ERIC Number: EJ1102550
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1360-3116
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Available Date: N/A
"We Are Inclusive. We Are a Team. Let's Just Do It": Commitment, Collective Efficacy, and Agency in Four Inclusive Schools
Lyons, Wanda E.; Thompson, S. Anthony; Timmons, Vianne
International Journal of Inclusive Education, v20 n8 p889-907 2016
Implementation of inclusive education for children with disabilities continues to vary across and within Canadian provinces and territories leading us to question why some schools move forward while others maintain traditional segregated approaches. Drawing from Appreciative Inquiry methodology, this study used semi-structured interviews to gather and document successful practices within four inclusive elementary schools within a Canadian province. Interviews were conducted with students, parents, teachers, educational assistants, and principals. Thematic analysis revealed a common belief in the central importance of learning and relationships for all students, shared commitment to inclusion, general classroom teacher responsibility, and collaborative team work characterised by a belief in collective efficacy. The predominant finding in this study was individual and collective agency that transcended themes. Participants reported ongoing and conjoint processes of planning, teaching, reflecting on current practice, sharing knowledge and ideas, solving problems together, and attending to relationships.
Descriptors: Inclusion, Teamwork, Semi Structured Interviews, Elementary Schools, Educational Practices, Best Practices, School Effectiveness, Teacher Attitudes, Parent Attitudes, Administrator Attitudes, Principals, Values, Interpersonal Relationship, Friendship, Sense of Community, Goal Orientation, Accessibility (for Disabled), Foreign Countries
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
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Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
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Author Affiliations: N/A