One of the most frequent issues in relation to inclusive education (IE) in the research field is the topic of teachers’ attitudes, concerns, self-efficacy, intentions, etc., which reflects the international debate on inclusion. These 'constructs' rightly belong to the focus of researchers’ analytical attention. In particular, teachers’ attitudes have been empirically demonstrated many times to be crucial for the successful implementation of inclusive practices in the context of collaborative learning for diverse learners, as well as in the approach to individualization and differentiation of instruction (e.g., Hellmich et al., 2019; Schwab & Alnahdi, 2023).

The Czech Republic has adopted many measures in the past two decades based on international recommendations and legal judicial decisions (ECtHR, 2007 – the case of D. H. and Others v. the Czech Republic). Czech educators have been inspired by more advanced education systems in other countries that have successfully implemented IE (Norway, Finland, etc.). The idea of IE in the Czech Republic, however, comes into strong confrontation with the domestic tradition of special education. Like other former post-communist countries in Europe, the Czech Republic is still coping with the consequences of the long-term process of fragmentation and institutionalization of pupils with special educational needs (SEN), e.g. early selection and other inequalities in education. Probably the most extensive research to date in the Czech Republic (Pivarč, 2020) which has mapped the perception of IE by teachers and principals of primary schools shows that teachers from Czech primary schools did not declare clearly positive attitudes towards IE.

A number of research studies have shown that teachers’ negative attitudes towards IE can be perceived as an undesirable phenomenon and may represent a significant barrier to the systemic changes in education. Studies show that teachers’ attitudes towards IE are associated with the implementation of inclusive practices in practice, are relatively stable, and may be difficult to change. Some studies point to a significant association between teachers’ self-efficacy, intentions, concerns, readiness, perceived support, or experience with IE, and teachers’ attitudes toward IE (Yada et al., 2022). In particular, behaviour/intent (the conative component) has been cited as a key factor, as well as high level of self-efficacy, which generally predict more positive teacher attitudes towards IE – however, a significant effect of the relationship between these factors has not always been clearly confirmed (Savolainen et al., 2020). Attitudes also tend to be associated with sociocultural and demographic factors. Demographic variables such as gender or age, however, appear to be particularly significant with respect to the type and severity of disabilities of the students that teachers encounter in their practice.

In the Czech research context, there have not been many studies analysing predictors of primary school teachers’ attitudes towards IE using a hierarchical multilevel structural model. The aim of this research was to analyse selected predictors at the individual and school(contextual) level and to find out which have a more significant effect on the attitudes of primary school teachers in relation to IE. Main research question: Do the variables predicting primary school teachers’ attitudes towards IE take into account teachers perceived self-efficacy and intention towards IE, gender and number of years of experience in education (individual level) and the average level of school teachers’ self-efficacy and intention towards IE, the tenure of the school inclusion coordinator and the schools’ experience with IE (school level)?

A total of 1,434 teachers (Nwomen=1,256; 88%) from a total of 140 regular public primary schools from all 14 regions of the Czech Republic chose to participate in the study (a two-step quota sampling was used). In terms of age structure, teachers in the age category 41–50 years were the most represented in the study (525; 37%). The average declared length of experience of the teachers in education was 21.6 years. The research sample included only public primary schools (special schools were not included) but with different socio-demographic characteristics (e.g. schools with extended foreign language teaching, specialised in sports etc.). Each primary school had a particular number of teachers selected (there were always 5 teachers of a lower primary and 5 teachers of an upper primary school). This research was reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of the J. E. Purkyně University (Faculty of Education) (no. pf_ujep_11/2023/02). In this study, the Czech version (Pivarč, 2023) of the 8-item Attitudes Towards Inclusion (ωAIS=0.90), the 7-item Intention to Teach in Inclusive Classroom (ωITICS=0.75) scale (Sharma & Jacobs, 2016), the 18-item Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices (ωTEIP=0.92) questionnaire (Sharma et al., 2012) along with a questionnaire that measures demographic variables of the teachers (age, gender, number of years of experience in education) were used. These instruments achieved high reliability (McDonald’s ω ≥ 0.75). The questionnaires were given to primary school participants in-person via trained interviewers. Given the characteristics of the data and the research objectives, the analyses were based on two-level structural modelling with fixed and random effects. Multilevel modelling allows separating teacher-level characteristics that differ between teachers and school-level characteristics (which are common to all teachers in a given school). The total raw score of the AIS scale is the dependent cardinal variable that is explained by the first- and second-level predictors. First, a Null model with no variables is estimated. It is determined whether there are significant differences in attitudes between teachers and schools. The variance at the individual and group level is evaluated by the values of the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC). Then, Model 1 with individual variables is estimated. At the second level, Model 2 is also extended with school variables (without interactions). Parameter estimation was performed using the maximum likelihood method. The estimated models are compared using the Akaike (AIC) and Bayesian information criterion (BIC). The data analysis was conducted using SPSS v26.

The null model included only intercept and random effects for teachers and schools (AIC=4525; BIC=4541). Test results showed that it was not possible to ignore the higher-level hierarchy. ICC values showed that 14% of the total variance was accounted for at the school level (p<0.001). Differences in attitudes towards IE were 86% attributed to individual-level (i.e. teacher-level) predictors. Model 1 (AIC=4221; BIC=4258) was then tested with individual-level variables (self-efficacy, intention, gender, and number of years of experience in education). Results showed that higher levels of self-efficacy (b=0.146, p=0.03) and intention (b=0.722, p<0.001) positively predicted teachers’ attitudes toward IE. In contrast, females (b=−0.194, p=0.02) had more negative attitudes towards IE compared to males. Number of years of experience in education was not related to attitudes (p>0.05). Individual and school-level predictors were controlled for in Model 3 (AIC=4197; BIC=4255; ICC=7%). There appeared to be differences between schools. Attitudes towards IE were positively predicted by higher mean scores of schools on the ITICS scale (bintention=0.871, p<0.001). The same was true for schools that had experience of implementing IE (b=0.170, p<0.01). Teacher self-efficacy (b=0.150, p=0.03), intention (b=0.651, p<0.001) and gender (b=-0.187, p=0.03) remained significant predictors. Overall, the results in this research show that teachers from Czech primary schools declared more neutral (reserved) attitudes on the AIS scale (M=3,72, SD=1,20). There were differences in teachers’ attitudes depending on whether the school where they teach has experience and declares its intention to implement IE. Declared intention to implement IE among individual teachers also emerged as a significant predictor of attitudes towards IE, as did self-efficacy and gender (however, in line with some studies -Yada et al., 2022- the effects of these predictors were rather weaker). A limitation of the research is that even after controlling for predictors, significant differences remained that need to be further analysed.

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