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The Impact Of Children’S Literature And Discussion On Attitudes Toward Disability, Christie Routel

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study examines the impact of reading children’s literature that contains a positive and realistic portrayal of a character with a learning disability on the attitudes of students without disabilities toward their peers with disabilities. Children completed the Attitude Toward Disabled Persons Scale (ADTP) before and after listening to a story and participating in guided discussion. The researcher conducted individual interviews with a smaller group of children based on changes in their attitudes on the surveys. Quantitative results indicate a statistically significant and large positive effect on attitudes towards persons with disabilities from participating in reading and discussion. Qualitative results …