An exploration of the effects of learning through 'interaction activities' on eighth-graders' social acceptance of students with special needs in Turkey

Abstract

This study aims to determine the effects of training through interaction activities on the social acceptance levels of typically developing eighth-grade students towards students with special needs. The study was carried out with a sample of 100 eighth-grade students attending middle school in a province in Turkey. The study used an experimental pre- and post-test control group design (with 50 students in each group). It found a significant difference between the post-test scores of the experimental group and the control group, with the difference in favour of the experimental group. However, the highest social acceptance among typically developing students was found to be for gifted students, while the lowest was for students with autism and intellectual disabilities.