Self-Efficacy and Inclusive Education Practice: Differences Among Elementary School Teachers

Vanja Marković, Mirjana Radetić-Paić*, Jurka Lepičnik Vodopivec

*Faculty of Educational Sciences, Juraj Dobrila Universita, Pula, Croatia

Education for social and cultural diversity

Abstract

In addition to positive attitudes towards inclusive education, teachers' beliefs about their self-efficacy are an integral part of a teacher's competence profile. In the context of factors influencing teacher self-efficacy for inclusive practice, this research aims to determine the differences in self-assessed self-efficacy of Croatian elementary school classroom and subject teachers (N=357) with the purpose of determining the nature of these differences. Research has shown that statistically significant differences in self-assessed self-efficacy for inclusive practice between classroom and subject teachers are visible in the areas of self-efficacy for inclusive teaching, self-efficacy for cooperation, self-efficacy for behavior management, and self-efficacy for an inclusive school environment. The discriminant analysis was used to determine the latent dimensions of differences between classroom and subject teachers in self-assessments of self-efficacy for inclusive practice. The results of the discriminant analysis indicate that the discriminant function represents teacher self-efficacy for encouraging inclusiveness and acceptance of diversity, i.e., self-efficacy for inclusive practice in such a way that it is higher in class teachers than in subject teachers. The scientific contribution of this paper is in obtaining results based on scientific research that offers an insight into the structure of self-assessed self-efficacy for the inclusive practice of selected elementary school teachers in the Republic of Croatia and understanding the connection of individual components of self-efficacy with factors that could affect it, especially when it comes to subject teachers. The results can serve as guidelines for the development of specific professional development programs aimed at enhancing teachers’ self-efficacy for inclusive practice in the broadest sense.

Key words

classroom teachers; inclusive practice; self-efficacy; subject teachers