DIAGNOSING THE READINESS LEVEL OF FUTURE EDUCATORS FOR INCLUSIVE TEACHING

Abstract

The study was aimed at identifying and understanding the problems of training future educators who teach people with disabilities. The main goal is to understand the problems, attitudes and level of acquired competencies and knowledge of future educators for their professional development as inclusive educators. Motivation, content, practice and assessment criteria were identified and disclosed, which corresponded to the conditions of inclusive education and were associated with the future educator’s readiness to work with students with disabilities. Students from three universities located in the cities of Shymkent and Almaty in the Republic of Kazakhstan took part in this study. A total of 146 students (n=146) participated in the experiment. Three levels of inclusive competence of future educators i.e. students  of pedagogical specialties were identified: low, intermediate and high. According to each methodology, the future educator's level of mastery of inclusive policy, mastery of the theory of inclusive education, level of motivation for inclusive education, level of formation of inclusive education experience were determined. The results indicate that future educators have positive attitudes toward diversity, but there are significant training gaps. The essential characteristics and structural components of the readiness of future educators for inclusive education are determined. This research has also been shown to be effective in promoting more positive attitudes, reducing anxiety, improving teaching in diversity settings, and promoting the development of inclusive practices and practices that serve as protective factors for educator well-being.