ABSTRACT VIEW
EXPLORING TEACHER BELIEFS ON INCLUSION THROUGH VISUAL NARRATIVES
L. Rayon-Rumayor1, A. De las Heras-Cuenca1, S. Redondo-Duarte1, G. Meneghel1, E. Barroso-Moreno2
1 Complutense University of Madrid (SPAIN)
2 Arcipreste de Hita-Fuenlabrada Preschool and Primary School (Madrid) (SPAIN)
The purpose of this work is twofold. On one hand, it aims to address the difficulty of capturing teachers' practical thinking, specifically the theories and beliefs that shape their practice as key elements that condition their actions and classroom practices, as well as their impact in triggering professional development processes (Fives & Gill 2015; Tabachnick & Zeichner 1988). On the other hand, it focuses on understanding the potential of training sessions developed through photo-elicitation processes to access teachers' practical thinking, specifically identifying the theories and beliefs related to educational inclusion that arise from their practice.

Throughout a school year, three case studies (Simons 2011) were conducted with two teachers and a school principal. The research design is based on visual narrative inquiry and photo-elicitation processes (Harper 2002; Mannay 2017). The procedure carried out is structured in two phases: In the first, the teacher shows the photograph or a set of images to collect the most significant situations of their practice. In the second, the researchers intervene to analyze and discuss the situations presented, specifically those related to the diversity of their classrooms, making them more aware of their practice (Bautista Rayón & de las Heras 2020). This procedure is selected because various studies have identified the potential of photo-elicitation to access teachers' practical thinking (de las Heras Rayón & Bautista 2020), recognizing that this purpose is hardly achieved with other methodological procedures (Ruto-Korir & Lubbe-De Beer 2012; Taylor 2016).

A total of 57 photographs taken by the participants were analyzed. The results present those theories and beliefs related to educational inclusion that emerge in response to the situations of exclusion they experience in their teaching practice, allowing the identification of similarities and singularities in their practice. In these sessions, their vision of diversity and their professional stance towards dilemmas generated by situations of segregation and injustice they experience become clearly evident.

Finally, it is concluded that photo-elicitation processes provide favorable spaces for the representation and evocation of the theories and beliefs that shape the practical thinking of the participating teachers. Future lines of work related to teacher professional development are also identified.

Keywords: Photo-elicitation, Visual Narratives, Inclusive Education, Teacher Training, Practical Thinking.

Event: EDULEARN25
Track: Teacher Training & Ed. Management
Session: Professional Development of Teachers
Session type: VIRTUAL