Abstract
This study investigated in-service teachers’ knowledge about learner diversity and its relation to other teacher-related factors, guided by the COACTIV model of professional competence. We expected knowledge differences depending on prior learning opportunities, positive associations with attitudes towards inclusion, teaching self-efficacy for inclusive education and mastery-oriented practices, and negative associations with performance-oriented practices. Participants were 139 German in-service teachers (average age 40, 13 years of teaching experience) from primary (19%), secondary (29%), grammar schools (26%), vocational colleges (12%), segregated special schools (12%) and others (2%). We assessed their knowledge and misconceptions using an objective, standardised test with 142 true-or-false statements about special educational needs due to emotional/behavioural and learning difficulties, partial achievement disorders (dyslexia, dyscalculia), gender and intellectual giftedness. Several t-tests compared their scores with those of 395 bachelor and 181 master teacher students, showing that in-service teachers had higher knowledge. Several t-tests further showed that special education teachers knew more than mainstream education teachers. Correlation analyses in the in-service teacher sample revealed that higher knowledge was associated with more positive attitudes towards inclusion, greater self-efficacy for teaching in inclusive education and more mastery-oriented practices. The results highlight the importance of knowledge about diversity as part of teachers’ professional competence.