Kaasava hariduse teemalise õpetajakoolituse arendamine on aktuaalne nii Eestis kui ka rahvusvaheliselt. Õpetajate oskuste ja teadmiste kujundamisel on otsustav roll spetsialistidel, kes õpetajaid koolitavad või nõustavad. Seejuures on tähtis, et spetsialistid omaksid ühist arusaama kaasava hariduse tähendusest ning tõhusatest rakendamise viisidest. Siinse uuringu eesmärk oli välja selgitada, kuidas mõistavad õpetajaid koolitavad või nõustavad spetsialistid kaasava hariduse tähendust ja milliseid tegureid nad peavad oluliseks, et tagada kaasava hariduse tõhus rakendumine. Andmeid koguti poolstruktureeritud intervjuudega 15 spetsialistilt. Kvalitatiivse induktiivse sisuanalüüsi tulemused näitasid, et kaasavat haridust mõisteti nii hariduslike erivajadustega laste eraldi õpetamisena eriklassides ja erikoolides kui ka kõigi laste koosõppena. Võtmekomponentidena kaasava hariduse paremal rakendumisel nähti õpetajate koolituse tõhustamist, vajalike ressursside olemasolu, õpetajate toetamist ja motiveerimist ning  poolte senisest suuremat koostööd.  Summary

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Significant and effective implementation of inclusive education (IE) has been a major challenge in many countries during the last decades. Although teachers’ knowledge and skills are considered a key factor for successful inclusive practice, the whole school staff commitment and contribution to implementing IE policies are equally important. Collaboration between different professionals such as teachers, school leaders, and support specialists is crucial. This study aimed to design and implement an in-service training course for school teams (teachers, support specialists, school leaders) on IE in the Estonian context and to explore how participants experienced learning as a team in this course. The results of this study showed that the main aspects of the in-service training for school teams valued by participants were: (1) All topics covered in a systematic and coherent way gave a good opportunity to focus on relevant issues, which should be considered in the schools’ self-development activities in the field of IE; (2) practical approach to training structure helped to identify priority areas that need to be developed in particular schools; (3) learning from each other both within their own school team and across school teams contributed to finding the best solutions for meaningful implementation of IE. The implication of these findings is further discussed in the paper.

Most countries face the challenge of reconstructing their education systems to ensure equitable quality education for all children in inclusive settings. This challenge is also relevant in Estonia, the context of this study. A long-term in-service training course for school teams (school leaders, support specialists, and teachers) was developed and implemented in Estonia. The main goal of the training course was to develop attitudes, skills, and knowledge of school staff about the concept and meaning of inclusive education (IE) and the effective implementation through inclusive school development strategies. The aim of the current study was to find out how the in-service training course for school teams influences system-wide changes in the implementation of IE at the school level and what factors affect it. Purposeful sampling (two schools) was used, and the qualitative thematic case study research method was chosen to find answers to the research questions. Data were collected from school policy documents, homework assignments of the training course, semi-structured interviews in the middle and at the end of the training course, open-ended questionnaires at the end of the training course, and researcher diary. The results showed that the in-service training course for school teams enhanced cultural and structural changes at the school level. These changes were influenced by factors such as leadership, collaboration, commitment, and contribution of different parties, system-wide approach, resources, and external expertise. The implications of these findings are discussed further in the paper.