Alajaji, S. M. (2021). Faculty attitudes toward inclusive teaching strategies related to universal design for deaf and hard of hearing students in a higher education institution in Saudi Arabia (Publication No. 28497847) [Doctoral dissertation, Saint Louis University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2555015103

Dissertation
Alajaji, S. M. (2021). Faculty attitudes toward inclusive teaching strategies related to universal design for deaf and hard of hearing students in a higher education institution in Saudi Arabia (Publication No. 28497847) [Doctoral dissertation, Saint Louis University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2555015103

Notes

Saint Louis University (St. Louis, MO); ProQuest document ID: 2555015103

Tags

Accommodation/s not specified; Educator survey; International (non-U.S.); Postsecondary

URL

https://www.proquest.com/docview/2555015103

Summary

Accommodation

Postsecondary faculty members’ attitudes on accommodations were examined as part of a wider analysis of the Inclusive Teaching Strategies Inventory (ITSI; Lombardi et al., 2015); specific accommodations were not identified.

Participants

A total of 352 faculty members from across disciplines at a public university in the middle region of Saudi Arabia responded to and completed the survey. Respondents were members of various faculties across the university, and taught courses in business, education, engineering, humanities and languages, medicine, religion, science, and other disciplines. The sample had male and female respondents, and other descriptive data were collected, including age, teaching experience, academic discipline, and prior disability training. The faculty population at the university consisted of 4,174 faculty members: 2,357 males and 1,817 females. The Qualtrics calculator was used to determine a sufficient sample size for this university faculty population, with a confidence of 95% and confidence interval of +/- 5%, indicating that 352 faculty members was sufficient.

Dependent Variable

The Inclusive Teaching Strategies Inventory (ITSI) (Lombardi et al., 2015) survey sub-scale scores were analyzed, including (a) accommodations in classroom, (b) accessible course materials, (c) course modifications, (d) inclusive lecture strategies, (e) inclusive classroom, (f) inclusive assessment, and (g) disability law and concepts knowledge. Data analysis employed non-parametric techniques.

Findings

Postsecondary faculty survey respondents had positive attitudes toward providing inclusive strategies, but low confidence regarding "laws and concepts" related to universal design and disabilities for hard of hearing students. Analyses and comparisons were conducted across sub-test scores and age, gender, teaching experience, academic discipline, and prior disability-related training. There were no differences in attitude towards inclusive strategies based on age across sub-scales, which is consistent with previous research. Gender differences were reported, with female faculty showing more positive attitudes towards more inclusive lecture strategies and inclusive assessments. Teaching experience showed no difference across sub-scales. Differences in attitudes were identified based on academic disciplines across sub-scales. Attitudinal differences were also found when looking at previous training for the inclusive classroom and inclusive assessment sub-scales. Implications and recommendations for practice were presented. Limitations of the study were reported, implications and recommendations for practice were offered, and future research possibilities were suggested.