The Influence of an Inclusive Education Course on Attitude Change of Pre‐service Secondary Teachers in Hong Kong

Abstract

Since the mid‐1990s in Hong Kong there has been a slow but obvious shift from expecting students with disabilities to be educated in segregated special schools to providing more opportunities for them to be educated alongside their mainstream peers. Pre‐service teacher training institutions have begun to offer modules of study in order to assist mainstream teachers in coping with greater diversity in their classes. The main purpose of this paper is to examine the adequacy of an inclusive education module on the attitude change of pre‐service teachers in Hong Kong. A convenience sample of over 200 pre‐service secondary teachers in a B.Ed. (Honours) Programme at one university participated in the study. Data were obtained through a three‐part questionnaire to find out whether there were any substantial changes in their attitudes, concerns and confidence for inclusion before and after taking a module of study on inclusive education. Findings and implications are drawn in light of preparing teachers to cater for diversity in the schools in Hong Kong.