A Comparative Study of the Attitude of Teachers Working in Government and Private Secondary Schools towards Inclusive Education

Abstract

The present research study titled “A Comparative Study of the Attitude of Teachers Working in Government and Private Secondary Schools towards Inclusive Education” is an attempt to understand the concept and implementation of inclusive education. The main objective of inclusive education is to ensure that students from all sections of society—whether they are general students, students with disabilities, socially and economically disadvantaged students, or those with special needs—can receive education together in the same classroom. This system of education is based on the principles of equality, social justice, and human rights. In a diverse country like India, the importance of inclusive education becomes even greater because students from different social, economic, and cultural backgrounds study together. In this context, the role of the teacher is extremely important because teachers create a classroom environment where every student gets an equal opportunity to learn. The main objective of this study was to make a comparative analysis of the attitudes of teachers working in government and private secondary schools towards inclusive education. For this study, a total of 600 teachers working in government and private secondary schools of Kanpur Nagar were selected as the sample. The stratified random sampling method was used for the selection, in which schools were selected first and then teachers were chosen from those schools. For the collection of data, a self-constructed questionnaire (Attitude Scale towards Inclusive Education) developed by the researcher was used, and the required information was collected through personal contact with the teachers. Separate hypotheses were formulated for male and female teachers, and the data were analyzed on the basis of mean, standard deviation, and critical ratio. The analysis of results revealed that no significant difference was found in the attitudes of male teachers working in government and private secondary schools towards inclusive education. Similarly, no significant difference was found in the attitudes of female teachers in government and private schools towards inclusive education. Thus, overall, the study indicates that there is no significant difference in the attitudes of teachers towards inclusive education on the basis of the type of school management (government or private). This means that most teachers accept the concept of inclusive education and support the inclusion of students with special needs in regular classrooms. This finding provides a positive indication for the education system, as it shows that teachers are aware of and sensitive towards inclusive education. The study can also be useful for education policy makers, administrators, and teacher training institutions, as it may help in strengthening training programs, availability of resources, and supportive educational arrangements to make inclusive education more effective. Thus, this study contributes significantly to the development of an inclusive and equitable education system.