TY - JOUR T1 - Adapting Measures of Inclusion to Finnish Higher Education Teacher Educators' Context: Investigation of Validity and Reliability AU - Sointu, Erkko AU - Vellonen, Virpi AU - Ng, Kwok AU - äikäs, Aino AU - Holopainen, Leena AU - Hoang, Theresa PY - 2025 DA - April Y2 - 2025 JF - Journal of Teacher Education and Educators PB - İlknur GÖKÇE WT - DergiPark SN - 2147-0456 SP - 59 EP - 77 VL - 14 IS - 1 LA - en AB - Inclusive education requires staff commitment to the principles of inclusion, and teacher training is crucial to fulfilling its goals. However, research on higher education teacher educators' inclusive dispositions is lacking, particularly in the Finnish or Nordic context. To redress this situation, psychometrically sound research instruments are warranted. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and factorial validity of two inclusion scales, namely Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices (TEIP) scale and the Sentiments, Attitudes, and Concerns about Inclusive Education Revised (SACIE-R) scale, with a sample of Finnish teacher educators. Teacher educators (N = 229) from 13 higher education institutions were recruited to complete an online survey on the TEIP and the SACIE-R. Data were analyzed using McDonald's omega and several confirmatory factor analyses, and both measures displayed adequate reliability. Results indicated that TEIP had both three-factor and second-order factor models, and SACIE-R, a two-factor structure. This suggests that TEIP and SACIE-R provide adequate means to measure perceptions of inclusive education, particularly in the higher education context, and thus form a useful basis for the development of training programs to promote inclusive education. KW - Inclusive education KW - teacher educators KW - TEIP KW - SACIE-R KW - validity KW - reliability CR - American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education. (2018). Standards for educational and psychological testing. American Educational Research Association. CR - Ainscow, M., Booth, T., & Dyson, A. (2004). Understanding and developing inclusive practices in schools: A collaborative action research network. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 8(2), 125–139. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360311032000158015 CR - Ahmmed, M., Sharma, U., & Deppler, J. (2014). Variables affecting teachers' intentions to include students with disabilities in regular primary schools in Bangladesh. Disability & Society, 29(2), 317–331. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2013.796878 CR - Ahsan, M. T., Sharma, U., & Deppeler, J. M. (2012). Exploring pre-service teachers' perceived teaching-efficacy, attitudes and concerns about inclusive education in Bangladesh. International Journal of Whole Schooling, 8(2), 1–20. http://www.wholeschooling.net/Journal_of_Whole_Schooling/articles/8-2%20Ahsan%20et%20al.pdf CR - Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T CR - Alnahdi, G. (2019). The Arabic version of the teacher efficacy for inclusive practices (TEIP-AR) scale: A construct validity study. Cogent Education, 6(1) 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2019.1618516 CR - Alnahdi, G. H., & Schwab, S. (2021). Special education major or attitudes to predict teachers' self-efficacy for teaching in inclusive education. Frontiers in Psychology, 12(2263). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.680909 CR - Ashton, P. T., & Webb, R. B. (1986). Making a difference: Teachers' sense of efficacy and student achievement. Longman. CR - Avramidis, E., Bayliss, P., & Burden, R. (2000). Student teachers' attitudes towards the inclusion of children with special educational needs in the ordinary school. Teacher and Teacher Education, 16(3), 277–293. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(99)00062-1 CR - Avramidis, E., & Norwich, B. (2002). Teachers' attitudes towards integration/inclusion: A review of the literature. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 17(2), 129–147. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856250210129056 CR - Bandura, A. (1993). Perceived self-efficacy in cognitive development and functioning. Educational Psychologist, 28(2), 117–148. http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2802_3 CR - Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman. CR - Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107(2), 238–246. Booth, T., & Ainscow, M. (2023). Definitions of inclusion in education from the Index for Inclusion. Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education http://www.csie.org.uk/resources/inclusion-index-explained.shtml CR - Brown, T. A. (2015). Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research (2nd ed.). The Guilford Press. CR - Chao, C. N. G., Forlin, C., & Ho, F. C. (2016). Improving teaching self-efficacy for teachers in inclusive classrooms in Hong Kong. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 20(11), 1142–1154. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2016.1155663 CR - Chichekian, T., & Shore, B. M. (2016). Preservice and practicing teachers' self-efficacy for inquiry-based instruction. Cogent Education, 3(1), 1236872. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2016.1236872 CR - Collins, A., Azmat, F., & Rentschler, R. (2019). 'Bringing everyone on the same journey': Revisiting inclusion in higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 44(8), 1475–1487. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2018.1450852 CR - Crispel, O., & Kasperski, R. (2019). The impact of teacher training in special education on the implementation of inclusion in mainstream classrooms. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 25(9), 1079–1090. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2019.1600590 CR - Darling-Hammond, L. (2006). Constructing 21st century teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 57(3), 300–314. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487105285962 CR - DeVellis, R. F. (2003). Scale Development. (2nd Ed.). Sage Publications. CR - Dixon, F. A., Yssel, N., McConnell, J. M., & Hardin, T. (2014). Differentiated instruction, professional development, and teacher efficacy. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 37(2):111–127. https://doi.org/10.1177/0162353214529042 CR - Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V. (2014). From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. British Journal of Psychology, 105(3), 399–412. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12046 CR - European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education. (2011). Teacher education for inclusion across Europe – Challenges and opportunities. https://www.european-agency.org/sites/default/files/te4i-synthesis-report-en.pdf CR - Emam, M., & Al-Mahdy, Y. (2019). Teachers' efficacy for inclusive practices in the Sultanate of Oman: Effect of gender and teaching experience. School Psychology International, 41(2), 170–192. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034319895062 CR - Engelbrecht, P. (2013). Teacher education for inclusion: International perspectives. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 28(2), 115–118. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856257.2013.778110 CR - Evans, J., & Lunt, I. (2002). Inclusive education: Are there limits? European Journal of Special Needs Education, 17(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856250110098980 CR - Flora, D. B., & Curran, P. J. (2004). An empirical evaluation of alternative methods of estimation for confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data. Psychological Methods, 9(4), 466–491. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.9.4.466 CR - Florian, L. (2008). Inclusion: Special or inclusive education—future trends. British Journal of Special Education, 35(4), 202–208. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8578.2008.00402.x CR - Florian, L., & Camedda, D. (2020). Enhancing teacher education for inclusion. European Journal of Teacher Education, 43(1), 4–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1707579 CR - Forlin, C., Earle, C., Loreman, T., & Sharma, U. (2011). The Sentiments, Attitudes, and Concerns about Inclusive Education Revised (SACIE-R) scale for measuring pre-service teachers' perceptions about inclusion. Exceptionality Education International 21(3), 50–65. https://doi.org/10.5206/eei.v21i3.7682 CR - Geisinger, K. F. (1994). Cross-cultural normative assessment: Translation and adaptation issues influencing the normative interpretation of assessment instruments. Psychological Assessment, 6(4), 304–312. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.6.4.304 CR - Hayes, A. F., & Coutts, J. J. (2020). Use omega rather than Cronbach's alpha for estimating reliability. But... Communication Methods and Measures, 14(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/19312458.2020.1718629 CR - Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118 CR - Kohonen, I., Kuula-Luumi, A., & Spoof, S.-K. (Eds.). (2019). The ethical principles of research with human participants and ethical review in the human sciences in Finland. Finnish National Board on Research Integrity (TENK). CR - Li, C. H. (2016). Confirmatory factor analysis with ordinal data: Comparing robust maximum likelihood and diagonally weighted least squares. Behavior Research Methods, 48, 936-949. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-015-0619-7 CR - Lindblom-Ylänne, S., Trigwell, K., Nevgi, A., & Ashwin, P. (2006). How approaches to teaching are affected by discipline and teaching context. Studies in Higher Education, 31(3), 285–298. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075070600680539 CR - Loreman, T., Earle, C., Sharma, U., & Forlin, C. (2007). The development of an instrument for measuring pre-service teachers' sentiments, attitudes, and concerns about inclusive education. International Journal of Special Education, 22(2), 151–160. CR - Loreman, T., Sharma, U., & Forlin, C. (2013). Do preservice teachers feel ready to teach in inclusive classrooms? A four country study of teaching self-efficacy. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 38(1), 27–44. https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2013v38n1.10 CR - Malinen, O., Savolainen, H., & Xu, J. (2012). Beijing in-service teachers' self-efficacy and attitudes towards inclusive education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 28(4), 526–534. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2011.12.004 CR - Malinen, O., Savolainen, H., Engelbrecht, P., Xu, J., Nel, M., Nel, N., & Tlale, D. (2013a). Exploring teacher self-efficacy for inclusive practices in three diverse countries. Teaching and Teacher Education, 33, 34–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2013.02.004 CR - Malinen, O., Savolainen, H., & Xu, J. (2013b). Dimensions of teacher self-efficacy for inclusive practices among mainland Chinese pre-service teachers. Journal of International Special Needs Education, 16(2), 82–93. https://doi.org/10.9782/2159-4341-16.2.82 CR - Malinen, O., & Savolainen, H. (2016). The effect of perceived school climate and teacher efficacy in behavior management on job satisfaction and burnout: A longitudinal study. Teaching and Teacher Education, 60, 144–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2016.08.012 CR - Márquez, C., & Melero-Aguilar, N. (2022). What are their thoughts about inclusion? Beliefs of faculty members about inclusive education. Higher Education, 83(4), 829–844. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-021-00706-7 CR - Mateu, D., Franco-Ochoa, J., Valero-Moreno, S., & Prado Gascó, V. (2020). Attitudes, sentiments, and concerns about inclusive education of teachers and teaching students in Spain. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00521 CR - McDonald, R. P. (1999). Test theory: A unified treatment. Lawrence Erlbaum. CR - Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998–2019). Mplus user's guide (8th ed.). Muthén & Muthén. CR - Nieminen, J. H. (2022). Assessment for inclusion: Rethinking inclusive assessment in higher education. Teaching in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2021.2021395 CR - Nieminen, J. H., & Pesonen, H. V. (2022). Politicising inclusive learning environments: How to foster belonging and challenge ableism? Higher Education Research & Development, 41(6), 2020–2033. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2021.1945547 CR - Perera, H. N., Calkins, C., & Part, R. (2019). Teacher self-efficacy profiles: Determinants, outcomes, and generalizability across teaching level. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 58, 186–203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2019.02.006 CR - Pesonen, H. V., Nieminen, J. H., Vincent, J., Waltz, M., Lahdelma, M., Syurina, E. V., & Fabri, M. (2023). A socio-political approach on autistic students' sense of belonging in higher education. Teaching in Higher Education, 28(4) 739–757. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2020.1852205 CR - Pivarč, J. (2024). The Czech version of the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practice (TEIP) scale: validation and psychometric analysis of the instrument with primary school teachers. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2024.2371873 CR - Sahli Lozano, C., Wüthrich, S., Baumli, N., Sharma, U., Loreman, T., & Forlin, C. (2023). Development and validation of a short form of the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices Scale (TEIP‐SF). Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 23(4), 375-388. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12607 CR - Sapon-Shevin, M. (2003). Inclusion: A matter of social justice. Educational Leadership, 61(2), 25–28. CR - Savolainen, H., Engelbrecht, P., Nel, M., & Malinen, O. (2012). Understanding teachers' attitudes and self-efficacy in inclusive education: Implications for pre-service and in-service teacher education. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 27(1), 51–68. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856257.2011.613603 CR - Savolainen, H., Malinen, O-P., & Schwab, S. (2022). Teacher efficacy predicts teachers' attitudes towards inclusion: A longitudinal cross-lagged analysis. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 26(9), 958–972. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2020.1752826 CR - Selenius, H., & Ginner Hau, H. (2023). A scoping review on the psychometric properties of the teacher efficacy for inclusive practices (TEIP) scale. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2023.2185811 CR - Sharma, U., Forlin, C., & Loreman, T. (2008). Impact of training on pre-service teachers' attitudes and concerns about inclusive education and sentiments about persons with disabilities. Disability & Society, 23(7), 773–785. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687590802469271 CR - Sharma, U., Loreman, T., & Forlin, C. (2012). Measuring teacher efficacy to implement inclusive practices. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 12(1), 12–21. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-3802.2011.01200.x CR - Sharma U., Shaukat S., & Furlonger, B. (2015). Attitudes and self-efficacy of pre-service teachers towards inclusion in Pakistan. Journal of Research in Special Education Needs, 15(2), 97–105. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12071 CR - Sharma, U., Sokal, L.,Wang, M., & Loreman, T. (2021). Measuring the use of inclusive practices among pre-service educators: A multi-national study. Teaching and Teacher Education, 107, 103506, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103506 CR - Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2010). Teacher self-efficacy and teacher burnout: A study of relations. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(4), 1059–1069. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.11.001 Sokal, L., & Sharma, U. (2014). Canadian in-service teachers' concerns, efficacy, and attitudes about inclusive teaching. Exceptionality Education International, 23(1), 59–71. CR - Song, J., Sharma, U., & Choi, H. (2019). Impact of teacher education on pre-service regular school teachers' attitudes, intentions, concerns and self-efficacy about inclusive education in South Korea. Teaching and Teacher Education, 86, 102901. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.102901 CR - Stentiford, L., & Koutsouris, G. (2020). What are inclusive pedagogies in higher education? A systematic scoping review. Studies in Higher Education, 46(11), 2245–2261. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2020.1716322 Steiger, J. H., & Lind, J. C. (1980). Statistically based tests for the number of common factors [Paper presentation]. Annual meeting of the Psychometric Society, Iowa City, IA, United States. CR - Takala, M., Pihlaja, P., & Viljamaa, E. (2022). 'Yes it's good, but horizontal ellipsis': Student teachers' inclusion narratives. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2022.2115133 Tschannen-Moran, M., & Woolfolk-Hoy, A. (2001). Teacher efficacy: Capturing an elusive construct. Teaching and Teacher Education, 17(7), 783–805. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(01)00036-1 CR - Tucker, L., & Lewis, C. (1973). A reliability coefficient for maximum likelihood factor analysis. Psychometrika, 38(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02291170 CR - Varcoe, L., & Boyle, C. (2014). Pre-service primary teachers' attitudes towards inclusive education. Educational Psychology, 34(3), 323–337. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2013.785061 CR - Vogiatzi, X.-A., Charitaki, G., & Kourkoutas, E. (2021). Assessing psychometric properties of the sentiments, attitudes and concerns about inclusive education scale in a Greek-speaking sample of in-service teachers. Technology, Knowledge, and Learning, 28, 207–223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-021-09554-x CR - Woodcock, S., Hemmings, B., & Kay, R. (2012). Does study of an inclusive education subject influence pre-service teachers' concerns and self-efficacy about inclusion? Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 37(6), 1–11. http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2012v37n6.5 CR - Wray, E., Sharma, U., & Subban, P. (2022). Factors influencing teacher self-efficacy for inclusive education: A systematic literature review. Teaching and Teacher Education, 117, 103800, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2022.103800 CR - Yada, A., Björn, P. M., Savolainen, P., Kyttälä, M., Aro, M., & Savolainen, H. (2021). Preservice teachers' self-efficacy in implementing inclusive practices and resilience in Finland. Teaching and Teacher Education, 105, 103398. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103398 CR - Yada, A., Leskinen, M., Savolainen, H., & Schwab, S. (2022). Meta-analysis of the relationship between teachers' self-efficacy and attitudes toward inclusive education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 109, 103521. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103521 CR - Yada, A., & Savolainen, H. (2017). Japanese in-service teachers' attitudes toward inclusive education and self-efficacy for inclusive practices. Teaching and Teacher Education, 64, 222–229. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.02.005 CR - Yan, Z., & Sin, K. (2014). Inclusive education: Teachers' intentions and behavior analysed from the viewpoint of the theory of planned behavior. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 18(1), 72–85. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2012.757811 UR - https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/jtee/issue//1641432 L1 - https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/4616643 ER -