ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN EAST JAVA, INDONESIA

Article Info ABSTRACT Article history Received July 19, 2021 Revised August 11, 2021 Accepted August 23, 2021 Teachers' perception of inclusive education becomes an important indicator in evaluating the success of inclusive education. Teachers who have a positive perception of inclusive education will have a more controlled learning environment. This study used a survey method that investigates the current views of elementary school teachers toward inclusive education by exploring their perceptions. The respondents of this study are 70 elementary school teachers in East Java Province. This study found that: (1) There was no difference perception of teachers in primary schools concerning the concept of inclusive education, placement of students with disabilities, and processing of learning in inclusive classrooms; (2) Teachers' perceptions in primary schools towards inclusive education was not influenced by their duties as regular and special education teachers; (3) There are differences in perceptions of inclusive education based on the amount of training they followed; (4) There are differences in teachers' perceptions of inclusive education based on the length of teachers' experience teaching students with disabilities. Teachers' perceptions of inclusive education can be measured from three dimensions: the inclusion concept, disability student placement, and learning management.

Teachers are an essential factor in the delivery of inclusive education. Teachers' perceptions of inclusive education also determine the success of implementing inclusive education (Avramidis & Norwich, 2002;Bunch, Lupart, & Brown, 1997). The learning environment will be more controllable by teachers who have positive perceptions of inclusive education (Monsen & Frederickson, 2004). Most teachers believe that inclusion is helpful, but e-ISSN: 2716-2338 IJEMI Vol.2, No.3, September 2021, pp. 346~355 they lack the time and skills to include students with disabilities in their classrooms (Scruggs & Mastropieri, 1996;Jordan, Schwartz, & McGhie-Richmond, 2009).
Research on teacher attitudes in primary schools in Jakarta showed positive attitudes toward inclusive education, even though most participants felt they lacked knowledge and experience in the practice of inclusive education (Kurniawati et al., 2012). Qualitative research with in-depth interviews by Poernomo (2016) in five provinces in Indonesia concluded that in the learning process, there were still many teachers who did not fully understand how to manage learning in inclusive classes.
This research focuses on the placement of disabled students in inclusive schools and classroom management in inclusive classrooms. In this study, teachers' perceptions of inclusive education are formulated in the following four questions. (1) Are there differences in the perception of elementary school teachers about the concepts of inclusion, the placement of students with disabilities, and the learning management in inclusive classes? (2) Are there differences in elementary school teachers' perceptions of inclusive education based on their assignments as class teachers or subject teachers and special education teachers? (3) Are there differences in elementary school teachers' perceptions of inclusive education based on the number of training hours they have attended? (4) Are there differences in elementary school teachers' perceptions of inclusive education based on their experiences of teaching students with disabilities?

METHODS
The method used in this research is a survey (Grönlund, 2004

Results
Descriptive The primary school teacher's perception of the inclusion concept, the placement of students with disabilities, and learning management is done through the two-way ANOVA test.
This test was also conducted to evaluate teachers' perceptions based on their duties as class teachers, subject teachers, and special education teachers.
Based on table 2, we can explain that the two-ways ANOVA test results include differences between columns, between rows, and interaction tests. For the column test (perception of the inclusion concept, the placement of students with disabilities, and the learning management), the F Interaction test among teachers' perceptions toward differences in inclusive education based on the task differences of the teacher as a class/subject teacher and special education teacher. accepted. There is no significant interaction between the teacher's task as a class/subject teacher and special education teacher with the teacher's perceptions of inclusive education.
Based on the ANOVA test in table 2, it can be seen that the numerator df (m-1) = two and the denominator df (N-1) = 69 obtained an Ft value of 3.13 for an error rate of 5%. The calculated F value of 15.54 is more significant than Ft. Thus, it can be concluded that there are differences in perceptions of elementary school teachers on inclusive education based on the number of training hours they take on inclusive education.
Further analysis was carried out through the Scheffe test, as described in table 3.
Determining the critical F value with 95% confidence (α = 0.05), then the critical F value with degrees of freedom k-1 = 2, as a numerator, and Nk (70-3) = 67 denominators 3.14. Based on that, the critical value of tS can be calculated as 2.51.
Based on the value of tS 2.51, it can be concluded as follows. (1)   Based on the ANOVA test in table 2, about the differences in teacher perceptions of inclusive education based on the length of teachers' experience in teaching students with disabilities, it is known that the numerator df (m-1) = two and the denominator df (N-1) = 69, obtained Ft value of 3.13 for an error rate of 5%. Therefore, the calculated F value of 5.16 is greater than the value of Ft. Thus, it can be concluded that there are differences in the perception of elementary school teachers towards inclusive education based on the amount of experience they teach students with disabilities.
Further analysis through Shceffe was carried out, with the results summary presented in Table 3. The critical F value with a degree of confidence is 95% (α = 0.05), then the critical F value with the degree of freedom k-1 = 2, as a numerator, and Nk (70-3) = 67, as the denominator, of 3.14. Based on that, the critical value of tS can be calculated as 2.51.
Based on the value of tS 2.51, it can be concluded as follows.
(1) There is a difference in teachers' perceptions about inclusive education based on the experience of teachers teaching students with disabilities, between 1 to 3 years and 4 to 6 years (X1: X2); (2) There is no difference in teachers' perceptions about inclusive education based on the experience of teachers teaching students with disabilities, between 4 to 6 years and more than seven years (X2: X3); (3) There are differences in teachers' perceptions about inclusive education based on the experience of teachers teaching students with disabilities, between 1 to 3 years and more than seven years (X1: X3).

Discussion
Based on the research findings, it can be concluded as follows. (1)  difference in perceptions about inclusive education between special education teachers and class teachers/subject teachers or regular teachers is because their educational qualifications are relatively the same. Most respondents numbered 41 people, or 58.6% have a fundamental educational qualification, and only six have undergraduate special education qualifications.
As a special education teacher in a regular school, teachers with non-special education qualifications run is a solution to the lack of exceptional education graduates in East Java Province (Junaidi, 2019). Ismail et al. (2015) concluded that teachers in special schools and teachers in special schools did not have significant attitudes towards the benefits of integration and class management in the integrated school (integrated classroom management).
The difference in teachers' perceptions about inclusive education is due to teacher participation in training on inclusive education. In line with research by Pancofar and Petroff (2013); Avramidis et al. (2000); Avramidis & Kalyva (2007), teachers who more often attend inservice training, are more confident with their ability to teach, are more interested, and have a more positive attitude towards students with disabilities and towards inclusive education.
one of the best steps to improve teachers attitude is to implement an excellent sustainable training program (Ediyanto, Restuti, Atika & Kawai, 2020 The teacher's teaching experience of students with disabilities, the longer the perception is not always more positive towards inclusive education if the teacher's competence is not sufficient. Research by Boyle et al. (2013) showed that teachers who teach in the first year show a more positive attitude than teachers who have taught for several years. The Boyle et al. (2013) study was carried out in Scotland, where 68% of respondents had never received full training on inclusive education before. Horne and Timmons (2009) also found that teachers suggested the training they needed was related to an effective strategy of integrating students with special needs in regular classes. Through interviews, teachers at least need knowledge about children with disabilities, how to teach them. The teachers feel frustrated and guilty when they cannot do their best for all their students in class.

CONCLUSION
The primary school teachers in East Java have a positive perception of inclusive education. The perception of inclusive education does not differ between the teacher who gets the assignment as a special education teacher and the teacher who gets the assignment as a classroom teacher/subject teacher. The difference in perceptions about inclusive education among elementary school teachers in East Java is due to training in inclusive education and their experiences in teaching students with disabilities. The more often they participate in training and the longer they have experience teaching students with disabilities, the more positive their perception of inclusive education. Teachers' perceptions of inclusive education can be measured from three dimensions: the inclusion concept, disability student placement, and learning management.
Suggestions for further research in inclusive education include: (1) Research in more detail looks at teacher attitudes towards students with disabilities, and (2) Research on teachers' competencies in regular schools in dealing with students with disabilities.