Initial teacher preparation for inclusive education in Ghana : status and challenges

Abstract

Initial teacher education programs are undergoing reforms to equip pre-service teachers with inclusive skills, knowledge, attitudes, and values that are critical for successful implementation of inclusive education. This dissertation, comprised of four articles and a summary, sought to describe how the colleges of education in Ghana prepare teachers for inclusive education. A descriptive survey research approach was adopted in all four articles.The first article sought to determine the knowledge of pre-service teachers regarding the concept of inclusive education, special education needs (SEN), inclusive pedagogical approaches, and their feelings of self- efficacy in terms of teaching in inclusive settings. The results indicated that the majority of the final-year pre-service teachers have been introduced to the concept of inclusive education, and overall, they demonstrated good knowledge of inclusive education and SEN. However, only the minority indicated that they provided support for the SEN children they encountered and felt highly self-efficient in terms of their preparedness to teach students with SEN. The second arti- cle sought to determine the inclusive pedagogical approaches, knowledge, and values that pre- service teachers acquire from a SEN course, their perceptions of the adequacy of the SEN course, and the challenges associated with the delivery of the SEN course. It was found that the medical model view of disability was dominant in the SEN, and only a minority of pre-service teachers acquired the requisite inclusive values, principles, and pedagogical practices from the course. On the whole, the SEN course was found to be adequate in equipping pre-service teachers with the knowledge and skills required to identify the different categories of SEN and disabilities but inadequate in providing pre-service teachers with sufficient inclusive knowledge, skills, and practices.The third article examined the knowledge of teacher educators regarding the concept of inclusive education, SEN, and inclusive pedagogical approaches, as well as their attitudes toward inclusive education, perception of their roles, and preparedness to train teachers for inclusive education. Overall, they demonstrated positive attitudes toward inclusive education and teacher preparation for inclusive education. However, the majority were of the view that Ghana was unready for the implementation of inclusive education because of contextual factors, such as inadequate facilities, inadequate teacher preparation, inadequate resources, societal attitudes, inadequate public education, and lack of political will. Moreover, the majority lacked adequate inclusive teaching experience and felt somewhat prepared for training teachers for an inclusive classroom. The final study adopted a cross-sectional approach to determine pre- service teachers’ views and opinions about disability, their level of discomfort, their attitudes toward inclusive education, and the impact of independent variables. Although, the pre-service teachers understood disability in terms of the dynamic interaction of both biological factors and environmental factors, they felt more comfortable interacting with people with disabilities, but their overall attitudes were scantily positive, with some being predisposed to cultural beliefs about disability. The overall study indicates that Ghana needs reforms in initial teacher educa- tion to prepare pre-service teachers and teacher educators to promote inclusion. The studies discussed several factors that could be adopted to effectively train teachers on issues of SEN, disabilities, and inclusive pedagogical approaches to improve upon their attitudes and self- efficacy.