ATTITUDES OF DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DISTRICT OFFICIALS TOWARDS INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICAN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Since the inception of inclusive education (IE) much energy has focused on educators and learners. This study addresses a gap in literature by analysing an important component of the transformation process in the South African educational landscape - Department of Education (DoE) district-based officials. This descriptive research project conducted in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal, studied the attitudes of officials towards the inclusion of learners with learning difficulties at mainstream primary schools. The results indicated that respondents generally held positive attitudes towards inclusion and that five demographic characteristics of district officials are significant predictors of positive attitudes towards IE: training in the field of IE; experience in teaching learners with disabilities; contact with people with disabilities; knowledge of White Paper 6 (WP6); and the official's workstation. Finally, the study found that officials were alarmed that as many as 10 selected school-based factors could collectively impede the successful implementation of IE.