A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in fulfillment or partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education at the University of Zululand, 2003. / The present investigation had three objectives. The first aim was to examine educators' attitudes towards inclusive education. The second aim was to determine the extent to which educators were influenced by factors such as qualifications, age, gender, phase, experience, and class size. The third aim was to find out whether educators who have contact with special education personnel, hold positive attitudes towards inclusive education. The questionnaire was administered to groups of black and white educators teaching in mainstream settings, a remedial centre and in a pilot school for inclusive education in KwaZulu-Natal. Fifty-eight percent of the educators were found to have negative attitudes towards inclusive education, whereas forty-two percent displayed a positive attitude towards inclusive education. Results also indicated that the variables of age, gender, qualification, experience, grade and class-size have an influence on educators' attitudes towards inclusive education. The results furthermore show that fifty-nine percent of educators did not have contact with special education personnel and that the majority of this group hold negative attitudes towards inclusive education. Forty-one percent of educators had contact with special education personnel and the majority of this group had positive attitudes towards inclusive education. Therefore, it is concluded that educators' contact with special education personnel influenced their attitudes towards inclusion of disabled learners in mainstream settings.

An Exploration of Inclusive Management Practices: Through the Lenses of Public Managers Jessica Lee Spencer-Gallucci ABSTRACT This study explores how public managers think about and understand the practices of inclusive management (IM) in the workplace. Specifically, the research explores the lived experiences and perceptions of public managers and their implementation of inclusive management practices. The federal government is among the largest employers in the United States. Past and present presidential administrations recognize the importance of employee inclusion, engagement, and performance management as the foundations for building and sustaining the 21st-century workforce. This dissertation explores the intersection of inclusive management and diversity management. Although inclusive management practices have evolved into diversity management programs, government organizations continue to contend with implementing complex, inclusive practices in the workplace. Executive Order 13583 (2011) established a coordinated government-wide initiative to promote diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce. Changes in inclusive legislation and policies in President Trump's 2019 Management Agenda and the Office of Personnel Management's Strategic Plan 2018–2022 may indicate a shift in diversity and inclusion priorities. The Strategic Plan directs the Office of Personnel Management to provide federal supervisors enhanced public management tools that allow success in the workplace. As in previous years, the 2019 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) identified areas of concern in the workplace. Respondents expressed concerns about how their agency evaluates job performance, processes, merit promotions, and respondents' ability to influence organizational practices. Respondents also were concerned the results of the survey will not improve workplace practices. This research explores the meaning and understanding of inclusive practices through the lenses of eight public managers. Although relying on eight interviews limits the study's generalizability, closely focusing and reflecting on a handful of distinctive voices, this study enabled a greater sensitivity to the lived experiences described by study respondents. The research examines the massive changes taking place in workplaces and societies. The narrative inquiry explored the question: How do public managers and leaders think about and understand inclusive management practices? The literature review guiding the study focuses on theories and concepts related to inclusive leadership, inclusive management practices, inclusion and diversity programs, and theory-to-practice models. Analyzing the eight participants' lived experiences provide a meaningful way of identifying patterns or different ways of doing the same things with inclusive practices, public managers' motivation, and professional training. Overall, inclusive management studies linked historical knowledge of inclusion with current inclusive management practices to enhance public management in the 21st century. The accumulated experiences and perceptions of participants in this study contribute to the existing knowledge of inclusive management practices. The research expands the landscape of inclusive concepts, theories, and practices by focusing mainly on public managers' lived experiences and inclusive management views. This study's results indicate the participants' actions align with the literature related to inclusive leadership concepts and the value of employees' perception of belongingness and uniqueness in the workplace. / Doctor of Philosophy / An Exploration of Inclusive Management Practices: Through the Lenses of Public Managers Jessica Lee Spencer-Gallucci GENERAL AUDIENCE ABSTRACT Although U.S. government organizations have advanced toward a broad view of inclusion, many public managers continue to grapple with an inclusiveness that requires listening, engaging, and supporting all employees in completing core tasks to improve public management services. Most contemporary government work focuses on improved efficiencies and outcomes. Simultaneously, the government workforce demographics have broadened, and inclusion is fundamental to an organization's core values. Inclusion refers to employees' perception that they are part of the organization and its processes. In this paradigm, the employee participates in decision-making, employee work is essential to the team, has adequate access to organizational information, and commands the resources needed to achieve the organization's mission and goals. Massive public management policy changes are taking place in public organizations and societies more generally. Yet, many employees express concern efforts to ensure inclusive practices in public management lack genuine commitment to fostering shared-decision-making, open-communications, trust, fairness, and the ability for employees to contribute to the organization. Inclusive management has emphasized the importance of inclusiveness for the advancement of the workforce in the future. There is limited historical knowledge about how public managers share their practices and learn from experiences of inclusiveness. The existing literature examines the need for managers to practice inclusiveness in the workplace. Additionally, researchers addressed the need for employees to have a sense of belongingness and uniqueness. Despite these queries, relatively little is empirically known about how public managers enact inclusive practices in public management. This exploration seeks to close this gap. Specifically, the inquiry sought a deeper understanding of eight participants' expertise, activity, and knowledge in relational encounters related to inclusive practices. A primary objective is to create a more powerful narrative around the many aspects of the participants' individuality. The results of this study suggest inclusive practices such as inclusive leadership, open-communication, managing workplace challenges, and valuing employees as an asset helps shape the perception of how managers think about and understand inclusiveness. In this study, participants emphasized promoting employee engagement through trust, fairness, and equality for all workplace employees. The study provides a better understanding of inclusive practice patterns that align with existing literature related to inclusive management, diversity, inclusion, and other inclusion literature.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

This is a case study about how a class in the first years of elementary school works with the part of inclusion work - that has to do with social belonging and kinship. The study aims to learn about how the selected school works to support social contacts and kinship, and also to identify the obstacles that can stand in the way for interaction between the pupils.The starting point for the study is a class where one of the pupils has disabilities. The class was observed during two days, interviews took place with teachers and parents and document studies were conducted.The result shows that the selected school tends to conduct an integration work that has more to do with physical placement than social kinship and participation. In conclusion, the study shows that there was small possibilities of situations of interplay that contribute to interaction and communication between the pupil with disabilities and other pupils. I hope that my study can contribute to improving other learning environments to become more inclusive.

The objective of the project was to develop a furniture set that consists of a multifunctional bed and a cabinet. A pre-study was performed to define the problem area and to set the requirements for the furniture. The pre-study included: studies and discussions at the associated company, literature review within the field, user survey, market search and ergonomics study. When the specification was set and clarified, the concept generation phase was started. Design methods were used to structure and support the design activity. In addition, principles of inclusive design were followed in order to end up with a design that would fit a larger part of the targeted customer group. The generated design concepts were assessed according to fulfilment of set requirements. One final concept was chosen for further development in the following detail design phase. This activity included specifying the design in detail, e.g. related to materials, colours and accessories. The collaboration with the company was essential during the whole project for getting inspiration, feedback and important inputs to the design activity. Hence, the company’s opinions were continuously considered along the design process. A prototype was made of the final design and tests were performed to assess the design and to get input for further development.

M.Ed. / The context of South African education is undergoing change with inclusion as a nationally constitutional imperative. Both mainstream and special school teachers are the key role-players in determining the quality of implementation of this new policy, and expected to embrace and to work in a new frame of reference. The purpose of this research was to investigate the perceptions of special school teachers involved in inclusive education in South Africa. In this study, teachers play an important role, as those responsible for working towards meeting the needs of all learners in the classroom. It is important to determine their perceptions and attitudes of inclusive education. Much of the literature on inclusive education policies focuses on the attitudes of principals and teachers in mainstream schools. This study described the experiences of special school teachers providing specialised remedial education for learners within the Greater Johannesburg area. The research design was qualitative in nature and data collection methods included individuals and group interviews. Purposeful sampling was used to select the participants. The findings from the data revealed that teachers in special schools are concerned about the lack of resources, inadequate training of special schools teachers, and the need for support and collaboration. The participants realize that they need to work together with teachers in the mainstream school, teachers in training, family, the community and specialists. Teachers, training institutions and policy implementers towards the facilitation of development and implementation of inclusion in South Africa may use the findings of this research to improve the existing inclusion practices in the schools. The results of this study indicate that the teachers in special schools have enough information about the theoretical aspects of inclusion but lack resources and support.

Honouring the Journey to the Eighth Fire: Educating to Create Common-Unity Many directions people turn to today there is dissension: bombings, riots, shootings, famine and even genocide. There is an increasing awareness that change is required to create a more peaceful world, but how can we create common-unity and integrate it into educational systems? This narrative enquiry research explores the ways Maxwell International Baha’i School (MIBS) attempted to create an inclusive community that was founded on the principle of the oneness of humanity. It was through MIBS’s conscious attempt to create community that people felt accepted, safe and learned to connect. This research, through a focus group of primary stakeholders, explored the way community was intentionally built. The findings in this research revealed that from its inception, MIBS accepted diversity as a means to create unity, leading to members feeling a sense of belonging, connected to a greater purpose and a desire to serve humanity. With a conscious desire, schools could replicate this type of inclusive community. It is with this knowledge that I have been asked to create a more inclusive community at my current school. Education for a globally inclusive world must not be merely a separation and honouring of diversity, but must instead weave together the diverse elements through ritual and ceremony in a manner that creates an integrated tapestry. It is time to consciously and fully educate people to see that “the earth is but one country and mankind its citizens.” (Baha’u’llah, 1990, p. 346) / Graduate / mcleod.kristy@gmail.com

This event is part of an ongoing conversation series in which women's issues and concerns are addressed in regards to religion and the church. In this conversation, both male and female parents discussed their faith and handing on this Catholic faith to their children. They discussed their desire to share the Catholic traditions that model inclusiveness and justice with their children. / Panelists: Jane Regan, Associate Professor, Boston College Institute of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry; Karen Kennedy, Director, Boston College Urban Catholic Teaching Corps; Daniel P. Leahy, Co-Director, Office of Service and Spirituality, Boston College Alumni Association / Heights Room, Corcoran Commons

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Lehigh University, 2000. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-86).

Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.