Inclusive education has emerged as a growing national priority in Qatar, reflecting both international obligations and the strategic goals of the Qatar National Vision 2030. Despite this commitment, the effective implementation of inclusive practices remains constrained by persistent challenges encountered by general education teachers. This study examines the nature and extent of these challenges and investigates the impact of teacher demographic variables on inclusive teaching practices. Employing a mixed-methods design, quantitative data were collected from 203 teachers through a validated survey instrument, while qualitative insights were gathered via structured interviews with five general education teachers. The findings indicated a moderate level of challenges across cognitive, administrative, psychological, and social domains. Notably, no statistically significant differences were observed in teacher demographics. Thematic analysis revealed two central themes: enhancing inclusive education and promoting social integration. By foregrounding the experiences of general education teachers, this study addresses a critical gap in the literature. It underscores the need for sustained professional development, curricular adaptation, and institutional support to bridge the disconnect between inclusive policy frameworks and classroom realities.
Inclusive education is a process that focuses on and responds to the diverse needs of all learners by removing barriers to education, enhancing participation, and reducing exclusion. This approach has become a fundamental pillar in global education policies since the Salamanca Statement of 1994. Today, the world is witnessing a rapid shift toward the implementation of inclusive education; however, translating this concept into practical application faces complex challenges related to infrastructure, teacher preparation, societal attitudes, and educational policies.
Inclusive education is based on several key principles, including removing barriers to learning and participation, providing a flexible and adaptable learning environment, and ensuring the development of diverse teaching strategies that respond to individual differences. From this perspective, the current study is conceptually grounded in the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework, which emphasizes proactive curriculum design to accommodate the diverse needs of all learners. UDL promotes flexibility in the ways information is presented, fosters engagement, and demonstrates learning. This framework is particularly relevant for analyzing challenges related to teacher preparedness, instructional planning, and systemic constraints in inclusive classrooms. By adopting UDL as a guiding lens, this study positions itself to examine how existing structural and instructional limitations may conflict with the inclusive ideals promoted by Qatar’s national education policy.
Despite the adoption of inclusive education policies in many countries, their practical implementation faces significant challenges, as highlighted in recent educational literature. One of the most pressing issues is the lack of adequate teacher preparation. Studies indicate that many general education teachers lack specialized training in adapting to the special educational needs of students, modifying curricula, and applying flexible instructional strategies. Emphasizing the success of inclusive education largely depends on teachers’ ability to adopt inclusive teaching practices supported by sufficient and continuous training. In addition, limited resources and institutional support pose significant barriers. A shortage of support teachers, assistive technologies, and adequately equipped facilities hinders the delivery of effective inclusive education, while weak administrative backing and inadequate school policies further complicate implementation. The literature also highlights the rigidity of traditional curricula and instructional methods, which are often designed for average learners and lack the flexibility necessary to accommodate individual differences, thereby impeding full inclusion. In this context, scholars have advocated for curricula based on UDL principles to enable full participation for all students. Moreover, the attitudes of society and school personnel play a pivotal role in the success or failure of inclusive education. Negative or hesitant perceptions toward students with disabilities diminish their chances of meaningful inclusion, and the absence of a school culture that embraces difference may lead to their social isolation, even if they are physically present in mainstream classrooms.
The challenges associated with implementing inclusive education are well-documented in the international literature and can be broadly categorized into cognitive, administrative, psychological, and social domains. Cognitive challenges involve the professional knowledge and preparation of general education teachers, particularly in areas such as inclusive pedagogy, curriculum adaptation, and differentiated instruction. Numerous studies have highlighted a persistent gap between policy expectations and teacher readiness, especially when specialized training is limited or inconsistent. Administrative challenges encompass systemic barriers such as excessive workloads, a lack of teaching assistants, limited access to resources, and insufficient planning time, all of which undermine teachers’ capacity to apply inclusive strategies effectively. Psychological challenges reflect internal attitudes, beliefs, and emotional responses that influence teachers’ confidence and willingness to teach students with disabilities. Meanwhile, social challenges pertain to broader contextual factors, including peer interactions, family engagement, and societal perceptions of disability. Research also points to systemic limitations, such as inflexible curricula and instructional practices that fail to accommodate diverse learners, thereby constraining inclusive efforts. In response, scholars have advocated for curricula grounded in UDL principles to promote equitable access and participation. Furthermore, insufficient institutional support, a scarcity of assistive technologies, and unsupportive school leadership compound these challenges, while negative attitudes among educators and school communities continue to hinder meaningful inclusion.
Although these studies offer important insights into global and regional implementation challenges, a notable gap remains in the literature regarding the voices of general education teachers in Qatar, who are directly responsible for applying inclusive practices in diverse classrooms. Much of the existing scholarship in Qatar either focuses on special educators, preservice teacher attitudes, or policy-level analysis. In contrast, the lived experiences and practical constraints faced by in-service general education teachers remain underexplored. Furthermore, previous empirical studies, while informative, are situated in sub-Saharan African contexts and lack a unified conceptual framework. These studies primarily describe surface-level barriers, such as a lack of resources and inadequate training, but do not systematically examine how these challenges interact with curriculum design or institutional culture through a theoretical lens.
This study aims to address these gaps by providing an empirically grounded and theoretically informed analysis of the challenges faced by general education teachers in Qatar. It builds on earlier findings by adopting a mixed-methods approach that integrates quantitative measurement and qualitative interpretation, while also diverging from prior research by situating teacher narratives within the UDL framework. By doing so, the study contributes new knowledge about how inclusion policies are experienced and enacted in practice, offering context-specific insights that can inform both policy and professional development in Qatar and comparable contexts.
The State of Qatar has shown growing interest in developing inclusive education policies in alignment with its international commitments and in support of Qatar National Vision 2030, which aims to establish a comprehensive and high-quality educational system. Qatar’s efforts have included issuing the “National Policy on Inclusive Education,” establishing educational support centers, and implementing teacher training programs to enhance educators’ competencies in addressing student diversity. Aligned with the Qatar National Vision 2030 goals, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education has adopted inclusive education as a strategic priority, implementing reforms to provide supportive school environments that integrate students with disabilities into general education classrooms. These efforts include deploying trained professionals, using assistive technologies, and curriculum adaptations to meet the needs of diverse learners. Recent studies indicate that implementing inclusive education in Qatari schools faces challenges similar to those in international literature. Alkhateeb et al. reported that teacher education in Qatar generally faces many challenges, including teacher workload, stakeholder roles, dissatisfaction with college-based preparation, and cultural influences. Nevertheless, a critical gap persists in preparing general education teachers for inclusive practice. Most teacher education programs include minimal coursework on inclusive education, typically a single module, which is insufficient to equip teachers with the practical skills and attitudes required for effectively addressing student diversity. This inadequacy contributes to several persistent challenges in the field, including limited teacher preparedness, lack of interdisciplinary collaboration, negative perceptions toward inclusion, and insufficient classroom resources. Empirical findings from regional and international contexts corroborate these issues. For example, studies have reported that general education teachers (GETs) frequently feel underprepared to support students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other disabilities in mainstream classrooms due to insufficient training and institutional support. Furthermore, the transition to inclusive systems is often hindered by structural, attitudinal, and logistical constraints that undermine the effectiveness of inclusion initiatives.
Therefore, this study aims to bridge a critical research gap by examining the challenges faced by GETs in Qatari preparatory and secondary schools, a context that remains underexplored in the existing literature. While prior studies such as Khoaeane and Mubaiwa have investigated teachers’ perceptions of inclusive education challenges, they were situated in different national and educational systems and did not specifically address the sociopolitical and institutional conditions unique to Qatar. Moreover, these earlier works did not incorporate a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative breadth with qualitative depth to triangulate teachers’ experiences. By focusing on the Qatari context and integrating both survey data and teacher narratives, this study contributes a contextually grounded and methodologically robust perspective to the field. The findings aim to inform policy development, enhance teacher preparation programs, and support the implementation of sustainable and inclusive educational reform in Qatar and similar settings.
This study employed a mixed-methods approach to investigate the challenges faced by general education teachers in inclusive classrooms in Qatar. The research design was informed by the UDL framework, which served as the conceptual lens guiding both data collection and analysis. UDL principles underscore the importance of removing instructional and environmental barriers, and this lens helped frame the exploration of how systemic, instructional, and attitudinal factors impact the implementation of inclusive education. A survey was used to quantitatively assess the level of challenges encountered by teachers, focusing on potential variations across gender, teaching experience, educational attainment, teaching level, and area of specialization. Surveys are commonly employed in educational research to systematically capture the breadth of participants’ experiences and perceptions. To complement the survey data and provide a deeper exploration of the underlying factors contributing to these challenges, structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of teachers. Structured interviews enable the collection of consistent and comparable qualitative data, allowing teachers to elaborate on specific issues. By integrating survey results with interview findings, the study aimed to triangulate data sources and enhance the validity of its conclusions, offering a comprehensive understanding of the barriers to effective inclusive education in Qatari schools.
The quantitative phase of the study included a sample of 203 general education teachers currently working in inclusive classrooms across government schools in Qatar. Participants were selected using a two-stage cluster sampling method to ensure a representative sample across various school levels and geographic regions. In the first stage, schools offering inclusive education services were randomly selected from a comprehensive list provided by the Ministry
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