Skip to the main content

Croatian review of rehabilitation research, Vol. 53 No. Supplement, 2017.

Original scientific paper

Attitudes of Croatian and Polish elementary school teachers towards inclusive education of children with disabilities

Katarzyna Ćwirynkało orcid id orcid.org/0000-0003-2305-6069 ; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Poland
Tamara Kisovar-Ivanda orcid id orcid.org/0000-0001-7556-6955 ; Department of Teacher and Preschool Teacher Education, University of Zadar, Croatia
Jess L. Gregory orcid id orcid.org/0000-0003-1343-0563 ; Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, United States of America
Agnieszka Żyta orcid id orcid.org/0000-0002-2504-7257 ; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Poland
Aleksandra Arciszewska ; Department of Affective Disorders, Chair of Psychiatry, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Poland
Smiljana Zrilić ; Department of Teacher and Preschool Teacher Education, University of Zadar, Croatia

Full text: english pdf 372 Kb

page 252-264

downloads: 1.171

cite

Abstract

Inclusive education has been gaining increasing attention from governments throughout the world. Croatia and Poland, two European Union members that ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, have been working on issues related to improving the quality of education of children with special educational needs. The aim of this article was to explore the attitudes of Croatian and Polish elementary education teachers towards inclusion of these children in regular classes. The sample consisted of 98 elementary education teachers from Croatia (N=50) and Poland (N=48). A diagnostic survey based on the Teacher Attitudes Toward Inclusion Scale (TATIS) (Cullen, Gregory, & Noto, 2010) was used. The instrument allows measurement of three main components of attitudes: teacher perceptions of students with mild to moderate disabilities (POS), their beliefs about the efficacy of inclusion (BEI), perceptions of professional roles and functions (PRF), as well as their general attitudes towards inclusion. We found that Polish teachers received significantly higher scores on two subscales: POS and BEI. We also found that age and place of living influenced the attitudes of teachers in the two groups. Implications for practice are discussed.

Keywords

inclusive education; children with disabilities; teachers’ attitudes

Hrčak ID:

193758

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/193758

Publication date:

16.2.2018.

Article data in other languages: croatian

Visits: 2.501 *