Building capacity for inclusive classroom teaching through teacher preparation programs.

This study examined whether pre-service teachers (PSTs) developed a professional schema for inclusive classroom teaching over the four years of their teacher preparation program. The study employed a cohort design to examine PSTs’ schema development from initial enrolment through successive cohorts to the end of an undergraduate teaching degree. Professional schema development was referenced to national standards for graduate teachers. The study sought to establish whether PSTs had developed the cognitive architecture required for classroom ready inclusive teaching and whether their professional schema development reflected the coherent and sequenced delivery of content required by the national program standards. The results showed limited professional schema development until the end of the third year of progression when students participated in a course specifically about inclusive education. The growth accrued during the third year was not evident in the fourth-year cohort that had also completed the inclusive education course in its third year. The implications for teacher preparation and graduate teachers working in inclusive classrooms are discussed.