ATITUDES OF ISRAELI AND SLOVAK STUDENT – TEACHER TOWARDS THE INCLUSION OF STUDENTD WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN MAINSTREAM EDUCATION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Abstract

The goal of this study was to explore the similarities and differences in the attitudes of two groups of student-teachers from different cultures: a group of Israelis and a group of Slovaks.The two groups were divided into pairs who carried out an e-mail correspondence on the topic The Inclusion of Students with Special Needs in Mainstream Education. The content analysis of the posts addressed three categories: Theoretical and practical knowledge of special needs, Attitudes towards special needs and inclusion, Strategies for coping with differences in heterogeneous classes. The findings yielded a similarity in the positive attitudes towards inclusion between the two groups. However, the groups differed in their theoretical and practical knowledge because the Slovak group had limited teaching experience and no academic courses on inclusive education. The findings break the existing link between academic courses/teaching experience, and positive attitudes towards inclusion, and suggest a different way of thinking. They also highlight the need to explore conceptual differences between cultures.