Influence of Teachers’ Attitude on Inclusion of Learners with Visual Impairment in Public Primary Schools in Nyatike Sub County, Migori County, Kenya

Abstract

Inclusion of learners with visual impairment is necessary for ensuring that the learners’ academic goals and objectives are met. Teachers and stakeholders have to identify any barriers that can deter the learners from achieving their goals. Generally, guiding learners with visual impairment (VI) is complex and requires a combination of strategies by the instructor. Besides, the learners also need a better performance to motivate their learning process. Visually impaired learners generally have been noted to perform below average in academics. The objective was to examine the influence of attitude of teachers on inclusion of visually impaired learners in public primary schools in Nyatike Sub-County, Migori County, Kenya. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory was used to explain the roots of inclusion of visually impaired learners. The study employed mixed methodology with a descriptive survey research design. The population of study involved 46 (forty six) head teachers and 52 (fifty two) classroom teachers in public primary schools with visually impaired learners. A sample size of 98 (ninety-eight) respondents were selected using saturated and purposive sampling techniques. Reliability coefficient of 0.81 was obtained. The study established that teachers’ attitude accounted for 45.8% of variation in inclusion of learners with visual impairment in regular primary schools. From the findings, the study concluded that teachers’ attitude, influence inclusion of visually impaired learners in public primary schools. The study finding may be useful to policy makers and school administrators by providing information on how teachers’ attitude influences inclusion of learners with visual impairment in regular public primary schools.