Online ISSN: 2325-7466
2006
Triannual
National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET)
United States

Articles

An Exploration of Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Including Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in General Education

  • Mary. A. Houser, Ed.D. (Author) West Chester University of Pennsylvania image/svg+xml
    Dr. Mary A. Houser received a BFA in related arts from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, an MAT in special education from the College of New Jersey, and an EdD in educational leadership from Fayetteville State University. She is an associate professor in the Department of Special Education at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in foundations of special education, behavior management, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), language development, and family systems. Dr. Houser has also taught graduate special education courses for Walden University (MN), where she served as a graduate special education curriculum developer and assessor. In addition, she has taught graduate special education courses and supervised pre-service teachers for Campbell University (NC). Dr. Houser has worked as a learning disabilities specialist and has taught high school special education in both inclusive and self-contained settings to children with various disabilities. Her research interests include families of students with ASD and improving school-home relationships for students with disabilities.
  • Tara S. Guerriero, Ph.D. (Author) West Chester University of Pennsylvania
    Dr. Tara S. Guerriero attended Northwestern University, where she received a BS in speech, an MA in learning disabilities, and a PhD in learning disabilities, with a concentration in cognitive neuroscience. She is a professor in the Department of Special Education at West Chester University of Pennsylvania and has served as the faculty special assistant to the dean for assessment and accreditation. She teaches at the graduate and undergraduate levels in the areas of special education, assessment, curriculum and instruction/methodology, family systems, and communication/language development and assistive technology. Dr. Guerriero was previously a clinician and supervisor in a learning clinic that focused on both the assessment and diagnosis of learning disabilities as well as the remediation of learning disabilities. Her research interests include assessment of learning disabilities, inclusive practices associated with special education, and both assessment and teaching within the areas of mathematics and reading in the field of learning disabilities.
  • Trevor O’Brien, Ed.D. (Author) Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland image/svg+xml
    Dr. Trevor O’Brien is a faculty member of the Department of Educational Psychology, Inclusive and Special Education at Mary Immaculate College (Limerick, Ireland) since 2012. Prior to joining the team at Mary Immaculate College, he spent many years working as a classroom teacher and as a learning support/resource teacher. His doctoral thesis focused on children’s perspectives of dyslexia in the Irish context and his areas of teaching and research include specific disabilities, student voice, Universal Design for Learning and inclusive pedagogies. Trevor has presented and published his research nationally and internationally and has spent short periods working with students in universities in the U.S.A. and Brazil.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.64546/jaasep.538
Abstract
This study explored pre-service teachers’ attitudes toward including students with ASD in general education. Ten participants from a mid-size teacher preparation program at a northeastern university participated in a focus group inquiry. The exploratory questions used during the focus group were derived from The Attitude Toward Inclusive Education Scale (ATIES) (Wilczenski, 1992). The Braun and Clarke’s (2006) Model of Analysis was used to identify themes. Results indicated pre-service teachers’ attitudes included both benefits and challenges associated with inclusion. Suggestions for improving pre-service teachers’ attitudes toward including students with ASD were provided.
Keywords
Academic Education, Affordances, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Barriers, Inclusion, Interpersonal Relationship
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How to Cite
Houser, M. A., Guerriero, T. S., & O'Brien, T. (2024). An Exploration of Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Including Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in General Education. Journal of the American Academy of Special Education Professionals, 19(1), 30-43. https://doi.org/10.64546/jaasep.538

Winter 2024

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  • Article Type Articles
  • Submitted December 29, 2023
  • Published February 15, 2024
  • Issue Winter 2024
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