TEACHERS’ ACCEPTANCE OF LEARNERS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS AND INSTRUCTIONAL COMMITMENT AS PREDICTORS OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION EFFECTIVENESS IN PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN AKWA IBOM STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Inclusive education depends not only on formal policy and school access but also on the dispositions and sustained instructional effort of classroom teachers. This study examined teachers’ acceptance of learners with special needs and instructional commitment as predictors of inclusive education effectiveness in public primary schools in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The study was anchored on the Theory of Planned Behaviour and adopted a quantitative cross-sectional correlational design. The target population comprised 18,738 teachers in public primary schools, based on the Universal Basic Education Commission’s 2022 public-school digest. A sample of 392 was determined using Yamane’s finite-population formula, and 376 usable responses were analysed. Data were collected with a structured questionnaire measuring teachers’ acceptance, instructional commitment and teacher-rated inclusive education effectiveness. Internal-consistency coefficients were .913, .917 and .930 respectively. Pearson correlations and multiple regression were estimated at the .05 level. Acceptance was positively related to effectiveness (r = .451, p < .001), while instructional commitment showed a stronger positive relationship (r = .559, p < .001). Jointly, both predictors explained 37.2% of the variance in inclusive education effectiveness, F(2, 373) = 110.31, p < .001. Instructional commitment (beta = .450) made the larger unique contribution, followed by teachers’ acceptance (beta = .266). The study concludes that favourable acceptance is important, but its practical value is amplified when teachers sustain inclusive instructional effort. It recommends coordinated teacher-development strategies that combine attitude formation with concrete support for differentiated instruction, learner participation and continued professional learning.