STAVOVI I ISKUSTVA UČITELJA O PRIMJENI TEMATSKIH PRIČA U RAZVOJU INKLUZIVNIH VRIJEDNOSTI
TEACHER'S EXPERIENCE AND ATTITUDE TOWARD APLAYING STORIES IN INCLUSIVE CLASSES

Author(s): Sanja Skočić Mihić, Maja Opašić, Ana Japundžić
Subject(s): School education, Inclusive Education / Inclusion, Sociology of Education
Published by: UNIVERZITET U SARAJEVU – PEDAGOŠKI FAKULTET
Keywords: bibliotherapy; children’s literature; stories; inclusive values; students with disabilities;
Summary/Abstract: Stories have a particular value in promoting inclusive values and are an excellent medium that can effectively and subtly point out desirable behaviour to students. The aim of the paper was to: (1) examine teachers’ attitudes towards using thematic stories in classrooms, (2) examine their experience in using stories, and (3) establish the correlation between the factors, and their correlation with the sociodemographic data.The sample contains 101 class teachers who are employed in four counties of the Republic of Croatia. Two scales of good metric characteristics were used: Teachers’ Attitude towards Using Stories in Classroom Scale (α = 0.820) and Teachers’ Experience in Using Stories Scale, with two factors: Stories' Positive Influence on Student Behaviour (α = 0.952) and Using Stories during a Classroom Meeting (α = 0.836).Teachers have positive attitudes towards using stories in classrooms, they often use different activities to promote inclusive values during classroom meetings and they have experienced a positive impact of a story on children’s behaviour. Teachers with more experience of the stories' having positive impact on children’s behaviour are more likely to use activities that promote inclusive values in the classroom, which is not related to the attitude or the sociodemographic characteristics of the teacher. Also, a positive correlation was established between a teacher’s self-perceived awareness of thematic stories thanks to consultation with professional experts, conversations with colleagues and reading professional literature, and the teacher’s experience of the stories’ positive influence on children’s behaviour.To summarise, teachers consider stories to be pervasive in educational work and recognize the value of their use. Recommendations are made towards developing teachers’ competence, at the formal level of initial and ongoing professional development, in the use of stories for the regulation of student behaviour and the formation of inclusive classroom environment.

• Details
• Contents