Abstract
The purpose of the multi-year study discussed in this article was to investigate the impact of preservice educator participation in a community-based service-learning program for children with disabilities. Pre-service educators who were enrolled in either an adapted physical education or introduction to special education course participated in the Children’s Adaptive Physical Education Society!, a skill-development program for 35 children (ages 5-12) with developmental disabilities. Two measures—a modified regular education initiative survey and a reflective blog assignment—were administered to the participants to identify changes in their beliefs and attitudes toward teaching and including children with disabilities in their future classrooms. The results revealed statistically significant gains in their understanding, confidence, willingness, skill set, and educational satisfaction. Responses in the reflective blogs further supported the statistical findings, suggesting that a community-based learning program provides pre-service educators with sufficient experiences to positively and effectively change their beliefs and attitudes toward teaching and including children with disabilities in their future classrooms.
Highlights
International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement Volume 5 Issue 1 | 2017 | ISSN: 2374-9466 | http://journals.sfu.ca/iarslce
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 mandates that children ages 0 to 22 who have a documented disability and require special education services have access to the general education curriculum. It mandates the principle of least restrictive environment (LRE), which requires, to the maximum extent where appropriate, the education of children with disabilities (CWD) alongside students who do not have a disability (Cawley, Hayden, Cade, & Baker-Kroczynski, 2002)
Within the western state where this study was conducted, CWD ages 6 to 21 who spent 80% or more of their instructional day inside a regular education classroom increased from 51% to 55%
Summary
International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement Volume 5 Issue 1 | 2017 | ISSN: 2374-9466 | http://journals.sfu.ca/iarslce. Responses in the reflective blogs further supported the statistical findings, suggesting that a community-based learning program provides pre-service educators with sufficient experiences to positively and effectively change their beliefs and attitudes toward teaching and including children with disabilities in their future classrooms. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 mandates that children ages 0 to 22 who have a documented disability and require special education services have access to the general education curriculum It mandates the principle of least restrictive environment (LRE), which requires, to the maximum extent where appropriate, the education of children with disabilities (CWD) alongside students who do not have a disability (Cawley, Hayden, Cade, & Baker-Kroczynski, 2002). De Boer, Pijl, and Minnaert (2011) found that neutral and negative attitudes of primary general education teachers toward inclusion persist
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