The Opinions of Mothers of Children with Special Needs Regarding Inclusive Education

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the opinions of mothers who had children with special needs attending inclusive elementary schools regarding inclusive practice. With this purpose, 11 mothers with children attending the first, second and third grades of inclusive elementary schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in the Edirne province were interviewed. In this phenomenological study, the data collected through interviews was analyzed with content analysis. The results showed that the mothers were not adequately knowledgeable on the subject of inclusion. In the study, most of the mothers said that the similarities between the child with special needs and normally developing children were mostly physical, that the orthopedic impairment group could benefit more from inclusion, that adjustments were made in the child’s seating in the educational environment and that during the course of inclusion they required educational support services most of all. In addition, most of the mothers experienced various difficulties in inclusive education concerning lessons, enrolling the child to school and class, and transportation of the child to and from the school.