Teachers’ Perspectives of Professional Development on Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in Mainstream Classrooms
Date of Conferral
11-6-2023
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Katherine Garlough
Abstract
Professional development (PD) enhances teachers' effectiveness and fosters a more favorable disposition towards inclusive education. However, some teachers have expressed a sense of inadequacy in their readiness to instruct students with disabilities within inclusive classrooms due to a perceived deficiency in training. The perspectives of K-12 teachers in an English-speaking international school in Taiwan on PD to teach students with learning disabilities in mainstream classrooms were examined. The study was grounded in Bandura’s social cognitive theory, which focuses on the idea that the level of knowledge and beliefs determine how a person feels, thinks, and behaves. A basic qualitative research design was adopted for this study. Semistructured interviews were used to collect data from nine participants at an English-speaking international school in Taiwan who teach students with learning disabilities in mainstream classrooms for at least two years. The interviews were transcribed and coded using descriptive codes. Inductive thematic analysis was used to identify prevalent themes observed from the data. The findings from the research revealed that teachers believe in mainstreaming students with disabilities; however, it was found that teachers have limited PD training to meet the needs of these students. To better support students with learning disabilities, teachers prefer small group PD sessions with a trained facilitator that focuses on teaching strategies that can be implemented in the classroom to support students with learning disabilities. This study can affect positive social change by providing administrators with insight into the PD needs of teachers to help make informed decisions about what is needed to support teachers and students.
Recommended Citation
Browne, Niocie Shonella, "Teachers’ Perspectives of Professional Development on Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in Mainstream Classrooms" (2023). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 15093.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/15093
