Support, inclusion, and Special Education teachers’ attitudes toward the education of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Hindawi Publishing Co po a ion Au ism Resea ch and T ea men Volume 2012, A icle ID 259468, 8pages doi:10.1155/2012/259468 Resea ch A icle Suppo , Inclusion, and Special Educa ion Teache s’ A i udes owa d he Educa ion o S uden s wi h Au ism Spec um Diso de s Isabel R. Rod ´ ıguez, Da id Salda˜ na, and F. Ja ie Mo eno Depa amen o de Psicolog´ ıa E olu i a y de la Educaci´ on, Facul ad de Psicolog´ ıa, C/Camilo Jos´ e Cela, s/n, 41018 Se illa, Spain Co espondence should be add essed o Isabel R. Rod ´ ıguez, [email p o ec ed] Recei ed 28 June 2011; Re ised 28 No embe 2011; Accep ed 19 Decembe 2011 Academic Edi o : Connie Kasa i Copy igh © 2012 Isabel R. Rod ´ ıguez e al. This is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion License, which pe mi s un es ic ed use, dis ibu ion, and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal wo k is p ope ly ci ed. This s udy is aimed a assessing special educa ion eache s’ a i udes owa d eaching pupils wi h au ism spec um diso de s (ASDs) and a de e mining he ole o a iables associa ed wi h a posi i e a i ude owa ds he child en and hei educa ion. Six y-nine special educa ion eache s we e in e iewed. The in e iew included wo mul iple-choice Like - ype ques ionnai es, one abou eache s’ a i ude, and ano he abou eache s’ pe cei ed needs in ela ion o he speci ic educa ion o he pupil wi h ASD. The s udy shows a posi i e iew o eache s’ expec a ions ega ding he educa ion o pupils wi h ASD. A di ec logis ic eg ession analysis was pe o med es ing o expe ience wi h he child, school ela ionship wi h an ASD ne wo k and ype o school (mains eam o special) as po en ial p edic o s. Al hough all h ee a iables a e use ul in p edic ing special educa ion eache s’ a i udes, he mos ele an was he ela ionship wi h an ASD ne wo k. Need o in o ma ion and social suppo a e he ela i ely highes needs exp essed by eache s. 1. In oduc ion Posi i e eache a i udes a e an impo an p edic o o he success ul educa ion o child en wi h disabili ies, includ- ing hose wi h au ism spec um diso de s (ASDs) [1,2]. Howe e , he se e i y and pe asi eness ASD o en leads o he eaching and inclusion o his g oup o pupils o be seen as especially complex [3]. E en eache s o ecognized p o essional compe ence o en conside hemsel es less able o deal wi h hese s uden s han wi h hose wi h any o he o m o special needs [4–7]. Resea ch in o eache s’ a i udes owa ds inclusion and s uden s wi h disabili ies has shown ha hey a e e y much in luenced by a iables such as expe ience, aining, and pe cep ion o a ailable esou ces and suppo [8–13]. G ea e expe ience in inclusi e educa ional con ex s a ou s a mo e posi i e a i ude owa d he educa ion o s uden s wi h spe- cial needs in mains eam class ooms [10,11]. Giang eco [9], o example, ound ha in a class whe e s uden s wi h se e e disabili ies we e included, eache a i udes changed o e ime om ini ial esis ance o a mo e a ou able pe cep ion. Teache aining also has a powe ul in luence on he de elopmen o a i udes owa d inclusion, especially when i inco po a es ela ed and speci ic p o essional abili ies [8]. Ano he aspec ha in luences he way a i udes a e con igu ed is eache pe cep ion o a ailable esou ces. In a s udy wi h 1430 eache s wi h expe ience in inclusi e se - ings, h ee ypes o esou ces we e deemed necessa y: ain- ing, suppo om a eam o expe s, and suppo in he class- oom [13]. The suppo o expe s and o he p ac i ione s is especially aluable when i is accompanied by app op ia e collabo a ion [12]. These dimensions (expe ience, aining, and pe cep ion o a ailable esou ces and suppo ) a e also ele an in he case o a i udes owa ds wo king wi h child en wi h ASD. Teache aining, o example, is pa icula ly impo an he e o he speci ic na u e o he needs o hese s uden s and p e ailing misconcep ions su ounding au ism. P e ious esea ch has shown he necessi y o upda ing and expanding on eache s’ knowledge base on au ism [4–6,14–17]. In a ela ed s udy, Jenne e al. [16] explo ed p o essional sel -efficacy and bu n-ou in eache s wo king wi h hese 2 Au ism Resea ch and T ea men child en. In he su ey o 64 eache s applying wo diffe en eaching me hods, ela i ely low bu n-ou and high sel - efficacy a es we e ound. This would suppo he idea ha clea p ac ical and heo e ical amewo ks a e necessa y o eache s in ol ed in educa ion o child en wi h au ism. P esence and collabo a ion o suppo s affis ano he ele an ac o o be conside ed. Simpson e al. [3] indica e ha eache s a e p epa ed o each s uden s wi h ASD i his occu s in he con ex o collabo a ion wi h special educa- ion eache s and suppo s affand wi h o he addi ional esou ces. This is a need o en men ioned by eache s in su eys abou hei pe cep ion o au ism (e.g., [17]) (see [1,18,19] o s udies on how he speci ic con ex o suppo can de e mine i s effec s). The p esen s udy is pa o a la ge p ojec aimed a de e mining he s a us o p o ision o special educa ional needs o pupils wi h ASD in he ci y o Se ille (Spain) [20– 24]. Se ille has a popula ion o app oxima ely 700,000 inhab- i an s, o which 95,861 a e child en in Kinde ga en, com- pulso y p ima y and seconda y educa ion and special edu- ca ion. A o al o 165 s uden s wi h ASD we e egis e ed as pa o a wide s udy in he schools o he ci y. A o al o 37% o hese s uden s was diagnosed wi h au ism diso de , 33.3% as PDD-NOS, 8.5% as Aspe ge ’s synd ome, and 0.6% as Re synd ome, wi h an addi ional 20.6% cases diagnosed as au ism spec um diso de s wi hou addi ional speci ica ion. The amilies o hese child en we e also in e iewed wi hin his b oade s udy. They we e asked abou pe cei ed needs in hei child en’s educa ion and hei sa is ac ion wi h he educa ional sys em (see [20,21] o addi ional in o ma ion). In gene al, amilies’ sa is ac ion was high, al hough i was la gely dependan on he child’s educa ional placemen (in a special o egula school). The a iables mos ela ed o a posi i e pe cep ion we e p o ision o esou ces and eache aining. The s udy also in ended o collec eache s’ pe cep ions and demands in o de o plan o u u e suppo and aining schemes. Mos o he eache s in ol ed in he educa ion o hese child en ha e a college deg ee in special educa ion (al hough no speci ically ela ed o au ism) and some imes ecei e supplemen a y aining in au ism. They can each in special o mains eam schools. In mains eam se ings, hey will be eaching child en wi h ASD o o he disabili ies who spend all o pa o hei ime in a suppo class oom sepa a e om he o he child en. Fi y- wo pe cen o he s uden s pa icipa ing in he o e all s udy we e in mains eam schools. In he ci y o Se ille, he e is an addi ional a iable o be conside ed ha is cen al o he p esen s udy. Va ious pa en al and p o essional ASD g oups p o ide speci ic suppo o eache s. In some cases, hese a e eache s hi ed in schools di ec ly unded and un by he suppo g oup, bu in o he s hey a e eache s belonging o special o mains eam schools. Twen y-se en pe cen o he child en wi h ASD a he ime o he s udy we e augh in schools linked o hese ne wo ks. All hei eache s ecei ed ex a aining and suppo ela ed o eaching child en wi h ASD. This ne wo k p o ided examples o success ul inclusion, de eloped addi ional means o in o mal suppo , con ibu ed o he dissemina ion o in o ma ion and posi i e expe iences among p ac i ione s, and aimed a educing he anxie y ela ed o he inclusion o a new s uden wi h au ism in he class oom. One o he objec i es o he p esen s udy was o de e mine he in luence o hese ne wo ks on he special educa ion eache s’ a i udes and needs, o e and abo e hei ini ial specializa ion and aining. Special educa ion eache s we e he ocus o he s udy due o he ac ha hey a e he mos equen ly in ol ed in he eaching o child en wi h ASD. Mo e impo an ly, whe eas p ima y eache s, ha do no ha e a college deg ee in special educa ion, a e only p esen in mains eam schools and la gely do no ecei e he ASD ne wo ks suppo , special educa ion eache s a e p esen in diffe en con ex s, wi h some o hem ecei ing ne wo k suppo ( aining and ad ice om expe s in in e en ion wi h child en wi h au ism) and some o hem no . The speci ic aims o he s udy we e, he e o e, (1) o assess special educa ion eache s’ a i udes owa d eaching pupils wi h ASD and hei cu en needs o suppo , (2) o analyse he ole o a iables associa ed wi h a posi i e a i ude owa ds he child en and hei educa ion, speci ically educa ional placemen and p o ision o suppo wi hin a specialized ne wo k. 2. Ma e ials and Me hod 2.1. Pa icipan s and Se ing. Six y-nine special educa ion eache s (19% men and 81% women) we e in e iewed. All o hem held a bachelo -le el college deg ee in special educa ion. Fo y- h ee o hem had he suppo o an au ism ne wo k. A o al o 58% o special educa ion eache s we e in mains eam schools. A e age eaching expe ience was 10.8 yea s (SD =10.0). Thi y pe cen had been wo king as eache s o less han ou yea s. A o al o 42% had ne e been in ol ed in he educa ion o a pupil wi h ASD p io o he p esen yea . The emainde had an a e age o 6.7 yea s o expe ience (SD =7.2) eaching child en wi h ASD. A o al o 64.9% had 5 o less yea s o expe ience. 2.2. Da a Collec ion and Ins umen s. All he eache s o he 165 egis e ed child en wi h ASD in he ci y we e con ac ed h ough amilies belonging o suppo g oups o h ough educa ional adminis a i e da abases. Toge he wi h 27 p ima y eache s also in e iewed as pa o he wide s udy esponden s we e esponsible o he educa ion o 80% o he child en wi h ASD in he ci y. They we e all in e iewed indi idually in hei schools. The in e - iewe ead he i ems o he eache s, and he eache s p o ided he esponses o he in e iewe . The in e iew included he ollowing wo ques ionnai es (accessible a h p://bscw. edi is.es/pub/bscw.cgi/3932122/): Teache A i ude. This ques ionnai e assessed eache s’ a i- udes owa ds he eaching o child en wi h au ism. I included i ems on diffe en dimensions ha he cu en li e a u e has conside ed could in luence and modula e Au ism Resea ch and T ea men 3 Table 1: Mean and s anda d de ia ion o i ems included in he eache a i ude ques ionnai e (sco es o nega i e i ems ha e been in e ed) (N=69). I ems Range Mean SD His/he pa en s ha e a posi i e a i ude owa ds him/he 1–6 4.4 1.2 I would p e e o wo k wi h child en wi h o he ypes o disabili y 1–6 5.4 1.1 Wi h a amily like his, eache s’ wo k is useless 1–6 5.1 1.4 I am no he igh pe son o wo k wi h child en like hese 1–6 5.7 0.8 We shall p obably be able o imp o e his child’s academic abili ies 1–6 4.7 1.1 I ind i ha de o wo k wi h his child han wi h o he s wi h diffe en special needs 1–6 4.4 1.6 The amily’s ac i i ies a e posi i e o his child’s de elopmen 1–6 4.6 1.4 I is e y difficul o collabo a e wi h his amily 1–6 4.2 1.4 We shall p obably be able o imp o e he social abili ies o his child 3–6 4.6 1.1 E en wi h ex a aining, I would ind i ha d o wo k wi h his child 1–6 5.1 1.2 I ha e had e y enjoyable momen s wo king wi h his child 1–6 4.9 1.2 We shall p obably be able o help his child adap o changes in his/he en i onmen 2–6 4.8 1.0 The amily is e y a en i e o he ecommenda ions hey ecei e om he school 1–6 4.6 1.2 We can p obably imp o e his child’s language abili ies 1–6 4.3 1.4 The amily o his child ha e helped me o be e unde s and he wo ld o au ism 1–6 3.5 1.5 We shall p obably be able o imp o e his child’s beha io 1–6 4.9 1.1 The knowledge hese pa en s ha e abou hei child’s special needs is good 1–6 3.8 1.5 I ind i e y ha d o wo k wi h his pupil 1–6 4.8 1.2 I am con iden ha I shall be able o imp o e my in e ac ion wi h his child 1–6 4.8 1.2 The con ibu ion o he amily o his child’s de elopmen is e y posi i e 1–6 4.5 1.2 Howe e much I y, I do no eel I shall achie e any imp o emen in his child 1–6 5.3 1.1 educa ional p ac ices wi h child en wi h disabili ies, such as he ollowing. (i) E alua ion and pe cep ion o pupils’ pa en s. I ems he e e lec ed eache pe cep ions o pa en s’ ela- ionships, bo h wi h each o he and wi h he eache . (ii) Expec a ions o child’s chances o imp o emen . Edu- ca ional p ac i ione s’ ision on he possibili ies o hei s uden s o lea n is an impo an in luence on hei wo k and was hen conside ed an impo an dimension o be included in he ques ionnai e. I ems ela ed o de elopmen and he au ism iad, as well as o he s on he child en’s possibili ies o imp o ing on hese dimensions, we e included. (iii) Emo ional esponse o wo king wi h child en wi h ASD. The pe cep ion o his kind o wo k as pleasan o unpleasan was collec ed. An ini ial pool o i ems was submi ed o he e alua ion o panel o expe p ac i ione s in he ield o au ism. The inal esul was a 21-i em mul iple-choice Like - ype ques ionnai e (1 o o al disag eemen o 6 o al ag eemen ) including eigh i ems ela i e o he pe cep ion o he s uden s’ pa en s, se en ela ed o expec a ions and six o p o essional sel -concep and emo ional eac ions o wo king wi h he child wi h ASD (see Table 1). A hie a chical a iable clus e analysis (squa ed Euclidean dis ance and in e g oup linkage) con i med his i em s uc u e. The ques ionnai e p esen ed a sa is ac o y in e nal consis ency (C onbach’s α=.85). Needs Ques ionnai e. Teache s we e asked abou hei pe - cei ed needs in ela ion o he speci ic educa ion o he pupil wi h ASD ha hey we e eaching wi h a 22-i em Like - ype ques ionnai e (1—I do no need his a all— o 6— his is impo an and I need i u gen ly. I need i now, wi hou delay—), simila o he eache a i ude ques ionnai e. This was a Spanish adap a ion o his s udy o he amily needs scale [25]. In ou case, he i ems we e adap ed o he Spanish educa ional sys em and o exis ing eache and eache suppo igu es. The adap a ion was e ised by au ism expe p ac i ione s and pilo ed. The adap ed eache e sion included a need o in o ma ion subscale, ela i e o educa ional s a egies ele an o ASD,aneed o social suppo subscale, which co e ed he demands o pe sonal suppo o ins umen al ne wo ks, he need o help o explain o o he s, which was ela ed o possible difficul ies o com- munica e he pupils’ needs o colleagues, pa en s o o he child en, and he need o added esou ces, including ma e ial, pe sonal suppo o o ganiza ional changes (see Table 4). O e all in e nal consis ency was good (C onbach’s α=.85). Reliabili y o sec ions was also adequa e, eaching .92 o in o ma ion, .85 o social suppo , .91 o explana ion o o he s, and .87 o added esou ces. 4 Au ism Resea ch and T ea men Table 2: Dis ibu ion o eache s ela i e o a i ude owa ds he eaching o pupils wi h ASD, a i ude owa ds hei amilies, ASD ne wo k membe ship, and ype o school. Rela ionship wi h suppo ne wo k Yes No Type o school Type o school Mains eam coun Special coun Mains eam coun Special coun A i ude owa d ASD eaching Leas a o able 2 1 12 12 Mos a o able 14 4 12 12 To al 16 5 24 24 A i ude owa d amilies Leas a o able 8 3 13 10 Mos a o able 8 2 11 14 To al 16 5 24 24 3. Resul s Analyses we e ca ied ou using he SPSS15 package, and a signi icance le el o .05 was used in all compa isons. 3.1. Teache A i ude. The o e all mean sco e o he a i ude ques ionnai e was 4.6 (SD =0.6) (see Table 1 o i em desc ip i e). School- and amily- ela ed i ems we e analysed sepa a ely. The mean a i ude excluding amily i ems, which we shall subsequen ly e e o as a i ude owa d eaching child en wi h ASD, was o 4.9 (SD =0.6). Mean sco e o a i ude owa ds he amily was signi ican ly lowe (M=4.3, SD =1.0), (68) =3.88, P<.001. A median spli o he sample acco ding o he eache s’ a i ude owa d eaching child en wi h ASD was ca ied ou , in o de o dis inguish hose wi h he mos and leas posi i e a i udes. This esul ed in wo g oups wi h mean sco es o 4.4 (SD =0.4) and 5.4 (SD =0.3), (67) =−11.01, P<.001. A simila median spli was ca ied ou aking in o accoun only he amily- ela ed i ems. The esul ing mean sco es we e 3.6 (SD =0.8) o he leas a ou able and 5.1 (SD =0.4) o he mo e a ou able, (49.89) =−9.67, P<.001 (see Table 2 o he dis ibu ion o pa icipan s in o he wo g oups). The dis ibu ion o special educa ion eache s’ a i ude owa ds eaching child en wi h ASD was analysed in e ms o possible a i ude p edic o s. A di ec logis ic eg ession analysis was pe o med wi h a i ude g oup as ou come and h ee p edic o s, yea s o expe ience wi h he p esen child (one, wo, o h ee o mo e yea s), membe ship o an ASD ne wo k (included o no ), and ype o school (special o mains eam). A es o he ull model wi h all h ee p edic o s agains a cons an -only model was s a is ically eliable, X2(3, N=69) =12.67, P=.005. This indica es ha all he p edic o s, as a se , eliably dis inguish be ween eache s wi h mo e and leas a ou able a i ude owa ds eaching child en wi h ASD. Howe e , a close obse a ion o Table 3 shows ha , acco ding o he Wald s a is ics, only he membe ship o a suppo ne wo k seems o eliably p edic a i ude (z=8.54, P=.003). The special educa ion eache s’ mean a i ude was 5.2 (SD =0.5) amongs hose ha we e pa o a speci ic suppo ne wo k, as opposed o 4.7 (SD =0.6) o hose ha we e no , (67) =3.34, P=.001, ES =0.89. The odds a io o his a iable con i ms i s impo ance, as i indica es ha Table 3: Di ec logis ic eg ession on a i ude owa ds eaching pupils wi h ASD. BSEWaldd Sig.Exp.(B) Type o school 0.347 0.548 0.401 1 0.527 1.415 Expe ience wi h pupil 0.139 0.171 0.660 1 0.417 1.149 ASD ne wo k membe ship 1.885 0.645 8.536 1 0.003 6.587 Cons an −0.985 0.574 2.943 1 0.086 0.374 ecei ing suppo om an ASD ne wo k inc eases by 6.6 he chances o being in he mo e a ou able g oup. On he o he hand, he model only including his a iable is also eliably diffe en om he cons an -only model, X2(1, N=69) = 11.68, P=.001, wi h an odds a io o he ASD ne wo k o 7.1 This second model co ec ly p edic s o 88% placemen o he leas a ou able and 49% o he mos a ou able g oup. None o hese a iables we e use ul o a model p edic- ion o a i ude owa ds amilies. A di ec logis ic eg ession analysis indica ed ha he ull model was no be e p edic o han he cons an -only model. 3.2. Teache Needs. Mean sco e o he needs ques ionnai e was 2.9 (SD =1.1) (see Table 4). No all he eache s’ needs seemed o be equally u gen . Whe eas he mean sco e o need o in o ma ion was 3.0 (SD =1.2), social suppo was 3.0 (SD =1.1), need o explain was 2.6 (SD =1.3) and added esou ces 2.7 (SD =1.3). A epea ed-measu es ANOVA showed he diffe ences among needs o be s a is ically signi ican , F(3, 204) =5.87, P=.001, η2=0.079. Pai wise Bon e oni co ec ed compa isons we e signi ican a he .05 le el be ween need o explain o o he s and in o ma ion and need o social suppo . A median spli acco ding o need o in o ma ion was ca iedou .A e agesco eswe e1.9(SD=0.6) o he lowe demanding g oup and 4.0 (SD =0.6) o he high demand g oup, (67) =−13.90, P<.001, ES =3.55. A di ec logis ic eg ession analysis was pe o med wi h in o ma ion demand g oup (high o low) as ou come and h ee p edic o s, ime o con ac wi h p esen child, ela ionship wi h ASD ne wo k, Au ism Resea ch and T ea men 5 Table 4: Mean and s anda d de ia ion o he i ems o he needs ques ionnai e (N=69). I ems Range Mean SD Need o in o ma ion I need in o ma ion abou he child’s disabili y 1–5 2.9 1.3 ...Abou how o each him/he o ela e o o he s 1–6 3.1 1.4 ...Abou how o each language abili ies 1–6 3.2 1.4 ...Abou how o each academic skills 1–6 3.0 1.5 ...Abou how o in e ac and communica e wi h him/he 1–6 2.6 1.4 ...Abou how o educe beha io al p oblems 1–6 3.2 1.8 Need o social suppo I need someone in my school wi h whom I could alk o abou his child 1–6 2.6 1.4 I need oppo uni ies o speak o he pa en s o his pupil 1–5 2.4 1.3 I need ime o alk o o he eache s and s affabou his child 1–6 2.9 1.6 I would like o speak o expe s mo e egula ly 1–6 3.4 1.4 I need o ead mo e documen a ion abou his disabili y 1–6 3.3 1.3 I would like o alk o eache s wi h pupils like mine 1–6 3.6 1.4 Help o explain o o he s Help in explaining he needs o his pupil o he o he child en 1–6 2.3 1.5 Help in explaining he child’s p og ess o he pa en s 1–5 2.4 1.5 Help in ad ising he child’s pa en s 1–6 3.1 1.5 Help in explaining his child’s needs o o he s aff1–6 2.4 1.4 Need o added esou ces I need help o he occasions in which I mus lea e he class oom 1–6 2.8 1.7 I need someone o p o ide indi idual suppo o he child ou side he class oom 1–6 2.7 1.7 I need someone o p o ide indi idual suppo o he child in he class oom 1–6 2.5 1.7 I need mo e physical space o wo k wi h his pupil 1–6 2.4 1.5 I need mo e cu icula ma e ials o wo k wi h his pupil 1–6 3.5 1.7 I need g ea e lexibili y in my schedule o be able o a end o his child 1–6 2.6 1.6 and ype o school. The compa ison o he ull model agains a cons an -only model was once again s a is ically eliable, X2(3, N=69) =12.03, P=.007. This indica es ha all he p edic o s, as a se , eliably dis inguish be ween eache s wi h p essing and low demands o mo e in o ma ion abou ASD. Table 5 shows ha , acco ding o he Wald s a is ics, only he ype o school, special o mains eam, seems o eliably p edic need o in o ma ion, z=10.04, P=.002. In addi ion, he odds a io indica es ha he change in condi ion, om being a eache in a special o a mains eam school, inc eases by 6.4 he chances o being in he mo e demanding g oup. A model wi h only he ype o school is also eliably diffe en om he cons an -only model, X2(1, N=69) =9.15, P= .002. The p edic ion success in his las model was high o he high-in o ma ion-demanding eache s (75%), bu no so high o he low-demanding eache s (60%). Special educa ion eache s’ demand sco e o in o ma ion was 2.5 (SD =1.0) in special schools, as opposed o 3.4 (SD =1.3) in mains eam, (67) =2.945, P=.004, ES =0.73. Special educa ion eache s in mains eam and special educa ion schools diffe ed on hei p e ious expe ience wi h au is ic child en in gene al (42.5% o hose in mains eam had i e sus 79.3% in special schools), X2(1, 69) =9.35, P=.002, and in hei senio i y in hei p esen eaching pos Table 5: Di ec logis ic eg ession on need o in o ma ion. BSEWaldd Sig.Exp.(B) Type o school 1.850 0.584 10.043 1 0.002 6.363 Expe ience wi h pupil 0.180 0.182 0.971 1 0.324 1.197 ASD ne wo k membe ship −0.826 0.599 1.899 1 0.168 0.438 Cons an −1.094 0.600 3.330 1 0.068 0.335 (a e age o 3.2 yea s, SD =2.5, o he mains eam special educa ion eache s e sus 10.6, SD =9.0, o he special schools), (31.22) =−4.26, P<.001, ES =1.21. Howe e , inclusion o hese a iables in he di ec logis ic eg ession model was no s a is ically diffe en om he p e iously explained model. Di ec logis ic eg ession analyses we e also compu ed o he o he ypes o needs, bu in none o hem we e any o he models signi ican ly diffe en om he cons an -only model. 4. Discussion 4.1. Teache s’ A i ude owa ds Teaching Pupils wi h ASD. O e all, he s udy shows a p edominan ly posi i e iew o 6 Au ism Resea ch and T ea men eache s’ expec a ions ega ding he educa ion o pupils wi h ASD, hei own abili y o in luence hei de elopmen , and hei ela ionships wi h he amilies. This esul is in line wi h p e ious s udies ha show ha eache s in ol ed in he educa ion and inclusion o child en wi h ASD a e usually a ou ably engaged [4,5,17]. None o he dimensions conside ed he e p edic ed amily pe cep ion. This p obably indica es a g ea e in luence o speci ic amily ac o s o gene al amily-school policy aspec s which we e no included in his s udy. Howe e , he esul s do e lec he in luence o ce ain ac o s on eache s’ a i ude and expec a ions owa ds eaching child en wi h ASD. One o he mos ele an is he a ailabili y o a suppo ne wo k. A di ec logis ic eg ession analysis was pe o med es ing o expe ience wi h he p esen child, school ela ionship wi h an ASD ne wo k, and ype o school (mains eam o special) as po en ial p edic o s. Al hough all h ee a iables a e use ul in p edic ing special educa ion eache s’ a i udes, he mos ele an was he ela ionship wi h an ASD ne wo k. Inclusion in a suppo ne wo k inc eases by mo e han six he chances o a eache being in he sample hal wi h a mo e posi i e a i ude. Howe e , i would seem ha he o he a iables a e playing a ce ain ole. A ela i ely spa se expe ience wi h pupils wi h ASD, and being in a mains eam school, would, join ly wi h he nonmembe ship o an ASD ne wo k, indica e a highe - isk s a us in e ms o pe cep ion o pupils wi h ASD. Expe ience wi h pupils wi h ASD has been shown o suppo mo e posi i e a i udes owa d he inclusion o child en wi h ASD [9–11,17]. On he o he hand, special educa ion schools, wi h g ea e p o ision o esou ces and s affin ou sample, a e associa ed wi h a mo e posi i e a i ude. P e ious esea ch has shown he need o his ype o suppo o inclusion o child en wi h special needs [12,13], and Simpson e al. [3] indica e ha eache s show a mo e posi i e a i ude when he e a e suppo s affand o he esou ces in ol ed. I could be ha mains eam schools do no ha e sufficien esou ces o ace he educa ional needs o hese child en, and his is nega i ely affec ing eache a i ude. ASD ne wo ks also p o ide added esou ces, bu he ac ha posi i e a i ude is associa ed o membe ship o an ASD ne wo k, o e and abo e he ype o school, seems o indica e ha he con ibu ion o hese con ex s is ela ed o addi ional ac o s. A e y likely possibili y is suppo in aining and gene al commi men o he eaching o child en wi h ASD. Special schools in he ci y o Se ille ha e a g ea e p o ision o suppo s affand lowe class oom a ios han mains eam schools. Howe e , hey a e no , in gene al, ASD speci ic in hei s uden in ake o he aining o hei s aff. Jenne e al. [16] showed ha commi men o a gene al educa ional amewo k helped s affin educing hei bu n- ou a es and inc easing sel -efficacy. I is possible ha he ASD ne wo ks in ou s udy, in addi ion o p o iding ex a o mo e speci ic ma e ial esou ces, could be ac ing in p ecisely his di ec ion. 4.2. The Need o T aining and In o ma ion. Need o suppo as exp essed by eache s a ied in ela ion o he ype o suppo , wi h need o in o ma ion and social suppo being ela i ely highes . The social suppo needs in highes demand a e hose ela ed o he possibili y o mee ing expe s on ASD. Al hough included in his sec ion o he ques ionnai e, i is clea ly a mo e ins umen al kind o suppo , ela ed o he ob aining o in o ma ion. The ecom- menda ions o addi ional aining o imp o e eache s’ knowledge base abou au ism has been a common conclusion in many p e ious s udies [14,15,17]. I is possible ha his kind o in o ma ion demand de i es om eache a i ude ha eaching child en wi h au ism equi es a g ea e deg ee o specializa ion. The di ec logis ic eg ession pe o med on in o ma ion demand yielded he ype o school, mains eam o special, as he main p edic o o need o in o ma ion. Being in a mains eam school seems o inc ease he chances o a special educa ion eache being in he high in o ma ion demanding hal o he sample by mo e han six. I would seem ha , independen ly o he impo an ole o he suppo ne wo ks, mains eam schools a e a demanding en i onmen ha equi e cons an aining and upda e on he pa o eache s o a g ea e deg ee han special educa ion con ex s. Finally, he ela i ely lowe demand o ex a esou ces in ou s udy should no lead o an unde s a emen o he impo ance o addi ional s affand ma e ial suppo o he inclusion o child en wi h special educa ional needs. In ou sample, eache s wi hin special schools and in schools linked o ASD ne wo ks ha e been ound o ha e he mos posi i e a i udes. I has been a gued ha he imp o emen o eache a i ude is con ingen upon he p o ision o app op ia e esou ces [3] and ha suppo s affa e essen ial o he inclusion o child en wi h special needs in he class oom [13]. The lack o his suppo would ende he bene i s o inclusion una ainable [26–29]. In iew o his li e a u e, he lowe demand o hese esou ces in ou sample is su p ising. One o he easons may be ound in he ela i ely low le el o inclusion. Nea ly hal he child en we e in special schools o special pull-ou uni s wi h low eache -pupil a ios and a ce ain amoun o suppo s aff. The p e alen inc ease in de ec ion a es, linked o he inc ease o pupils wi h less se e e o ms o au ism and he e o e a g ea e p esence in egula class ooms, and a cu en ly mo e de e mined inclusion policy in Sou he n Spain, will mos su ely es he a ailable esou ces o he limi in a e y nea u u e. Ano he po en ial explana ion could be ha he ela i ely low demand o ex a esou ces ound in ou s udy is he esul o a social desi abili y bias in eache s’ esponses. Howe e , his explana ion seems unlikely, since esponden s we e able o indica e o he kinds o needs as ele an . Also, wi h espec o hei a i udes o he eaching o child en wi h au ism, esul s coincide wi h hose ound in o he s udies using diffe en me hodologies. 4.3. Inclusion, Teache A i ude and Teache Needs. O e all, he eache s’ esponses in his s udy sugges ha inclusion o pupils wi h ASD in mains eam se ings is a conside able challenge o hose in ol ed, needing speci ic and ex ao - dina y suppo . I his suppo , as illus a ed by he effo s o he ASD ne wo ks in his s udy, is no implemen ed, a need o addi ional in o ma ion will appea in he eache s Au ism Resea ch and T ea men 7 o hese pupils. The lack o esponse o his demand could be os e ing a less posi i e a i ude owa d he educa ion o he pupils wi h ASD. Schools ela ed o he ASD ne wo ks seem o ecei e he necessa y suppo in e ms o ongoing aining and a cul u e o s affcommi men and, he e o e, a ou mo e posi i e a i udes owa d pupils wi h ASD, bo h in mains eam and special schools. A g ea e need o in o ma ion abou how o each hese child en is, howe e , p esen in mains eam se ings, wi h o wi hou ASD ne wo k membe ship, p obably due o he ac ha inclusion is, in i sel , a complex p ocess. Acknowledgmen s This s udy was ca ied ou hanks o he unding ecei ed by he Minis e io de Educaci´ on y Ciencia, (P ojec numbe PSI2010-17401) and pa ially suppo ed by he Excellen Resea ch P ojec s G an (P07-SEJ-02574) o he Conseje ´ ıa de Inno aci´ on, Ciencia y Emp esa, Jun a de Andaluc´ ıa. The au ho s also wish o hank all he eache s, pupils, and educa ional au ho i ies ha pa icipa ed in he s udy o hei collabo a ion. Re e ences [1] K. Robe son, B. Chambe lain, and C. Kasa i, “Gene al educa ion eache s’ ela ionships wi h included s uden s wi h au ism,” Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s, ol. 33, no. 2, pp. 123–130, 2003. [2] P. J. S ano ich and A. Jo dan, “Canadian eache s’ and p incipals’ belie s abou inclusi e educa ion as p edic o s o effec i e eaching in he e ogeneous class ooms,” Elemen a y School Jou nal, ol. 98, no. 3, pp. 221–238, 1998. 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