Understanding factors that affect teachers’ attitudes toward inclusion of students who are hard of hearing in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Students who are hard of hearing in Saudi Arabia are educated full-time in self-contained classrooms. One possible reason that these students have not been included in general education classrooms is related to teachers’ attitudes. The present study investigated the attitudes of teachers of students who are hard of hearing and of general education teachers toward the inclusion of these students in elementary schools in Saudi Arabia. This research examined possible factors that might affect attitudes such as current teaching position (general or special education), level of education, gender, previous inclusive teaching experience, years of teaching, the presence or absence of family members with disabilities, and university preparation in inclusive education. Three hundred Saudi male and female teachers from 17 elementary schools in Riyadh completed the Opinions Relative to Integration of Students with Disabilities (ORI) survey. Multiple Linear Regression and descriptive statistics were used to answer the research questions. Findings indicated that little variance in teachers’ attitudes toward inclusion of students who are hard of hearing is explained by the independent variables. Also, the findings revealed that one of the seven independent variables, gender, has a significant relationship with teachers’ attitudes. Finally, both groups of teachers exhibited neutral attitudes toward the inclusion of students who are hard of hearing.