teachers for inclusive classrooms. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 535–542.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lalvani, P. (2013). Privilege, compromise, or social justice: Teachers’ conceptualizations of inclusive education. Disability & Society, 28, 14–27. doi:10.1080/09687599.2012.692028 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McClelland, M.M., Acock, A.C., & Morrison, F.J. (2006). The impact of kindergarten learning-related skills on academic trajectories at the end of elementary school. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 21, 471–490. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2006.09.003 Google Scholar
McIntyre, L.L., Blacher, J., & Baker, B.L. (2006). The transition to school: Adaptation in young children with and without intellectual disability. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50, 349–361. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2788.2006.00783.x CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
National Center for Special Education Research (n.d.) Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study (PEELS). Washington, DC: Institute of Educational Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from https://ies.ed.gov/ncser/projects/peels/ Google Scholar
Neuenschwander, R., Röthlisberger, M., Cimelli, P., & Roebers, C.M. (2012). How do different aspects of self-regulation predict successful adaptation to school? Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 113, 353–371. doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2012.07.004 Google Scholar
Peters, S. (2010). Literature review: Transition from early childhood education to school (Report Commissioned by Ministry of Education). Hamilton, New Zealand: University of Waikato. Google Scholar
Petriwskyj, A., Thorpe, K., & Tayler, C. (2014). Towards inclusion: Provision for diversity in the transition to school. International Journal of Early Years Education, 22, 359–379. doi:10.1080/09669760.2014.911078 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
QSR International. (2014). NVivo 10 for Windows. Melbourne, Australia: Author. Google Scholar
Smeed, J., Ehrich, L.C., Kimber, M., & Perry, L.-A. (2011). Data-driven accountability in Australia: An unfolding story with lessons for leaders. The Australian Educational Leader, 33, 17–20.Google Scholar
Spilt, J.L., Koomen, H.M., & Thijs, J.T. (2011). Teacher wellbeing: The importance of teacher-student relationships. Educational Psychology Review, 23, 457–477. doi:10.1007/s10648-011-9170-y Google Scholar
Spilt, J.L., Hughes, J.H., Wu, J-U., & Kwok, O-I. (2012). Dynamics of teacher-student relationships: Stability and change across elementary school and the influence on children's academic success. Child Development, 83, 1180–1190. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2012.01761.x Google Scholar
Tisdall, E.K. (2012). The challenge and challenging of childhood studies? Learning from disability studies and research with disabled children. Children & Society, 26, 181–191. doi:10.1111/j.1099-0860.2012.00431 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
UNESCO. (1994, June). The Salamanca Statement and framework for action. Paper presented at the World Conference on Special Needs Education: Access and Quality, Salamanca, Spain.Google Scholar
Vakil, S., Welton, E., O'Connor, B., & Kline, L.S. (2009). Inclusion means everyone! The role of the early childhood educator when including young children with autism in the classroom. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36, 321–326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Waitoller, F.R., & Artiles, A.J. (2013). A decade of professional development Research for inclusive education: A critical review and notes for a research program. Review of Educational Research, 83, 319–356. doi:10.3102/0034654313483905 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitakker, J., & Kenworthy, J. (2000). Anything to declare? The struggle for inclusive education and children's rights. Disability and Society, 15, 219–231.Google Scholar