PREDICTORS OF NON-SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS’ PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND READINESS IN HANDLING LEARNERS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (ASD)

This descriptive-correlational study described the relationship between the non-special education (non-SpEd) teachers’ profile, level of professional development, and level of readiness in handling learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in inclusive education (IE). The study participants were 20 non-Sped teachers in the Schools Division of Abra. This study used a survey questionnaire adapted from dela Cruz (2020), Gepila (2020) and Aldabas (2020) to gather the data. Frequency, percentage distribution, mean, Pearson’s r correlation, and regression analysis were used to treat the data. Findings reveal that most of the non-SpEd teachers have master's units, are Teacher III, have 5 to 9 years of teaching experience, and have six to eight SpEd-related seminars/trainings. Likewise, the non-SpEd teachers are highly proficient (2.55) in terms of their professional development. Additionally, the study reveals that the non-SpEd teachers are slightly ready (2.00) in handling learners with ASD. Moreover, the analysis reveals a significant correlation between the teachers’ profile and professional development. Further, the study reveals that there exists a significant correlation between the teachers' readiness to handle learners with ASD in IE and their teaching position. Lastly, the analysis revealed that years in service significantly predict the teachers' professional development, while teaching position significantly predicts their readiness in IE.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0746/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>