Barriers general education teachers face regarding the inclusion of students with autism

Abstract

As the number of students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present in general education (GE) classrooms has increased in the past few decades, GE teachers must adapt to meet the needs of these students. Laws and regulations require students with ASD to be educated in the least restrictive environment, as well as that they be instructed by the teachers who were qualified to teach them. Unfortunately, GE teachers face the challenges supporting students with ASD in GE settings. This qualitative research investigates the barriers that prevent teachers from successfully implementing an inclusive environment in the GE classroom. In total, four elementary school teachers at a school in the northeast of the United States were interviewed and observed. The data were analyzed to identify emerging themes. The findings showed that GE teachers lack training in how to work with students with ASD in their GE classrooms, lack collaboration opportunities with their special education colleagues to better support their students with ASD, and are not provided sufficient resources by their schools and programs to create an appropriate inclusive environment in their GE classrooms. Based on these findings, certain improvements in professional development offerings for in-service general educators on how to teach students with ASD are recommended, such as providing broader training programs that give teachers the opportunity to practice interventions and teaching plans for inclusive classrooms and receive feedback from the training instructor(s). Furthermore, certain additions to the curriculum of pre-service university education programs for GE teachers are suggested. In addition, the research found that schools must make certain resources, including technology, available to GE teachers to meet the requirements of United States law regarding educating students with disabilities, including ASD, in the least restrictive environment, which is the GE classroom.

Attitudes of Saudi Arabian Elementary School Teachers ‎Toward the Inclusion of Students with Autism Spectrum ‎Disorder in the General Education Classroom

“…The participants agreed that teacher preparation and training were among the most important factors affecting their attitudes toward students with ASD. This corroborates the findings of other studies (Ahmed, 2021;Al Jaffal, 2022;Al-Saleh, 2019) that teachers in the Saudi context lacked training to successfully create an inclusive setting for ASD students. As mentioned above, the GE teachers in this study did not interact very well with their students with ASD, and one GE teacher lacked knowledge about the disabilities of students in her classroom.…”

“…This has been noted by several previous researchers in the field, including Ahmed (2021), Alamri and Tyler-Wood (2015), Alqahtani (2020), Haimour andObaidat (2013), andKhalil et al (2020). In addition, past research has been limited in scope (Alotaibi, 2015;Alqahtani, 2020;Haimour & Obaidat, 2013) and only a few studies have examined the impact of factors that might affect teachers' attitudes positively or negatively (Al Jaffal, 2022;Alquraini, 2012;Alsedrani, 2018).…”

“…The success of inclusive practices for all students with disabilities, including those with ASD, is strongly related not just to teachers' abilities and training but also to their attitudes toward inclusion itself (Alnahdi et al, 2019). The partial inclusion of children with ASD in the general education (GE) classroom has increased dramatically in Saudi Arabia (Al Jaffal, 2022;Alotaibi & Almalki, 2016). However, researchers have found that Saudi teachers face certain challenges when working with these children, including some related to this population's characteristic delay in social skills development (Almasoud, 2010).…”

Az óvodai integráció az érintettek szemszögéből

“…A társadalmi integráció első állomása a kisgyermekkor, amely rendkívüli jelentőséggel bír a sajátos nevelési igényű gyermekek további életútja szempontjából. Külföldi és magyar nyelvű tanulmányok foglalkoznak ezzel az időszakkal, kiemelve: nemcsak a gyermek és a család társadalmi beilleszkedése szempontjából fontos ez az életkor, hanem a kortársak miatt is, akik a későbbi felnőttek lesznek és életük során viszik magukkal a korai időszakban bevésődött szemléletet (Guralnick, 2001;Valier & Vuran, 2006;Engstrand & Roll-Pettersson 2012;Böddi 2017;Al Jaffal 2022;Tamás & Papp 2022). Ebben a nyitott és érzékeny időszakban, amikor a társadalmi előítéletek még nem "rontották meg" őket, természetes módon képesek együtt lenni az eltérő fejlődésű és az átlagos fejlődésű gyermekek, így a későbbiekben is egyértelmű lehet számukra az elfogadás.…”

Challenges encountered: A Qualitative analysis of professionals’ lived experiences in the field of autism

“…Inclusive education is imperative for children and youth with autism, as education is a human right and essential for future job opportunities. However, educators often lack knowledge and hold stereotypical beliefs about autism, which can hinder inclusive practices (Al Jaffal, 2022). Misconceptions about autism, such as attributing it to poor parenting, can impact the teacher-parent relationship and student-teacher interactions.…”