Educational personnel's perceptions of mainstreaming and resource room effectiveness

Abstract

Equivalent forms of a questionnaire were administered to elementary classroom and resource room teachers. The questionnaires were designed to elicit teachers' attitudes and perceptions as to the effectiveness and appropriateness of mainstreaming, regular classroom teachers' level of skill competency, assistance from the resource room, and communication between the resource room and regular classroom teachers. Results indicated that resource and regular teachers evidenced differential perceptions as to all factors investigated. Educational implications of the findings were discussed and specific recommendations were proposed.Recent litigation and legislation at the state and national level require that handicapped students receive a free education commensurate with their needs, and, where appropriate, be educated with their nonhandicapped peers. Such goals necessitate that the majority of students presently labeled handicapped receive their education within the mainstream of the regular school program. Because these children exhibit a diverse and unique range of problems, their education and remediation require the combined resources and energies of both special and regular educators. Consequently, if the mainstreaming effort is to be facilitated, educational personnel must work together harmoniously.Although few have questioned the philosophical and humanitarian goals underlying integration, empirical evidence directly supporting the mainstreaming rationale is not substantial (Keogh & Levitt, 1976). Despite this fact, and because of the legislative pressure of PL 94-142 and recent court decisions, mainstreaming programs have mushroomed in schools across the nation. Unfortunately, the quality of many of these programs is unknown. It would be naive to assume that legislative action and legal decisions will insure the development and implementation of appropriate mainstreaming programs.The success of integration is, in part, contingent upon the attitudes of the individuals directly or indirectly involved. Of primary importance is the willingness of regular and special educators to accomodate the mainstreaming principle. In a recent study, Hudson, Graham, and Warner (1979) found that regular classroom teachers were not supportive of the mainstreaming concept. Teachers believed that they did not have the time, support services, or necessary training to effectively teach handicapped learners in their classroom. Class size, inaccessibility of materials, time restraints, and the unavailability of immediate and long-term support services were related to unfavorable attitudes.One aspect of the Hudson, et al. (1979) study that bears further investigation involves the unavailability of immediate and long-term support services. If adequate support services are insufficient or not available, the likelihood of providing a mainstreamed handicapped learner with an appropriate education is greatly diminished. Furthermore, Based in part on a Master's Thesis completed at the University of Kansas by Judy Lockwood. 128

Perceptions of Classroom Teachers, Principals, and Resource Room Teachers of the Actual and Desired Roles of the Resource Teacher

“…In a study of 23 resource teachers and 144 classroom teachers, Graham, Hudson, Burdg, and Carpenter (1980) found that resource teachers felt adequate lines of communciation existed between classroom teachers and themselves, while classroom teachers felt that this was not the case at all. D' Alonzo and Wiseman (1978) surveyed 134 high school learning disability resource room teachers and reported that role expectations were relatively unestablished in areas contingent upon shared efforts: referrals, in-service, classroom observations, consultation, and team teaching.…”

“…The success of any mainstreaming effort is subject to the cooperation and attitudes of the individuals involved (Graham et al 1980), yet little research has been done on the perceptions of both special and regular educators with regard to resource room teachers. Most classroom teachers and school administrators have or will have contact with students receiving services in a resource room program.…”

Composition Research and Practice: A Unified Approach

“…The· likelihood of writing success is increased if each of the participating teachers is assigned specific responsibilities for selected aspects of the proposed composition program. This requires that special and regular classroom teachers establish effective lines of communication, work together cooperatively, and coordinate their instructional plans ( Graham, Hudson, Burdg, & Carpenter, 1980;Hudson, Graham, & Warner, 1979). The author, therefore, hopes that teachers will adapt the model presented in this article to their own particular students and situations.…”

A Mentor Program for Facilitating the Lifetransitions of Individuals Who Have Handicapping Conditions

“…A substantial body of evidence confirms the seriousness of this problem. Some teachers are uncomfortable with mainstreamed children, resent their presence, and treat them differently from their peers (Graham, Burdig, Hudson, & Carpenter, 1980;Schmelkin, 1986); some classmates reject mainstreamed children or socially segregate them (Gottlieb, 1975;Gresham, 1986;Willey & McCandless, 1973); Many mainstreamed children, who often have lower self-esteem than their counterparts in special classes, have difficulties (Barger, 1978;Semmel & Semmel, 1979) and only occasionally show evidence of superior achievement in regular classes (Strain & Kerr, 1981, p. 37). Too frequently it appears that mainstreaming practices result in "parallel streams" of education for the handicapped and nonhandicapped children placed in common classroom settings (Gerold & Barners, 1985).…”