The Design of Pre-service Inclusive Education Courses and their Effects on Self-efficacy: A Comparative Study
Source: Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, Volume 38, Issue 2, p. 117–128. (May 2010).
The current study compared two versions of a 13-week mandatory undergraduate inclusive education course to determine their effects on the self-efficacy of pre-service elementary education teachers.
For the purposes of the research, the self-efficacy construct was applied specifically to working with students who have inclusive educational needs.
The study sought to determine whether there were differential effects of the two approaches -
one based on a field-based placement and the other employing a course design approach derived from complex adaptive systems.
The results showed statistically significant gains in self-efficacy for both approaches, although there were no statistically significant differences between versions of the course.
The implications of the findings are discussed for the design of mandatory inclusive education courses.