The attitudes of parents of typically developing students towards including students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

This study investigates the attitudes of parents of typically developing students towards teaching students with disabilities in the mainstream classrooms, in relation to various family characteristics. This quantitative research employed a descriptive questionnaire survey to investigate the attitudes of parents of typically developing students towards teaching learners with disabilities in regular classrooms. A total of 419 parents of students from Cycle 1 and 2 classrooms in the United Arab Emirates completed the questionnaire. Parents showed positive attitudes towards teaching students with disabilities in the mainstream classrooms. Respondents who had no schooling were found to express more positive attitudes than those who had a college or university education, as were those with a ‘schooling’ level of education. The results revealed no significant relationship between respondents' attitudes towards inclusion and their gender, age, place of residence or the number of children in the family. The UAE Ministry of Education should recognize the importance of this study's findings when implementing the ministerial resolution regarding the philosophy of educational inclusion in all mainstream schools in the UAE. This can be seen as a measure to improve the quality of life and education of all marginalized students, especially those with disabilities.