Inclusion or Special School? Effects on Self-Concept in Middle School Students with Intellectual Disabilities: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Perceptions of inclusive and special schools teachers on the self-concepts of their students with intellectual disabilities were compared to explore the research question: What is the effect of an inclusive setting versus a special school setting on the self-concept of middle school students with intellectual disabilities?Teachers emphasized the individuality and variety of struggles with self-concept in their students.Further research is needed to study middle school students with intellectual disabilities about aspects of their own self-concept in order to raise awareness about self-concept issues in this population.Self-concept can be positively developed (Yusop et al., 2015), so this research may lead to areas teachers can target in their social-emotional teaching across settings for middle school students with intellectual disabilities.