Teachers' Lived Experiences of Inclusive Education: Concepts, Barriers, and Solutions

Inclusive education is one of the challenging issues of the educational system, and there is still no comprehensive plan for its comprehensive realization in our country's educational system. This concept will be understandable and applicable in the context of teachers' perceptions and experiences. The present study aimed to deepen the views and experiences of teachers in the field of what and how to implement inclusive education in order to obtain evidence of implementation and descriptions of its meanings, as well as to provide solutions to facilitate its implementation.



Methods: This research was conducted with an interpretive approach and phenomenological method. Data were obtained and analyzed using semi-structured interviews from 12 elementary school teachers in Sanandaj who had more than 15 years of service experience. The result of this analysis was 4 main themes and 14 sub-themes. Also, by combining all the themes, the main phenomenon was obtained as the final description of inclusive education



Findings: The main themes include: 1- Inclusive education as educational justice, 2- Diversity and ambivalence in teachers' performance towards inclusive education, 3- Structural and institutional barriers to implementing inclusive education, and 4- Strengthening human and educational infrastructure to achieve inclusive education. Interpretation of the results showed that teachers understood the concept of inclusive education as educational justice and the right to equal education for all children, and they interpreted it not as a problem but as a value.