Keyword: inclusion

ABSTRACT: The birth-to-five-year period is a critical stage in a child’s development. Most brain growth occurs during this time, laying the foundation for future learning. Early childhood education plays a pivotal role in shaping early development. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are essential components of early childhood education, influencing children’s identities and socio-cultural development. Introducing DEI concepts at an early age equips children with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate a globalized world while fostering an appreciation for diverse perspectives. Children exposed to multiple languages and cultures tend to develop empathy and acceptance of others. This qualitative study explores how educators integrate DEI into early childhood settings through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Teachers and administrators from Belize, Canada, the United States of America, Egypt, the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates share their approaches toward promoting DEI in early childhood programs and the challenges they face in implementation. Purposeful, convenience, and snowball sampling were utilized to recruit participants. Findings demonstrate that while educators value DEI and aim to foster inclusive learning environments, the manner in which DEI is implemented varies. Recommendations will equip educators and policymakers with best practices for fostering inclusive, respectful learning environments that support all children and their families. Future research examining the intersectionality of educators’ identities, including gender, sexual orientation, race, culture, and professional roles, may offer deeper insight into how lived experiences shape DEI understanding and practices in early childhood education.

ABSTRACT: The effectiveness of inclusive education depends on the specific characteristics of the implementation context. Therefore, studying the role of teachers’ characteristics on inclusion remains a significant concern worldwide. This research investigated the difference between the attitudes of secondary school teachers in Bangladesh regarding including students with intellectual disabilities based on their characteristics. Following a quantitative approach, an adapted survey questionnaire was used. The study purposively determined the participation of 55 general and special education teachers from 8 schools. Positive attitudes toward inclusion are more prevalent among female teachers, special education teachers, those who have previously completed a course in special education, and those who have had fewer students with intellectual disabilities in their classrooms, according to the findings. No statistically significant difference was observed in the teachers’ attitudes according to their level of teaching experience and the subject matter they taught. Explanations of the findings are provided, along with recommendations.

ABSTRACT: This article explores the relationship between authoritarianism, Social Darwinism, and exclusivist attitudes toward individuals with disabilities in the context of inclusive education. Using the method of structural equation modeling, we test whether authoritarianism and Social Darwinism pose a barrier to inclusive education (understood as segregated placement, transmissive learning and teaching beliefs, and a medical model of disability). The sample consists of N = 215 student teachers and psychology students from a southwestern German university. The hypothesis that Social Darwinism plays a mediating role between authoritarian attitudes and exclusivist attitudes toward inclusion was tested for the first time. Findings confirm the assumed predictive relationship between right-wing authoritarianism and opposition to inclusive education. While right-wing authoritarianism and Social Darwinism are indeed significantly related, we do not observe, however, a significant relationship between Social Darwinism and exclusionary attitudes—a finding we discuss particularly in light of our sample. The results indicate that the opposition to inclusive education is based on a coherent attitude that is in compliance with authoritarianism. Practical implications are discussed.