The College of Education, Health and
Human Sciences
Announces the Final Examination of
Luanne Sailors
for the degree of
Doctor of Education
June 16, 2015 at 4:30 pm
405 Ball Hall, University of Memphis
Memphis, TN
Biographical Sketch
Bachelors Degree, Education (Teaching All Learners), University of Memphis
Masters Degree, Education (Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment K-12), Walden University
Advisory Committee
Dr. Robert Williamson, Ed.D., Assistant Professor, Instruction and Curriculum Leadership, Committee chair
Dr. Laura Casey, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Instruction and Curriculum Leadership
Dr. William Hunter, Ed.D., Assistant Professor, Instruction and Curriculum Leadership
Dr. Jeremy Todd Whitney, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Instruction and Curriculum Leadership
Major Field of Study
Instruction and Curriculum Leadership
Period of Preparation: 2014-2015
Comprehensive Examination Passed: November 2014
Examining the Attitudes of Pre-Service Teachers Toward Including Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders in a General Education Setting
Abstract
Including students with a range of abilities in today’s classrooms paired with increasing inclusive practices has presented itself as a challenge for all educators. More specifically, students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have had an increased presence in general education settings. This study aims to discover pre-service teachers’ attitudes toward including students with ASD in a general education setting, to examine pre-service teacher knowledge regarding ASD, and examine if any correlation between the two may exist. The main research instrument consisted of a set of 1) demographics questions (categorical data), 2) attitudes of inclusion of students with ASD measured in a Likert-scale component, and 3) measuring knowledge of students with ASD (scaled score) component. Correlation results were analyzed using Pearson’s r coefficient calculation and indicated a positive correlation between attitude and knowledge. Results supported prior research and indicated that the pre-service teachers possessed positive attitudes toward including students with ASD, but felt slightly different when including students with any range of abilities. In regards to participant knowledge of ASD, results indicated that pre-service teachers were knowledgeable about topics surrounding ASD.