Insegnanti di sostegno e educazione inclusiva: una ricerca su atteggiamenti, autoefficacia, autovalutazione di conoscenze e competenze e comportamenti in classe

This exploratory study analyzes attitudes toward inclusion, self-efficacy in implementing inclusive education, knowledge, and skills for managing pupils with special needs, and behaviors implemented for school inclusion in a sample of 391 support teachers without specialization. The results highlight favorable attitudes towards inclusion but reveal the persistence of beliefs that justify the separation of students with special needs. Teachers report a good level of self-efficacy in inclusion but perceive themselves to be less competent in managing classroom dynamics. Many teachers, while perceiving themselves as skilled in managing relationships with colleagues and planning, perceive gaps in the knowledge and skills needed to implement effective inclusive education. Especially self-efficacy in implementing inclusive education appears to be related to knowledge, skills, and inclusive behaviors. This research suggests the need to strengthen the training of support teachers and promote inclusive behaviors to ensure effective inclusion.