Abstract This paper is a review of the literature relating to the perception of inclusion by the general education and special education teachers on the high school level. The literature focuses on three ideas: teachers’ attitude towards inclusion, factors that negatively impact the perception of inclusion, and factors that positively impact the perception of inclusion. Overall, the literature shows that the teachers’ perception of inclusion greatly impacts how successful their inclusive classroom will be. Keywords: inclusion, students with disabilities, general education, perception, special education Inclusion: How does the perception of inclusion differ between general education and special education teachers in the high school …show more content…
All students include students with disabilities. Often times, students with disabilities are ‘forgotten’ about or given less attention because of their disability. Bērziņa (2010) talks about how the Salamanka Statement is the most important international document discussing the rights of people with special needs. The Salamanka Statement explains that inclusive environments are the most effective means of fighting discriminatory attitudes and attaining education for everyone. Inclusive classrooms are not only important academically, but also socially for the teacher, students with disabilities, and students without disabilities. In my opinion an inclusive environment, although put in place to provide equal academic opportunities, will provide essential life skills needs for all parties. With the growing popularity of inclusion, it is important to get a better understanding of how educators perceive it. The literature reviewed looked at teachers’ attitude towards inclusion, teachers’ perception of inclusion, and factors that both negatively and positively impacted it. A search of literature from 2012 – 2017 was conducted in the Jerry Falwell Library database from Liberty University. The guiding questions for the research