Articles #Attitudes

The findings of this study suggest that preservice teachers’ strong self-efficacy beliefs about inclusion lead to positive attitudes and intentions to use inclusive practices in their future teaching. Authentic and inclusive learning experiences during teacher education programs and taught by excellent teacher educators is one way to support preservice teacher confidence building to include all children in the learning journey.

Liisa Uusimaki, Susanne Garvis & Umesh Sharma (2019)

ABSTRACT:

This article explores ninety-seven (n¼97) Swedish Early Childhood (EC) preservice teachers’ attitudes, concerns, and intentions to include children with disabilities in regular classrooms. A six-part self-reporting questionnaire was used to examine participants’ attitudes, concerns, efficacy, and intentions toward inclusion. The results showed that although the Swedish EC preservice teachers in this study expressed ’some’ concern about working with children the results indicated a high degree of teacher efficacy. To determine predictors of participants’ intentions and use of inclusive practices a series of regression analyses were undertaken. Knowledge of local legislation emerged as a significant predictor of participants’ intention scores. Teaching efficacy scores were significant predictors for both intention and use of inclusive practices. The results are discussed in the context of the Swedish idea of ‘a school for all with a focus on the Swedish preschool teacher education program.

Critical reflection is, " a desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to meditate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider, carefulness to dispose and set in order; and hatred for every kind of imposture." Francis Bacon (1605)

Swedish Final Year Early Childhood Preservice Teachers’Attitudes, Concerns ,and Intentions towards Inclusion