PEER ACCEPTANCE OF THE MAINSTREAMED EMOTIONALLY HANDICAPPED CHILD

The purpose of this study is to compare the peer acceptance of regular fourth grade students between an emotionally handicapped student and normal student under positive, negative and neutral teacher attitude conditions. Six groups of fourth grade students were randomly selected from three Seminole County elementary schools. Twenty students were in each group. Each group was randomly assigned to one of the six conditions and viewed a audio-visual presentation. After the presentation, each student completed the peer acceptance questionnaire. The mean scores for each group were analyzed using a "2 x 3" analysis of variance with the effects tested at the .05 level of significance across all levels. No significant difference in level of peer acceptance was found between the emotionally handicapped and normal labels. There was a significant difference in level of peer acceptance under the negative orientation versus the positive and neutral orientations across the emotionally handicapped and normal labels. In addition, no interactions exist between the emotionally handicapped and normal labels under positive, negative, or neutral orientations. As both the concept and practice of mainstreaming are expanding, it was concluded that the results of this study can provide important insight as to the emphasis of procedures and direction for future research. Inservice to teachers on all aspects of mainstreaming and emphasis on positive peer orientation will result in more efficient integration of exceptional students into regular classes.