Inclusive Education: Identifying Teachers’ Perceived Stressors in Inclusive Classrooms

Abstract

This research replicates the study conducted by Forlin (2001) in Churchlands, Western Australia. Forlin’s Inclusive Education Teacher Stress and Coping Ques-tionnaire was adapted from the original questionnaire to more accurately reflect the language and practice of inclusion in Ontario (Frost & Brackenreed, 2004). The purpose of this study was to determine teachers’ perceptions of their levels of stress with respect to teaching students with an identified exceptionality in their inclusive classrooms, as well as to compare the perceptions of stress in the two populations. A final outcome of the study was to inform practice for teachers of Ontario and perhaps other regions of Canada. The population for this study was drawn from teachers in northeastern Ontario, Canada. Implications for teachers and recommendations for further research are presented.