In order to describe parental attitudes toward school inclusion, 445 parents of elementary school students from first to fourth grade of two municipal schools of the city of São Paulo answered a questionnaire and the Likert scale General Inventory of Attitudes toward Inclusive Education (IGAEI) for assessing attitudes. The participants were 169 (37,98%) parents of students with special educational needs included in regular schools (G1) and 276 (62,02%) parents of students the school directors said did not have special needs (G2). The instruments were collectively applied during a parent teacher meeting using individual answer sheets. The results showed that both groups of parents tended to have positive attitudes in relation to inclusive education. However, parents of special educational needs students' attitudes were more positive. Results referring to other researched variables, i.e. types of special educational needs in inclusion process, are also presented. This study tends to corroborate research results from other countries, though some discrepancies have been perceived. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of parental involvement in the development of inclusive educational systems and suggests that more research is required in the Brazilian educational context.
inclusive education; parental attitudes; special needs students; assessment scale
