Resource room model for inclusive education in China: practitioners' conceptualisation and contextualisation

摘要

China launched the "learning in a regular classroom" (LRC) model for inclusive education in the 1980s. In late 1990s, a few major cities of China began to adopt the resource room model as a key feature of the LRC to improve instructional qualities. This exploratory study examined resource teachers' (RTs) attitude towards inclusive education, preparation backgrounds, current practises and challenges. The survey method was adopted for systematic data collection of a wide range of individuals. Findings revealed that RTs were experienced teachers with limited special education training and adopted the rights-based paradigm towards inclusive education. Key challenges included inadequate training, overload and insufficient time for training. Findings contributed to the literature by reflecting the shift from welfare-based to rights-based paradigm on inclusive education among Chinese practitioners and the milestone of increased attention to teacher preparation for quality disability education for the sustainability and workability of the LRC model.