With the imminent passing of the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Act (SENDA)) into law in Northern Ireland along with changes to the curriculum and the planned move away from academic selection for post-primary pupils in 2008 the education system in Northern Ireland is about to embrace the most radical change it has ever experienced. Inclusion has now become one of the most pressing educational issues to face the education system in the province. As we move to embrace the changes there is a recognition that Initial Teacher Education (ITE) must review how young teachers are trained so they are equipped to teach effectively in classrooms that may be very different from own learning experience. Because of the history of academic selection many teachers, in particular those in academically selective (grammar) schools have little experience in teaching children with complex special educational needs. The majority of those entering ITE programmes are products of the present highly selective system and are largely (though not exclusively), drawn from this sector. It is likely they have been educated in classrooms where there would have had little exposure to other young people with even very mild learning difficulties. Yet the changes that have already been set in motion will ensure government expectations that, "Every teacher should expect to teach children with SEN". (DfES 2004, p56). Yet the beliefs and attitudes of teachers about their role in meeting the needs of pupils with learning difficulties are key to successful inclusive education. (Carrington 1999). Hargreaves (1994) asserts that, " The teacher is the ultimate key to educational change" and the attitudes of those entering Initial Teacher Training programmes in Northern Ireland towards inclusion and perceptions of their training needs have important implications for the development of these programmes by helping to inform any rationalization that may be required in preparation for a radically changing educational environment. This paper focuses on a small research project undertaken at the University of Ulster that focused on gaining a better knowledge of student teachers attitudes to inclusion prior to their first teaching practice experience. Findings revealed the following: " Many student teachers appear to support the ideal of inclusive classrooms and find the beliefs and aims behind the movement towards inclusion to be laudable. " While supporting the idea of inclusion and inclusive practices the student group still appeared to be more comfortable with the traditional systems they knew. While a large majority claimed to favour all teachers teaching pupils with SEN a substantial minority (44.9%) with 23% still unsure would themselves chose to teach in an academically selective school if given the choice. The contradiction here is further compounded by the fact that only 15.9% actually favoured the removal of the selection procedure as a means of ensuring a more inclusive system. " Though the student group were given a working definition of inclusion and SEN their responses suggested that inclusive classrooms should exist with provisos. " Some student teachers had not yet formed clear opinions about teaching in an inclusive setting. This was not unexpected at this stage of the programme when they had yet to gain teaching experience. While the findings reveal evidence of support for the ideal of inclusion and in inclusive practices generally, they also show that many young teachers still show a strong attachment and belief in traditional academic selection as a preferred education model. References Carrington, S., (1999). Inclusion needs a different school culture. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 3 (3), 257-268. Department for Education and Skills (2004). Removing Barriers to Achievement. The Government's Strategy for SEN. (London:DfES) Hargreaves, A., (1993) Individualism and Individuality: reinterpreting teacher culture, in: J.W. Little and M. McLaughlin (Eds) Teachers' Work: Individuals, colleagues and contests. New York: Teachers College Press