An examination of pre-service teacher training and inclusion

This study examined pre-service teachers' thoughts on their training and inclusion readiness and their views of this current educational trend. Regular education interns from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, completed a Likert- type opinionaire near the end of their five-year teacher training program. Overall, the majority of the interns expressed favorable attitudes toward inclusion. More specifically, the interns that acknowledged receiving adequate training for inclusion responded more positively toward inclusionary programming. One-third of the pre-service teachers that claimed that they did not feel sufficiently prepared, though, reacted less favorably toward inclusion. This study, using the Chi square test, concluded that special education knowledge and skill acquisition generally promotes more favorable attitudes toward inclusion. (Contains 23 references.)