Inclusive education refers to a system where students with disabilities are valued and active participants in regular classrooms in their neighbourhood schools (Porter & Towell, 2017). In 1994, the Salamanca Statement reaffirmed a global and united commitment to making education more inclusive for students with disabilities (UNESCO, 1994). In the decades that followed the Salamanca Statement, much cross country research has been done in the field of inclusive education, creating opportunities for countries to learn from one another. There is overwhelming evidence that including students with disabilities in the regular classrooms has social and academic advantages for students with and without disabilities (Hehir et al., 2016), yet teachers continue to report significant barriers to effectively implementing inclusive education (Sokal & Katz, 2015). For example, teachers commonly perceive a lack of resources and report feeling like their training did not provide them with the skills needed for inclusion (McCrimmon, 2015; Sharma et al., 2007; Sokal & Katz, 2015). Ensuring that teachers are prepared to work effectively in inclusive classrooms and schools is thus an essential focus of research today.

Sharma (2018) proposed the 3H framework as a way to support the development of inclusive teachers. His framework posits that development must target three key areas: (1) knowledge of inclusive practices, (2) beliefs that support inclusion, and (3) skills and confidence to implement inclusive practices. This paper focuses on the development of beliefs that support inclusion. Beliefs are known to influence the way people perceive their world and subsequently guide behaviours and action (Fives & Buehl, 2012; Funkhouserk, 2017). Not surprisingly, research has found that teachers’ beliefs influence their instruction in inclusive classrooms (Jordan, 2018a; Jordan, 2018b). Specific beliefs about the teacher’s role in the classroom, the goal of teaching and learning, and the nature of ability influence the quality of inclusive practices. These beliefs are captured in a 20-item self-report measure called the Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire (Glenn, 2018).

Teachers with inclusive scores on the Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire tend to use more cognitively engaging instruction (e.g., back-and-forth question and answer periods) and scaffolding with individual students and small groups. They are also more likely to take responsibility for meeting the learning needs of students with disabilities. Teachers with low inclusive scores tends to spend less time engaging their students in academic talk and more time managing behaviours and clarifying routines and instructions. These teachers are more likely to place the responsibility of educating students with disabilities with special education teachers (Glenn, 2018; Jordan, 2018a; Jordan, 2018b).

A recent analysis of Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire data from 396 Canadian beginning teachers revealed three distinct trajectories for the development of beliefs from the time pre-service teachers were in their education program through to the early years of their careers. Most notably, one fifth of the sample became less inclusive in their beliefs after graduating from their education program (Specht, Delorey & Puka, 2022). Past research has identified broad experiences that contribute to the development of beliefs; however, there is a gap in our understanding of how these experiences influence beliefs at different stages of teacher development. The present study aims to contribute novel information to further the field’s understanding of how various experiences influence the development of beliefs from initial teacher education through the first two years of teaching.

This qualitative study uses cross-sectional interview data that was collected as part of a larger national project called the Beginning Teachers Study. It follows from Specht et al. (2022) in that the interviews were completed by a subset of the those who completed the Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire. Participants were asked about the experiences that have influenced their beliefs about how students learn in diverse classrooms. It was explained that for the purposes of this study, “diverse classrooms” refers to regular classrooms that include students with disabilities. The semi-structured interviews took place over the phone. The first interview was conducted when participants were nearing the end of their initial teacher education program. Two follow-up interviews were completed on a yearly basis, resulting with interview data from three different stages of teacher development. Participants were entered into a draw each year for a chance to win 1 of 15, $100 gift cards. Sixty-four participants completed a total of 106 interviews (48 interviews at time 1, 37 interviews at time 2, and 21 interviews at time 3). Reflexive thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2021) is utilized in this study because of its ability to facilitate a rich and nuanced understanding of the data. This process is guided by six phases that include: (1) data familiarisation, (2) systematic coding, (3) generating initial themes, (4) developing and reviewing themes, (5) refining and defining themes, and (6) writing results. For this study, the analysis employs a predominately deductive approach and uses the constructs of the Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire (Glenn, 2018) as a framework to code the data. As such, interviews are being coded to gain an understanding of the specific beliefs that are influenced by various experiences.

Analysis for the present study is ongoing and currently in phase 3, as outlined above. Preliminary analysis is highlighting some key differences in terms of the experiences and the beliefs that they influence at different stages of teacher development. For example, participants who are still enrolled in their initial teacher education program speak about the influence that coursework and practicum have on their beliefs about the teacher’s role in the classroom. Participants in their first year of teaching predominantly speak about how classroom experiences have influenced their beliefs about ability and how students learn. These early results suggest that developing a complete set of beliefs that support inclusive education may be a cumulative process. Considering the results reported by Specht et al. (2022), it is also expected that this paper will contribute information about experiences that are associated with beliefs becoming less inclusive after participants graduate from their teacher education program. This information could enable teacher educators to disrupt the development of less inclusive beliefs, with the hope of changing the trajectory toward more inclusive beliefs. Overall, the findings from this study will have implications for various stakeholders, including teachers, teacher educators, and school administrators. Gaining a better understanding of how inclusive practice beliefs develop at different stages of teacher development will greatly enhance the field’s ability to provide beginning teachers with targeted experiences to promote beliefs that support inclusive practices, which will ultimately improve outcomes for students.

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