This is a descriptive study of Florida teachers and their attitudes toward disabled learners. As a result of Public Law 94-142 with its concept of "least restrictive environment," regular classroom teachers have special need students in their classrooms with increasing frequency. A survey was utilized to measure teachers' attitudes toward the disabled. / The population included secondary school teachers selected as representive of the entire state. Two sampling populations were used: first, special education teachers and second, social studies and math teachers. Teachers within these groups were selected randomly. / The data gathering instrument consisted of a biographical checklist, the Attitude Toward Disabled People Scale by Yuker, Block, and Younng, the Empathy Scale by Robert Hogan, and the Survey of Ethical Attitudes by Robert Hogan. The surveys were mailed directly to teachers. / Responses from 71 percent of the teachers sampled were received and computed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). / Analysis of variance revealed that there is a significant difference between special educators and regular classroom teachers' attitudes toward the disabled. There were also significant differences among the teachers of each group, illustrating that area of speciality does effect attitude toward the disabled. Teacher race and sex were determined not to have an effect on attitude towards the disabled. / A path analysis of the survey items revealed that there were causal relationships between variables. The strongest positive relationship was found between empathy and attitude toward disabled people. Age and number of years teaching had negative correlations with attitude towards disabled people. Teachers who operate from an ethic of personal conscience had a better attitude toward the disabled than teachers who operate from an ethic of social responsibility. / Recommendations include: inservice teacher training that considers differences of teachers, incorporation of empathy training into teacher education programs, planning by Teacher Education Centers for P.L. 94-142 workshops. / Further research was recommended: duplication of the study using preservice teachers; examination of other variables that could effect teachers attitude; experimental research using existing inservice programs; in-school research to determine which teachers are already teaching the handicapped effectively. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-10, Section: A, page: 4282. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74663 |
| Contributors | STEVENS, ROBERT NICHOLS., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 199 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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