AVAILABILITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING

RESOURCES ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF

INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

2023
Volume: 7
Pages: 85-91
Document ID: 2022PEMJ521
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7612207
Manuscript Accepted: 2023-5-2
Psych Educ, 2023, 7: 85-91, Document ID: PEMJ521, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7612207, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

Availability of Teaching and Learning Resources on the

Implementation of Inclusive Education
Gerlie M. Lapeña*, Maria Salome G. Balamad, Cristina O. Dano, Joan T. Villanueva,
Alita I. Padillo, Maria Jessah Amor O. Simogan
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.
Abstract
According to the principle of inclusion, everybody has an inherent right to participate fully in society.
Inclusion requires the acceptance of differences. It allows for the inclusion of individuals who would
otherwise be denied educational opportunities critical to the development and growth of all students.
This study aimed to scrutinize and assess the availability of teaching and learning resources for the
implementation of inclusive education at the selected elementary schools in the Division of Agusan
del Sur and the Division of Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines. In order to determine the
accessibility of teaching and learning resources and teachers' attitudes toward considering students'
assistance needs in the classroom setting, this study would analyze the critical factors in determining
whether inclusive education is successfully implemented or unsuccessfully. To collect data for this
study, a descriptive survey research design was used. The permanent teachers were the study's target
group and its respondents. The introduction of inclusive education at the participating schools will
improve curriculum delivery, cater to the requirements of students who require special help, and
increase student enrollment and retention at the said schools. The majority of the 150 teachers who
responded to the statements and gave their opinions strongly agreed with the assertion. The
implementation of inclusive education depends on the availability of teaching and learning resources,
which has a detrimental effect.

Keywords: inclusive education, learning resources, teaching staffs, implementation, schools

Introduction language interpreters and Braille transcribers),

The philosophy of inclusion in education is based on
the idea that everyone has an innate right to take part
fully in society. Accepting differences is a prerequisite
for inclusion. It allows for the inclusion of the
individual, who would otherwise be denied the
educational opportunities essential for every student's
growth and development. Due to the lack of
information available regarding the practice of
inclusion in Philippine education, it is difficult to
articulate the reasonable extent of involvement of
members and stakeholders of the school community.
The fact that education is available to all children in
the country shows that a solid conceptual foundation
for inclusive education has yet to be built. It is
challenging to define the appropriate level of
involvement that members of the school community
should have in the education of students with special
needs and educational support due to the lack of a
solid foundation for inclusive education practices.
There are still concerns that need to be addressed
before the major stakeholders in a particular school are
satisfied, such as what shape inclusive education
should take and what regulations must be effectively
met (Mutisya, 2010).
Peripatetic services, support personnel (such sign
Lapeña et al.
community involvement, regular and special teachers,
and more are examples of teaching and learning
resources (Oyugi et al., 2010; Saro et al., 2022). Lack
of suitably qualified special education teachers and
specialists hinders the implementation of inclusive
education (Kochung, 2011). Furthermore, several
variables, such as teaching methods, testing policies,
and constrictive curricula, made it difficult to adopt
inclusive education in the Philippines and other areas
of the world. In order to support the implementation of
inclusive education, it is frequently important to have
enough teaching staff, educational staff, and
instructional and learning materials. Because teachers
frequently feel that there are not enough human
resources or teaching and learning facilities, there are
significant barriers to successfully adopting inclusion
(Crawford, 2004; Mutisya, 2010; Saro et al., 2022).
According to Kritzer (2012) study, high-quality
inclusive education is the practice of meeting the needs
of both students and teachers in the classroom. It can
learn the most in a setting that emphasizes broad
education. However, the novel concept of high-quality
inclusive education (IE) can be illustrated by
examining how it was used in the United States. The
needs of kids with learning difficulties are typically
met consistently in American inclusive schools
(Kritzer, 2012; United States, Department of
Education, 2000). The first phase is the teacher's
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Research Article
attempt to support the student in addressing their
learning problems and difficulties; as a result, the
method is also known as the "Special Education
Process for Teaching and Learning Support." If the
teacher's recommendations are unsuccessful, the
problem is brought up with a team, who will try to find
a solution to the student's learning difficulties. The
school principal or a delegate, the teacher of the
student who has the learning difficulty, the parent of
that student, a special education specialist, a school
psychologist, a nurse, and other professionals, as
necessary, make up the "student study team," "child
study team," or "student success team" (Khan, 2011;
Stofile, 2018).
The benefits of inclusive education for children
without disabilities were explored by the Indiana
Inclusion Study in May 2000. The study discovered
that students without disabilities who got their
education in inclusive environments outperformed
their peers in math achievement. Although they did not
read significantly more quickly than their peers, the
results of their tests revealed a "consistent pattern" that
supported teaching pupils without disabilities in
inclusive settings. This study and others have
emphasized enhanced academic performance, social
skills, communication skills, and peer four of the most
significant advantages of inclusion are connections.
Students without impairments can offer their non-
disabled peers strong role models for speech and
behavior, and vice versa (Norwich et al., 2007).
Precey (2011) asserts that learning is a multifaceted
process involving the interaction of curriculum
requirements, instructional resources, physical
infrastructure, and student motivation. Since TLR are
the essential resources that lead to students achieving
well academically, their availability increases the
effectiveness of schools. Some of the resources that
should be made available for teaching and learning
include physical facilities like labs, libraries, and
classrooms, as well as human resources like teachers
and support staff (Mwaura, 2004; Petriwskyj, 2010;
Saro et al., 2022).
The purpose of this study is to scrutinize and assess the
availability of teaching and learning resources for the
implementation of inclusive education at the selected
elementary schools in the Division of Agusan del Sur
and the Division of Tandag City, Surigao del Sur,
Philippines. This study would look at the critical
factors that determine whether inclusive education is
successfully or unsuccessfully implemented, such as
the accessibility of teaching and learning resources and
teachers' attitudes toward including students' assistance
Lapeña et al.
needs in the classroom setting. In addition, investigate
the community's facilities for inaccessibility, as well as
the environments in which educational institutions are
located and are inaccessible to teachers and students.
This study therefore sought to examine the influence
of teaching and learning resources on the
implementation of inclusive education at a randomly
selected elementary school in the Division of Agusan
del Sur and Tandag City Division, Surigao del Sur,
Philippines.
Research of Objectives
This study aimed to scrutinize and assess the
availability of teaching and learning resources for the
implementation of inclusive education at the selected
elementary schools in the Division of Agusan del Sur
and the Division of Tandag City, Surigao del Sur,
Philippines. Several specific objectives are strongly
established in order to achieve the study's objectives:
1. To assess and evaluate the availability of teaching
and learning resources for the implementation of
inclusive education at the selected elementary schools
in the Division of Agusan del Sur and the Division of
Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines;
2. To determine the educational attainment and work
experience of the teaching personnel in the selected
teacher respondents; and
3. To attest the significant advantages of the
availability of teaching and learning resources for the
implementation of inclusive education.
Methodology
Research Design
This study employed descriptive survey research
design where the data gathered from the assessment
survey conducted by the researchers to the teachers of
chosen schools in the present study. The target
population and the respondents of the study was the
permanent teachers of the selected elementary schools
in the Division of Agusan del Sur and the Division of
Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines.
Determining and analyzing the nature of a situation as
it is and emphasizing the period of the study are
therefore the main objectives of the descriptive
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Research Article
research approach. This allows for the examination of
the explicit cause of a particular phenomenon
(Santiago, 2016; Adanza et al., 2009). Additionally,
the "descriptive design," a quantitative study method,
displays potential relationships between variables and
the strength of a relationship between two or more
quantitative variables (Fraenkel & Wallen, 2006;
Creswell, 2008).
Population and Respondents of the Study
The target population and the respondents of the study
were the permanent teachers of the selected
elementary schools in the Division of Agusan del Sur
and the Division of Tandag City, Surigao del Sur,
Philippines. Hence, this study had a total population
sample of 150 teacher-respondents from the ten (10)
chosen schools in the said division. The researchers
provide guidelines for selecting the study's location,
whether it be large or small schools. Each school in the
two divisions had the average number of teacher-
respondents for the assessment conducted by the
researchers as an equivalent of the population sample
in the study. Furthermore, the study's respondents
would benefit greatly from receiving the survey
questionnaire via an online platform (a Google Form)
by adhering to the safety measures and protocols
implemented and initiated by the Department of
Education, particularly in Caraga, Region, Philippines.
The sample population size was calculated using
Slovin's formula, with a margin of error of 0.05%.
Furthermore, stratified random selection was used to
distribute the respondents fairly or equally among the
divisions. The fishbowl technique and random sample
approach were then employed by the researcher to
precisely determine the sex of each respondent when
selecting the study's participants.
Instruments for Data Collection
The needed data for this study was gathered using a
survey questionnaire that had structured and semi-
structured questionnaires as well as observation
checklists. Accordingly, validity is well defined by
Mugenda (2003) as the precision and significance of
inclusions drawn from the research findings. As well,
the content validity was tested by subjecting the
questionnaires and the observations tool to three (3)
experts (teachers) who scrutinized the research
instrument questions in each of the sub-sections and
judged their relevance to the objectives of the study.
Nonetheless, the study has been piloted in different
schools, which is not part of the actual study’s
population, to finalize the questions and determine the
availability of teaching and learning resources for the
Lapeña et al.
implementation of inclusive education to be validated
in the study.
Data Gathering Procedure
The data gathering procedure was properly carried out
in the randomly selected elementary schools in the
Division of Agusan del Sur and Tandag City Division,
which consists of 10 randomly selected schools. In
fact, after the survey questionnaire had been finalized,
in the first phase, the researchers were able to notify
the respondents of their intention to conduct the study.
The research was carried out during the last academic
year of the COVID-19 pandemic, from 2021 to 2022.
Moreover, the researchers were assured that ethical
consideration was explicitly adhered to and practiced
throughout the data gathering procedure. In the second
phase, after the data had been collected from the
teacher-respondents for about two (2) weeks, the
proponents of the study began to analyze and interpret
the collected data. The researchers generated the data
from the responses of the teachers and analyzed it
using the appropriate statistical tools of the study.
Results and Discussion
The study has been conducted during the last academic
year, 2021–2022, at the selected elementary schools in
the Division of Agusan del Sur and the Division of
Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines. The study
aimed to scrutinize and assess the availability of
teaching and learning resources for the implementation
of inclusive education. The study sought to answer the
following research objectives: (1) to assess and
evaluate the availability of teaching and learning
resources for the implementation of inclusive
education at the selected elementary schools in the
Division of Agusan del Sur and the Division of
Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines; (2) to
determine the educational attainment and work
experience of the teaching personnel among the
selected teacher respondents; and (3) to attest the
significant advantages of the availability of teaching
and learning resources for the implementation of
inclusive education.
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Research Article
Table 1. Gender of the Teacher-Respondents
The study findings indicated that most of the
respondents (96, or 64%) among the teacher-
respondents were female, while only 54 (36% were
male). This showed that there is a gender disparity in
the teachers at the randomly selected schools. As
reflected on the results, there are more female teachers
than female respondents. The study has been supported
by the study of Esplada (2010), which indicated that
more female-teacher responses compared to male-
teacher responses were attested in the study; this
finding is in line with the DepEd records pertaining to
the population, which show that 86% of the total
teacher population in the Philippines is mostly female.
This might have an impact on the implementation of
inclusive education at the school. Thus, the researcher
was interested in the gender distribution of the
respondents because it is crucial to understand how
society and schools feel about inclusive education.
Table 2. Educational Level of the Teacher-
Respondents
The goal of the study was to determine the
respondents’ educational backgrounds. According to
the study’s findings, most respondents had earned
degrees beyond the master’s level (Table 2). It should
be mentioned that several of the teacher-respondents at
the involved schools were 37 (24.67%) with master’s
degrees (M.Ed. Units), while 29 (19.33%) had
achieved master’s degrees and completed academic
requirements (CAR); also, few of them had completed
their master’s degrees (22, or 14.67%). Furthermore,
among the permanent teachers, there were only a few
of them who obtained their doctorate of philosophy
Lapeña et al.
(CAR, 1.33%), whereas five of them had a doctorate
of philosophy (PhD units). This shows that most
respondents had the highest level of education
requirements. However, it was noted that of the
teacher respondents from the involved school, the
majority were not able to acquire and enroll in the
highest level of education and were still at the college
level (55, or 36.67%), which was not specifically on
special needs education. The results, which were
confirmed in the Okongo et al. (2015) study, showed
that there were also 28 (14.3%). This indicates that
most respondents met the minimum educational
requirements, though it was noted that most had
general training that did not focus specifically on
special needs education. It is possible that this will
harm the county's ECDE centers' efforts to implement
inclusive education.
Table 3. Work Experience of the Teacher-Respondents
Table 3 findings illustrate the respondents’ working
experiences. The permanent teachers were the only
subjects of the treatment findings. The outcomes
showed that most of the study’s respondents had an
average length of service of 0–5 years (37%, 55),
which means that they are new to the field of teaching
and facilitating learning, and that perhaps a few of
them have not had training in special education.
However, some of them had, on average, between 6
and 25 years working in their respective areas as
teachers (10% to 20%). This suggests that most
respondents put in a commendable amount of effort to
gain the experience required to manage special needs
students. This might have an impact on how inclusive
education is implemented at the school. This result is
consistent with the research by Okongo et al. (2015); it
shows that most respondents had worked for enough
time to have attained the necessary experience in
dealing with students with special needs. This might
have an impact on how the ECDE centers in the sub-
county undertake inclusive education.
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Research Article
Table 4. Availability of Teaching and Learning
Resources
The teacher respondents were questioned about the
resources that are available to implement inclusive
education at the selected elementary schools in the
Division of Agusan del Sur and the Division of
Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, Philippines, including
whether the resources are adequate, what kinds of
resources are used to educate special learners, whether
learning resources improve curriculum delivery,
whether structures are created to accommodate
students or learners who have needed educational
assistance, and how much time is allotted for the
student interaction in the classroom setting.
Based on the findings in Table 4, it was necessary to
determine the availability of teaching and learning
resources for students who have requested educational
assistance in the involved schools in the said divisions.
Furthermore, 4 and 10 items or statement variables
received strongly agreed responses from the 150
survey respondents (means = 4.67 and 4.88,
respectively).Furthermore, the findings from among
the permanent teachers indicate that most of them
agreed with the various statements on the availability
of teaching and learning resources. This revealed that
teaching and learning resources were adequate in the
said schools. Thus, there is no negative impact on the
implementation of inclusive education in the study’s
area. The teaching and learning materials are greatly
important for the enrollment and maintenance of
Lapeña et al.
students with special educational assistance.
Additionally, the researchers sought to assess the
challenges and difficulties the school faces when
acquiring learning resources. Among the 150 teachers’
participants who responded to this question, most of
them strongly agreed with the statement. This
negatively impacts the implementation of inclusive
education since it depends on the availability of
learning resources. Finally, the study findings
indicated that teaching and learning resources are
required to influence the implementation of inclusive
education in schools. Hence, a total of 150 teachers
agreed with the statement.
These findings are in line with Kochung (2011)
assertion that inadequately trained professionals are an
obstacle to the implementation of inclusive education.
Thus, research has shown that when inclusion is
effectively implemented, both typical learners and
students with special needs and assistance gain
academically and socially. Friendships grow,
independent students are more accepting of
differences, and unique students are more driven. In
the end, genuine acceptance of variety emerges in the
educational setting and spreads to the home, business,
and community (Elweke and Rodda, 2002; Stough,
2003).
According to the study's findings, most teachers
believe that supportive leadership is necessary for
inclusion to succeed. This conclusion is in line with
work done by Qeleni (2013), who found that school
leaders can influence inclusive school change by
giving teachers the right kind of support. This could
mean that in order to assist attempts to teach students
with special needs and to put up concurrent, practical
procedures and routines for dealing with students with
special needs, teachers require support from their
supervisors on inclusive education. Additionally, it can
imply that if the leadership does not support the
inclusive policy, it will have an impact on how it is
implemented.
Improved academic performance, social skills,
communication skills, and peer connections have all
been identified as four of the most significant
advantages of inclusion in research from this and other
sources. Students without disabilities can look to their
non-disabled peers for examples of appropriate speech
and behavior, while students with disabilities can offer
their non-disabled peers’ acceptance, tolerance,
patience, and friendship. Peers can provide help both
within and outside of the classroom as allies and
friends. These findings demonstrate that inclusive
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Research Article
education benefits all participants (Mutisya, 2010;
Okongo, 2015).
Conclusion
Based on the study findings, the introduction of
inclusive education will improve curriculum delivery,
cater to the requirements of students who require
special help, and increase student enrollment and
retention at the institution. The information in the
findings was gathered to assess pupils' access to
adequate teaching and learning resources.
Furthermore, two respondents out of 150 strongly
agreed with the claim that the government should
increase funds and assistance to special needs
education to necessitate the purchase of learning
resources, infrastructure development, and the training
and recruitment of adequate teachers, and that the need
for teaching and learning resources influences the
implementation of inclusive education in the school.
The researchers aimed to determine whether the school
encountered several obstacles and barriers when
purchasing learning resources. The majority of the 150
teachers who responded to these statements and gave
their opinions strongly agreed with the assertion. Since
the implementation of inclusive education depends on
the availability of learning materials, this has a
detrimental effect.
The government should increase funding for special
needs education to cover the costs of buying learning
resources, building infrastructure, and training and
hiring qualified teachers. There is a need for explicit
policy on the idea of inclusive education. The
researcher's recommendations are based on the
analysis of the study. The policy now only discusses
integration, which is distinct from inclusion. To enable
the efficient implementation of inclusive education,
cooperation and partnerships are required amongst
many ministries and stakeholders. The curriculum
needs to be reviewed in order to meet the requirements
of all students in an inclusive environment.
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Research Article

Affiliations and Corresponding Information

Gerlie M. Lapeña, LPT

Loreto Central Elementary School W/ SPED
Program, Loreto North,
Department of Education, Philippines.
Maria Salome G. Balamad, LPT
San Toribio Elementary School,
Department of Education, Philippines.
Cristina O. Dano, LPT, MAEd (CAR)
San Toribio Elementary School,
Department of Education, Philippines.
Joan T. Villanueva, LPT
Olango-an Elementary School,
Department of Education, Philippines.
Alita I. Padillo, LPT
Tandag Pilot Elementary School,
Department of Education, Philippines.
Maria Jessah Amor O. Simogan, LPT
Tandag Pilot Elementary School,
Department of Education, Philippines.

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