PRACTISING INCLUSION IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LEARNING PROCESS: AN EVALUATION STUDY OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION PRACTICES IN INDONESIA

Abstract

The objective of the study was to evaluate the practice of inclusive education during the learning process within the elementary school. The practice of inclusive education was evaluated by means of inclusion index that consisted of 18 indicators with 54 as the ideal score; the index was adapted from that of Booth and Ainscow. The inclusion index was attained by observing the learning process in the classroom. In addition, the researcher also analyzed the teachers’ opinion regarding the inclusive education and the process of accepting the students with special needs in the schools. The study was conducted to 10 classrooms in 4 elementary schools within the region of Banjarmasin city. The results of the study showed that the inclusive index had been equal to 38.58. The teachers’ understanding regarding the inclusive education was focused on the placement of students with special needs in the regular schools and, in general, the acceptance of students with special needs in the schools had not been accompanied by a systematic plan in relation to the implementation of inclusive education.