Identifying Elements of Inclusion: Interviews With Elementary Music Teachers About Their Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Each year, increasingly more children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are being served in schools. Many children with ASD are included in elementary music classrooms, but little is known about the experiences of these students and their teachers. For this study, we purposefully selected two elementary music teachers from participants in a survey about students with ASD. Semi-structured interviews with these teachers allowed us to identify elements necessary for creating a culture of inclusion and implementing the inclusion of students with ASD. Follow-up, in-class observations with one teacher confirmed interview findings. Overall, results from the teachers’ interviews suggested elements that could impede or facilitate elementary music teachers in their efforts to create a classroom culture of inclusion and implement inclusion using best practices from music education and special education. Findings also provide important implications for music teacher preparation programs and school policies and procedures.