Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine special education and general education pre-service teachers’ attitudes toward including PK-12 students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the general education classroom from an academic perspective. This study surveyed 160 undergraduate pre-service teachers (special education and general education) from a mid-size, northeastern state university’s teacher preparation programs using an adapted version of the Attitudes Toward Inclusive Education Scale (ATIES). Significant differences were found in pre-service teachers’ attitudes when examining the impact of the academic level of the PK-12 student with ASD, the academic program of study (e.g. special education vs. general education), and the level of undergraduate progress (i.e. year in undergraduate career).
Keywords: inclusion, inclusive education, pre-service teacher attitude, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), teacher preparation program, special education, general education
