VOLUME 16 ISSUE 2

Management Education
An International Journal

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Inclusive Education from the Perspectives of

Teachers

ALBERTO NOLASCO HERNÁNDEZ AND MARÍA TOMÉ FERNÁNDEZ

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Management Education: An
International Journal
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 Inclusive Education from the Perspectives of
Teachers
Alberto Nolasco Hernández, Universidad de Zaragoza, España
María Tomé Fernández, Universidad de Granada, España

Abstract: Inclusive education is fundamental to ensuring educational quality and equality. The teacher’s role in this type
of education is essential as without their optimal participation it would not be possible to fulfil the objectives of inclusive
education. Thus, in this study we wish to determine the understanding teachers have of inclusive education today. To this
end we determine their opinion with regards to the importance of teacher training in this area and in respect to the
implementation process of this education, besides determining what knowledge they have regarding the concept of
inclusive education today. In this study 130 teachers from the academy Rubicón were chosen using non-probability
sampling. The data was obtained by implementing an ad hoc questionnaire. Said data was analyzed using the statistics
software SPSS version 19. Among the relevant results we conclude that 84.6% consider that there needs to be a change in
attitude in society and educational professionals in respect to inclusive education. And 89.3% consider that teacher
training is fundamental in this field. Among the most relevant conclusions we note that the majority of teachers believe
that the presence of students with special educational needs does not cause learning delays in their classes and that a
professional consensus of the concept of inclusive education is yet to be reached.

Keywords: Teacher Training, Inclusive Education, Teaching, Attention to Diversity

Introduction

I n a changing society, where classrooms are becoming a reflection of an increasingly

intercultural and diverse society, teachers need inclusive education to serve and support the
needs and characteristics of their students. Apart from psychological, clinical, and
methodological key aspects the vision of inclusive education today aims to also integrate those
that are sociological, anthropological, political, ethical, and ideological. Inclusive Education is
currently used in accordance with a set of certain values and principles to analyze, assess, and
rebuild the organization of the school system and its centers and curriculum as well as student
education and learning (Ainscow et al. 2007; Escudero 2005).
There are different studies (Tilstone et al. 2003; Jiménez 2004; Cardona 2006; Hsien 2007)
which relate teacher training to greater involvement in inclusive education and having a positive
attitude towards it. Such research stresses the importance of graduating education professionals
to acquire inclusive skills and to consider the diversity of their classrooms in a fair and equal
manner (Sales 2006). In teaching, a good command of the educational content is just as necessary
as a strong set of competencies and skills which help make inclusion a latent reality (Arnáiz
2003). The initial teacher training, professional in-service training and pedagogical teacher
training are vital aspects needed to achieve quality inclusive education. (The European Agency
for Development in Special Needs Education 2011).
Historically inclusive education as a concept and practice in school settings starts at the
beginning of the eighties in the United States and Europe, as an initiative focused on students
with disabilities. (Flecha and Larena 2008). Over the last few decades, however, this focus has
changed and a new challenge has been proposed: to make inclusive practices in education
accessible to all people. The inclusive movement in education, regardless of how it is understood,
has mobilized the construction of a series of policies at an international organizational level that
have been converted into educational strategies primarily related to providing all children access
to regular education. Since the Declaration of Salamanca in 1994, the concept of inclusion has
been a matter of research, meetings, national, regional, and international debates, producing

Management Education: An International Journal

Volume 16, Issue 2, 2016, www.organization-studies.com
© Common Ground Publishing, Alberto Nolasco Hernández, María Tomé Fernández
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MANAGEMENT EDUCATION: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

numerous explanatory theories and practices in order to apply them to the different contexts and
realities of each country. Additionally, the UNESCO program “Education for all” has exercised a
certain influence, proposing an inclusive education concept such as guaranteeing everyone the
right to an education, with particular attention paid to the most marginalized (UNESCO 2010).
According to Manzano and Tomé (2016) teaching staff should put a set of democratic values
and attitudes into play in inclusive practice. This finding is validated in the revised bibliography
and expressed in the national reports, in which it stresses the importance of the attitudes, values,
and principles together with the knowledge and skills in the development of inclusive practice
(Tomé and Berrocal 2013). These teaching characteristics are considered fundamental in the
inclusive learning and teaching processes (The European Agency for Development in Special
Needs Education 2011).
According to this agency, there is consensus that the educational inclusion of students cannot
be implemented without decisive teachers’ contribution. To make this possible, it is necessary for
teachers to focus on their training and to determine which objectives inclusive education aims to
achieve, how they can achieve them, and where they can be developed (Tomé et al. 2014).
In inclusive educational systems, teachers should be trained in skills, aptitudes, and values
which will not only ensure that they will become good educators, but also that they will become
good critics of inclusive education today and how it is being used after being implemented in
education centers.
Consequently, in this study we have tried to determine what understanding teachers have of
inclusive education today.
To answer this question, this study pursues the following objectives:

• Determine what understanding the consulted teachers have in regards to the

importance of teacher training to ensure inclusive education.
• Learn what the teachers think about the implementation of inclusive education
in schools.
• Find out what these teachers understand about the concept of inclusive
education.

In this research, we assume that teachers drawing from their knowledge of theoretical and
practical aspects of inclusive education are aware of the role the teacher plays in inclusive
schooling, identifying the elements needed to be able to meet today’s educational demands.
Therefore, the opinions and perceptions participants offer will provide us with a valuable
approach to the current context of inclusive education in the country.

Method
Participants

Non-probability sampling was intentionally performed in which all of the students from the
public tendering academy Rubicón located in Teruel (España) (N = 130) were chosen. This
institution is dedicated to training teachers for civil service entrance examinations. Its members
include students from different Spanish cities. Of this group, 83.8% are female and 16.2% are
male. Twenty-one percent (21%) of the teachers surveyed work in public preschools and primary
schools. Forty percent (40%) know a student with some specific type of educational need.

Evaluation Tool

The area of study was submitted to a literature review with the aim of creating an instrument
which met the stated objectives. Consequentially, an ad hoc instrument was drafted which met
the research requirements, taking into account the respective theoretical inclusive education

14
references (Booth and Ainscow 2002; Leon 2002; Perrenoud 2004; Ferguson 2008; Echeita
2009; Huguet 2009; UNESCO 2015).
The opinions of twelve experts served to validate the instrument with the use of expert
judgement validation. To this end the instrument was presented to eight inclusive education
experts, asking them to rate the suitability of the items from 1 to 5 on a Likert-type scale, in order
to evaluate the consulted teachers’ perceptions and opinions on inclusive education. After the
experts’ assessment, of the twenty-nine items submitted, the questionnaire was finally composed
of ten items. The final items were those which obtained an average expert score higher than 3.
The final questionnaire consists of two parts. The first part includes identification of
respondents such as gender, employment status, origin, and experience with inclusive education.
And the second part consists of ten items for which respondents are asked to rate on a Likert-type
scale from 1 to 5, the degree to which they agree or disagree with each of the statements
presented. 1 being “strongly disagree” and 5 “strongly agree.” A reliability study was conducted
after the questionnaire was completed, getting a coefficient of = 0.91.

Procedure

To carry out this study, questionnaires were conducted with teachers enrolled in the public
tendering academy Rubicón. After explaining the instrument instructions, the research objectives
and scope and potential benefits that their views might provide, the questionnaire was
administered to a total of 130 teachers.

Analysis of Data

Data analysis was conducted using the statistical package SPSS version 19. Since the analysis is
descriptive, data were obtained from the frequency of each of the items in their different
responses according to the following definitions: 5—strongly agree, 4—agree, 3—agree
somewhat, 2—disagree, and 1—strongly disagree.

Results

In the following table the evaluated items are presented along with the frequency of each
response obtained.

15
MANAGEMENT EDUCATION: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

Table 1. Level of Agreement on the Perception of Teachers Regarding Inclusive Education (%)
Items Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly
Agree Somewhat Disagree
1. In Spain education for all students with
needs is guaranteed. 10 68.2 21.8 0 0
2. The presence of students with needs in a
classroom delays the advance of the rest of 2.3 0 20.5 29.5 47.7
the students in the class.
3. Inclusive Education is very expensive. 9.1 47.7 25.7 6.3 11.2
4. Inclusive Education requires a prior
change of attitude in society in general and 86.4 13.6 0 0 0
especially in teaching professionals.
5. The concept of Inclusive Education is
more theoretical than practical. 18.2 38.3 22.5 2.2 18.8
6. Inclusive Education should be directed at
all students, not only those with special 81.8 13.6 4.6 0 0
educational needs.
7. Teacher training plays an essential role for
effective inclusive education. 89.3 8 2.7 0 0
8. The growing presence of students of
different cultures in our schools creates 2.3 6.8 11.4 19.5 60.0
conflicts and inequalities.
9. “Inclusion” or “inclusive education” is not
another name for “special educational 60.0 27.3 8.2 4.5 0
needs.”
10. The attention to students with needs is the
sole responsibility of families. 0 2.3 4.5 13.6 79.6
Source: Booth and Ainscow 2002; Leon 2002; Perrenoud 2004; Ferguson 2008; Echeita 2009; Huguet 2009; UNESCO
2015.

According to the results we note that: 68.2% of the surveyed teachers appear to “agree” that
in Spain inclusive education is guaranteed. Furthermore, 47.7% think that students with special
needs do not affect classroom development but that inclusive education is expensive.
Additionally, 81.8% of those surveyed “agree” that inclusive education should be directed at all
students. And 60% consider that cultural diversity in schools does not generate conflicts and
inequalities. There were 79.6% of teachers who estimated that the family is not solely
responsible for caring for children with special needs.
As for the inclusive education teacher training, 89.3% of teachers consider themselves to
“completely agree” that teacher training is essential for inclusive education. Moreover, 86.4%
agree that there is a need for a change of attitude in society in general and educational workers in
particular.
And finally, in relation to the concept of inclusive education today, 60 % of teachers
consider that the terms “inclusion” or “inclusive education” do not replace “special educational
needs.” And 56.5 % consider that it is a more theoretical than practical concept.

Discussion

The results achieved in this study have allowed the question that has served to guide this research
base to be answered. The sample represented by teachers of different specializations of the public
tendering academy Rubicón helped provide a vision of inclusive education based on their own
experiences. We consider inclusive education essential for meeting the needs of today’s
classrooms, as affirmed by Ainscow (2005) a school must respond to the diversity of the students
who attend it.
In this research study we consider teacher training in inclusive education to be fundamental,
not only to become a good educator but also to become an effective critic of the educational
system. In this study we sought to determine the understanding teachers had of inclusive
education today. The results obtained show that the teachers surveyed are aware of the necessity

16
of good training and of having adequate economic means to support the optimal implementation
of inclusive education. The responses obtained coincide with statements made in The European
Agency for Development in Special Needs Education (2011), which consider the positive social
and educational impact of inclusive education and the importance of having highly qualified
professionals in order to ensure inclusive education in schools.
Another aspect to be considered from the results obtained is the conception teachers have of
the term inclusive education. For the teachers surveyed the definition of the term does not replace
that of special educational needs. And they consider the definition of inclusive education to be
much broader.
Coinciding with the paradigm which emerged in the World Conference on Special Needs
Education in Salamanca (1994), teachers in our study considered that inclusive education
includes all children in their classes, including of course those with special educational needs.
There is also a distribution in the given opinions in regard to the consideration of the term
inclusive education. Those surveyed do not agree on the positioning of inclusive education in
theoretical or practical terms. This is perhaps due to the lack of consensus regarding the
definition.
In addition, as different studies report (Tilston et al. 2003; Jiménez 2004; Arnáiz 2003;
Cardona 2006; Hsien 2007), the positive attitude of teachers towards inclusive schooling is very
important so that inclusive education might become a practical reality. Teachers should work
towards a change in mind-set and be open to equal education. Thus, the teaching practices boost
teamwork and self-directed learning, all under the influence of democratic social values which
ensure equality in the classroom, indistinctive of the characteristics of the students found inside it
(Tomé and Berrocal 2013).

Conclusion
Pursuant to the objectives and results of this research, we can conclude that the majority of
teachers consider inclusive education training to play a fundamental part in its optimal
implementation in educational practice. Additionally, these same teachers believe that in Spain
all students with special educational needs are ensured an inclusive education. Regarding this
issue, it is important to emphasize that teachers do not consider that the cultural diversity of
students causes delays or problems in their classrooms, although there is a small percentage
which think that other types of needs might cause teaching difficulties.
Another relevant conclusion is that the teachers consider inclusive education to be a broad
term which does not substitute that of special education, encompassing, rather, all students in
general. They also think, however, that it is a term which needs future educational professional
consensus. And they do not agree on its positioning in theoretical or practical terms.
Finally, it should be stressed that the majority of those surveyed agree that in an inclusive
educational system the family should not have to assume the sole responsibility of providing for
the special educational needs of the students.

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MANAGEMENT EDUCATION: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

REFERENCES
Ainscow, Mel. 2005. “Understanding the Development of Inclusive Education Systems.”
Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology 3 (3): 5–20.
Ainscow, Mel, Mandy Crow, Alan Dyson, Sue Goldrick, Kirstin Kerr, Clare Lennie, Susie Miles,
Daniel Muijs, and Julian Skyrme. 2007. Equity in Education. Manchester: Centre for
Equity in Education, University of Manchester.
Arnáiz, Pilar. 2003. Inclusive Education: A School for Everyone. Málaga: Aljibe.
Booth, Tony, and Mel Ainscow. 2002. Index for Inclusion: Developing Learning and
Participation in Schools. Bristol: Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education (CSIE).
Cardona, María C. 2006. Diversity and Inclusive Education. Madrid: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Echeita, Gerardo. 2009. “Inclusive Schools. Schools on the Move”. In Good Inclusive Schooling
Practices, edited by Isabel Macarulla and Margarita Sáiz, 37–56. Barcelona: Graó.
Escudero, Juan M. 2005. “School Failure, Educational Exclusion. What are They Excluded From
and Why?.” Curriculum and Teacher Training Journal 9 (1): 1–22.
Ferguson, Dianne L. 2008. “International Trends in Inclusive Education: the Continuing
Challenge to Teach Each One and Everyone.” European Journal of Special Needs
Education 23(2): 109–20.
Flecha, Ramón, and Rosa Larena. 2008. Learning Communities. Sevilla: ECOEM Foundation.
Hsien, Michelle. 2007. “Teacher Attitudes towards Preparation for Inclusion.” Journal of
Education Research 8 (1): 19–60.
Huguet, Teresa. 2009. “Collaborative Work amongst Teachers as an Inclusion Strategy.” In
Inclusive Education. From Exclusion to the Complete Involvement of all Students,
edited by Climent Giné, David Duran, Josep Font and Ester Miquel, 82–94. Barcelona:
Horsori.
Jiménez, Carmen. 2004. Special Education. Diversity and Equality. Madrid: Pearson.
Leon, María J. 2002. “From School Integration to Inclusive Schooling or a School for
Everyone.” In Special Education. Educational Centers and Teachers in View of
Diversity, edited by Antonio Sanchez and Jose A. Torres, 57–62. Madrid: Pirámide.
Manzano, Beatriz, and María Tomé. 2016. “The Inclusive Education in Europe.” Universal
Journal of Educactional Research 4 (2): 383–91.
Perrenoud, Philipe. 2004. Ten New Competencies to Teach. Barcelona: Graó.
Sales, Auxiliadora. 2006. “Initial Teacher Training in View of Diversity: a Methodological
Proposal for the New European Higher Education Area.” Inter-university Teacher
Training Magazine 20 (3): 201–17.
The European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education. 2011. Inclusive education
teacher training. European and international trends. Odense: Denmark.
Tilstone, Christina, Lani Florian, and Richard Rose. 2003. Promotion and Development of Good
Inclusive Education Practices. Madrid: EOS.
Tomé, María, and Emilio Berrocal. 2013. “The influence of gender in the application of a set of
democratic values which ensure intercultural inclusive education.” European Journal of
investigation in health, Psychology and Education 3 (1): 51–64.
Tomé, María, Emilio Berrocal, and Leonor Buendía. 2014. “Intercultural Values Education in
Europe. A Comparative Analysis of Norwegian and Spanish Reality.” Procedia-Social
and Behavioral Sciences 132 (1): 441–6.
UNESCO. 2010. EFA Global Monitoring Report 2010. Reaching the Marginalized. Accessed
October 2, 2015. http://www.unesco.org/es/efareport/reports/2010-marginalization/.
———. 2015. Ten Questions Regarding Inclusive Education. Accessed December 3, 2015
http://www.unesco.org/new/es/education/themes/strengthening­education­systems/inclu
sive­education/10­questions­on­inclusive­quality­education/.

18
 ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Dr. Alberto Nolasco Hernandez: Associate Professor, Department of Educational Sciences,

University of Zaragoza, Teruel, Zaragoza, Spain.

Dr. Maria Tomé Fernández: Assistant Professor, Methods of Research and Diagnostic in
Education. University of Granada, Melilla, Province of Granada, Spain.

19
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Management Education: An International Journal

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ISSN 2327-8005
447-9524