Teachers' Perceptions of Factors Used in Placement Decisions

Abstract

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are spending greater amounts of time in inclusive classroom settings. The perceptions of teachers regarding the educational placement of children with ASD are a critical topic of study, since teachers are primarily responsible for the implementation of inclusion (Soodak, Podell, & Lehman, 1998). While there is a substantial research base that has examined the attitudes of teachers about inclusion, less research has focused on ASD that compared the attitudes of general and special education teachers. As reported in the literature, there are multiple barriers that prevent successful inclusion, particularly in high-poverty, urban districts. Since teachers are key stakeholders in decision-making processes for students' educational placement, their attitudes are important to assess as they may act as either barriers or facilitators of inclusion. These high-stakes decisions inevitably alter students' trajectories in terms of developmental outcomes, and therefore warrant further examination. Identifying teachers' specific resource needs is also crucial in determining how to make inclusion more successful for this population of students. Two similar surveys were developed and administered to 27 Autism Support (AS) and 28 general education (GE) teachers who presently had students with ASD in their classrooms. The surveys included quantitative items presented through a Likert-type scale, as well as open-ended items. They were designed to gather information on teacher demographics, students' current and recommended placement, teachers' perceptions of child and context-related variables found in the literature to impact inclusion, and resource needs. Overall, both AS and GE teachers felt their current students' placement was appropriate, though AS teachers' ratings of appropriateness were significantly lower. AS teachers reported they were likely to recommend more time in the general education setting for a majority (70%) of their students with ASD. While GE teachers believed a majority of their students (86%) should be included for most or all of the school day, they recommended less time in general education for 27% of students. GE teachers also expressed more concerns about the functioning of their students with ASD than they did about their own ability to teach those students or aspects related to the classroom context. AS teachers, on the other hand, felt less confident in the supportiveness and prior experience of the general education teachers at their school, whereas they felt their students were prepared to meet general education classroom demands. For both groups of teachers, their beliefs about child-related factors were associated with their recommendations for more time in an inclusive classroom. Identified barriers at the classroom and school-wide levels differed significantly for AS and GE teachers, with AS teachers focused more on skill development among general educators, and GE teachers indicating a greater need for external supports (e.g., classroom assistants, paraprofessionals). AS teachers also indicated a need for a more inclusive climate and greater acceptance than did GE teachers. Findings provide insight into the unique perspectives of AS and GE teachers, in terms of their perceptions of inclusion and their identified resource needs. Results indicate that the survey measures had good internal consistency α = 0.86) and a factor structure that clustered roughly as intended, despite the small sample size. Thus, this measure may be a valuable tool for use in future research on this topic.