The effect of school-based practice on student teachers' attitudes towards inclusive education in Northern Ireland

Source: Journal of Education for Teaching, Volume 33, Issue 1 February 2007, pages 99 – 113.

This study seeks to discover the attitudes to inclusion of those about to embark on initial teacher education in Northern Ireland and the extent to which an extended teaching practice in a non-selective placement school can influence attitude change. A cohort of 125 student teachers responded to a survey that explored their attitudes towards a range of issues relating to inclusive education in the context of Northern Ireland.

The findings indicate that student teachers in Northern Ireland show positive attitudes towards the principles of inclusion, with teaching practice experience in a non-selective school appearing to confirm and increase these positive attitudes. However, despite displaying increasingly positive attitudes towards inclusion post-teaching practice, there are indications that student teachers continue to show strong attachment to current organisational practices strongly related to academic selection.