Supportive Factors in Inclusive Mathematics Education: Mathematics Teachers’ Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate which supportive factors positively influence inclusive mathematics education so that it is accessible to all pupils in mainstream primary and secondary school settings from the mathematics teachers’ perspectives. The study is designed as a qualitative descriptive study. It was conducted by collecting 16 narratives about selected pupils/students provided by mathematics teachers. In them, they described their experiences with inclusive mathematics education. Teachers provided information about their pupils with any form of disability (health, social, or other) or an increased need for support and about their situations in mathematics education and inclusion. The stories were structured by the researchers into units of meaning, numerically coded, content-analyzed, and categorized. Participants in the study were 16 mathematics teachers who were working in mainstream schools. From the stories, we identified 583 meaning units that were assigned a numerical code. Using continuous qualitative analysis procedures, we abstracted five main final categories that describe the support factors in inclusive mathematics education from the mathematics teachers’ perspective in terms of including every pupil without distinction, including those who require some level of additional support. The final categories include: 1. Identifying the pupil’s/student’s internal resources in mathematics education; 2. The mathematics teacher’s responsive approach toward the pupil/student; 3. Modifying conditions in mathematics instruction and implementing accommodations for pupils/students; 4. School-family collaboration; 5. Support mechanisms for the school as an institution in the context of inclusive mathematics education.