Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi et al., International Journal of Research in Engineering and Social Sciences, ISSN 2249-9482, Impact Factor: 6.301, Volume 06 Issue 06, June 2016, Page 16-23 www.indusedu.org Page 16 Perception of and Attitude towards Inclusion: A Case of Nigerian Pre-Primary and Primary School Teachers Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi 1 and Olusegun Rufus Akinbote 2 1 (Department of Curriculum and Instruction,University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, U.S.A, email: omodebiyi@crimson.ua.edu) 2 (Department of Teacher Education,University of Ibadan,Ibadan, Nigeria, email: segunakinbote@yahoo.com Abstract:In Nigeria, inclusion practice is emerging and has been required by federal law in Nigeria and advocated for by professionals. However, much of the responsibility for the successful inclusion of children with special needs rests upon the shoulders of teachers. This paper examined the pre-primary and primary school teachers’ perception of and attitude towards inclusion in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. The study adopted descriptive research design. A multi-stage sampling procedure was adopted in the selection of 200 pre-primary and primary school teachers from 15 schools (10 regular and 5 special schools) to explore their perception of and attitude towards inclusive education. Teachers’ Perception of and Attitude towards Inclusion (α=0.87) was the instrument use d to collect the data. The data collected were analyzed using frequency count, simple percentage and t-test. Four research questions were answered. The results revealed that majority of the teachers have positive perception of and attitude towards inclusion respectively. The findings of this study also showed no significant difference between the special and regular school teachers in their perception of and attitude towards inclusion. The implications of the findings were discussed and recommendations were made. Key words:Inclusion, Perception, Attitude, Pre-school, Primary school teachers. I. INTRODUCTION The importance of education to the development of individuals and the society at large is well known. It is in recognition of this importance that the international community and governments all over the world have made commitments to the provision of free education to all citizens as a legal right (Akinbote, Oduolowu & Lawal, 2001). The right to education, as a universal right, extends to all children in all parts of the world, including those with special needs. This right is affirmed by the introduction of inclusion; the full-time placement of children with intellectual and other developmental disabilities in the general education classroom with the aim of addressing and responding to their diversity of needs, and increasing their participation in teaching-learning process. Many international agreements, conventions and declarations have consistently supported this obligatory goal. Examples of these agreements, conventions, and declarations, include the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNICEF, 1989), the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Special needs (United Nations, 1993), the UNESCO Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action (1994), and the Dakar Framework for Action (2000); Education for All. These international pronouncements and declarations have greatly influenced government policies on the education of children with special needs worldwide, es pecially in the developing countries. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 1990) are more explicit compared to other pronouncements. IDEA is a law ensuring that states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services to eligible infants, toddlers, children, and youth with special needs in the least restrictive environment. In many cases, the least restrictive environment is one that involves placement of learners with special needs into educational programmes with typically developing children to the maximum extent appropriate (Giffing, Warnick, Tarpley& William, 2010). Meanwhile, experience, observation and documents have shown that in Nigeria, there are inequalities in educational access and achievement as well as high levels of absolute educational deprivation of children in which children with special needs suffer the most. In the existing modern education practice in Nigeria, children with special needs are still experiencing exclusion, discrimination and segregation from mainstream education as their peers. Some are placed in separate classes or schools; many have been denied access to education of any sort. Oyundoyin (2013) noted that person with special needs face both natural and artificial exclusion. Negative cultural or social attitudes towards disability result in some parents not wanting to be associated with a child with a special