EDUCATION AND EMPOWERMENT OF LEARNERS WITH DISABILTIES IN SOUTH AFRICA
The process of empowerment begins with the establishment of institutional processes, which act as enablers for individual action. The next thing
should be the individual's volition to act or change his or her own situations. The SA schools act and supporting policies provide an environment
in which learners can act to improve their own lives and the lives of others.
In addition to enabling the Education Acts, the gov has also put key policy implementation guidelines in place.
Guidelines for inclusive schools (2010)
Strategy on Screening, Identification assessment and support (2008)
Guidelines for responding to diversity in the classroom (2011)
NCS and Assessment Protocol (2011)
These guidelines make it possible for children with disabilities to attend school in ordinary classes in schools in their neighbourhoods.
Legislative provisions alone do not empower learners
Learners themselves or their reps must act to use law to improve situations
Parents play a role in the use of statutory provisions
Parents need relevant education, may also need to change their attitudes towards the whole learner-empowerment process.
Specifically in relation to educating Down's syndrome in mainstream schools, Schoeman (2012:7) raised the following factors, which restrict
parents:
Attitudes in communities
Advice by professionals
Assumptions about special schools
Transport challenges
Lack of trust in teacher's willingness to be accommodative and supportive
Lack of info on support policy
Lack of empowerment
The empowered learner
Giving power to learners is expected to lead to educational progress. Empowered learners should'
Be independent thinkers who are aware of their rights and responsibilities
Have an in-depth understanding of their prevailing social, economic and educational environment
Be able to identify opportunities in their immediate enviro and participate to improve the livelihoods of both themselves and others
Have skills of inquiry and be able to apply them to raise concerns about emerging issues
Be intent on the welfare of all.
Empowered learners should take time to make good choices and work hard to improve their school results. They should be aware that school
results provide a mechanism for identifying individuals who are suitable for significant employment opportunities.
Inclusive education as a tool for learner empowerment
The ideology of inclusive education has foundations in egalitarianism. Egalitarian thinking has led to a belief that benefits of equal education for
population groups, which have hitherto been marginalised.
An education system is considered to be inclusive when the special needs of a diverse range of learners are accommodated in the general
education system, so that special education becomes an ordinary component of the education system as a whole.
Inclusive education remains an important dimension of learner empowerment.
Mainstream schools are intended to furnish the human capital needs of a country.
o They represent the country's best efforts to respond to its own social and economic needs.
Inclusive education allows learners with disabilities to tap into experiences that form the nation's desired workforce.
Learners with disabilities have the right to receive social orientation, which provides a good understanding of their ecological context.
RESPONDING TO THE DIVERSE NEEDS OF LEARNERS WITH DISABILITIES.
,An international perspective/response
Internationally there are various approaches towards the implementation of inclusive education. This varies from focus on including learners
previously referred to special schools into mainstream schools, and providing them with support through well-established and well-resourced
special education systems, to including all learners previously excluded from attending school.
The international community has committed to building more societies that are inclusive.
This resulted in many improvements regarding the inclusion of children with disabilities.
However
According to the executive report on the State of the World's Children, with the focus on children with disabilities
o Too many of them continue to face barriers to participation (UNICEF.2013)
o Barriers perpetuated across the world ranging from:
Inaccessible buildings to dismissive attitudes
Invisibility in official statistics to vicious discrimination
o This deprives children of their rights and keep them from participating fully in society.
This situation can be attributed to differing understanding of inclusive education and narrow interpretation that it is about being physically
included.
This understanding responsible for the placement of learners with disabilities into mainstream schools.
Understanding barriers to learning and participation
In order to be able to respond to the needs of the learners it is important to be able to identify the barriers that create these needs. From
inclusive education perspective, the range of possible barriers can be grouped into four broad categories.
Systematic barriers
Policy and curriculum issues
Lack of basic and appropriate learning support materials
Lack of assistive devices
Inaccessible environment
Inadequate facilities at schools
Management and classroom organisation
Overcrowded classrooms
Lack of mother tongue educators
Societal barriers
Can differ from community to community. Although poverty is one of the issues, the neglect of learners in wealthier households can also create
barriers to learning and development.
Severe poverty
Lack of access to basic services
Lack of early intervention programmes
Impact of HIV/AIDS
Abuse, crime, teenage pregnancy
Late admissions to schools
Violence and crime in neighbourhoods and at home
Gender issues in cultural groups and society
Negative and harmful attitudes to stereotyping difference
Pedagogic and curriculum barriers
Inappropriate teaching methodologies and strategies
Inappropriate and unfair assessment procedures
Insufficient support from teachers
Inflexible curriculum
Inappropriate and inadequate support services
, Intrinsic barriers
These are medical barriers; they can be classified as neurological, physical, sensory and cognitive. Neurological barriers can be classified as
'topographical'(which refers to the limbs affected) or 'physiological'(which is an indication of damage that has occurred in an area of the brain).
Examples of neurological barriers are:
Epilepsy
Cerebral palsy
Learning disabilities
Communication disorders
Perceptual disorders
Socio-emotional problems
Memory problems
Attention problems
Physical barriers include:
Disorders of the skeleton
Muscular weakness and paralysis (spina bifida, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, spinal muscular atrophy, spinal cord injuries)
Health impairments and chronically sick learners
Sensory barriers are mainly:
Hearing loss
Visual impairment
Cognitive barriers are also referred to as intellectual disabilities. They are classified as:
Mild
Moderate
Severe
Profound
In light of the above, it is clear that teachers need to understand disability as a barrier to learning and participation. The most common barriers
experienced in schools include:
Visual loss
Hearing loss
Speech and language difficulties
Intellectual disabilities
Physical disabilities
Psychological disorders
Neurological disorders
According to the Guidelines for inclusive teaching and learning (DoE, 2010), children with disabilities might need to be able to straddle grades in
order to prevent them from being excluded. The impairments that should qualify for this accommodation (straddling) may include:
Dyslexia and the acquisition of additional language
Dyspraxia and communication
Dyscalculia and numeracy
In addition, schools may require financial support to provide resources and assistive devices needed by children with disabilities who find
themselves in ordinary mainstream and inclusive schools.
Negative attitudes to difference as a barrier
Negative attitudes have serious implications for the socio-educational needs of learners with disabilities. Schools should combat negative
attitudes towards children with disabilities and encourage their inclusion in mainstream education by:
The process of empowerment begins with the establishment of institutional processes, which act as enablers for individual action. The next thing
should be the individual's volition to act or change his or her own situations. The SA schools act and supporting policies provide an environment
in which learners can act to improve their own lives and the lives of others.
In addition to enabling the Education Acts, the gov has also put key policy implementation guidelines in place.
Guidelines for inclusive schools (2010)
Strategy on Screening, Identification assessment and support (2008)
Guidelines for responding to diversity in the classroom (2011)
NCS and Assessment Protocol (2011)
These guidelines make it possible for children with disabilities to attend school in ordinary classes in schools in their neighbourhoods.
Legislative provisions alone do not empower learners
Learners themselves or their reps must act to use law to improve situations
Parents play a role in the use of statutory provisions
Parents need relevant education, may also need to change their attitudes towards the whole learner-empowerment process.
Specifically in relation to educating Down's syndrome in mainstream schools, Schoeman (2012:7) raised the following factors, which restrict
parents:
Attitudes in communities
Advice by professionals
Assumptions about special schools
Transport challenges
Lack of trust in teacher's willingness to be accommodative and supportive
Lack of info on support policy
Lack of empowerment
The empowered learner
Giving power to learners is expected to lead to educational progress. Empowered learners should'
Be independent thinkers who are aware of their rights and responsibilities
Have an in-depth understanding of their prevailing social, economic and educational environment
Be able to identify opportunities in their immediate enviro and participate to improve the livelihoods of both themselves and others
Have skills of inquiry and be able to apply them to raise concerns about emerging issues
Be intent on the welfare of all.
Empowered learners should take time to make good choices and work hard to improve their school results. They should be aware that school
results provide a mechanism for identifying individuals who are suitable for significant employment opportunities.
Inclusive education as a tool for learner empowerment
The ideology of inclusive education has foundations in egalitarianism. Egalitarian thinking has led to a belief that benefits of equal education for
population groups, which have hitherto been marginalised.
An education system is considered to be inclusive when the special needs of a diverse range of learners are accommodated in the general
education system, so that special education becomes an ordinary component of the education system as a whole.
Inclusive education remains an important dimension of learner empowerment.
Mainstream schools are intended to furnish the human capital needs of a country.
o They represent the country's best efforts to respond to its own social and economic needs.
Inclusive education allows learners with disabilities to tap into experiences that form the nation's desired workforce.
Learners with disabilities have the right to receive social orientation, which provides a good understanding of their ecological context.
RESPONDING TO THE DIVERSE NEEDS OF LEARNERS WITH DISABILITIES.
,An international perspective/response
Internationally there are various approaches towards the implementation of inclusive education. This varies from focus on including learners
previously referred to special schools into mainstream schools, and providing them with support through well-established and well-resourced
special education systems, to including all learners previously excluded from attending school.
The international community has committed to building more societies that are inclusive.
This resulted in many improvements regarding the inclusion of children with disabilities.
However
According to the executive report on the State of the World's Children, with the focus on children with disabilities
o Too many of them continue to face barriers to participation (UNICEF.2013)
o Barriers perpetuated across the world ranging from:
Inaccessible buildings to dismissive attitudes
Invisibility in official statistics to vicious discrimination
o This deprives children of their rights and keep them from participating fully in society.
This situation can be attributed to differing understanding of inclusive education and narrow interpretation that it is about being physically
included.
This understanding responsible for the placement of learners with disabilities into mainstream schools.
Understanding barriers to learning and participation
In order to be able to respond to the needs of the learners it is important to be able to identify the barriers that create these needs. From
inclusive education perspective, the range of possible barriers can be grouped into four broad categories.
Systematic barriers
Policy and curriculum issues
Lack of basic and appropriate learning support materials
Lack of assistive devices
Inaccessible environment
Inadequate facilities at schools
Management and classroom organisation
Overcrowded classrooms
Lack of mother tongue educators
Societal barriers
Can differ from community to community. Although poverty is one of the issues, the neglect of learners in wealthier households can also create
barriers to learning and development.
Severe poverty
Lack of access to basic services
Lack of early intervention programmes
Impact of HIV/AIDS
Abuse, crime, teenage pregnancy
Late admissions to schools
Violence and crime in neighbourhoods and at home
Gender issues in cultural groups and society
Negative and harmful attitudes to stereotyping difference
Pedagogic and curriculum barriers
Inappropriate teaching methodologies and strategies
Inappropriate and unfair assessment procedures
Insufficient support from teachers
Inflexible curriculum
Inappropriate and inadequate support services
, Intrinsic barriers
These are medical barriers; they can be classified as neurological, physical, sensory and cognitive. Neurological barriers can be classified as
'topographical'(which refers to the limbs affected) or 'physiological'(which is an indication of damage that has occurred in an area of the brain).
Examples of neurological barriers are:
Epilepsy
Cerebral palsy
Learning disabilities
Communication disorders
Perceptual disorders
Socio-emotional problems
Memory problems
Attention problems
Physical barriers include:
Disorders of the skeleton
Muscular weakness and paralysis (spina bifida, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, spinal muscular atrophy, spinal cord injuries)
Health impairments and chronically sick learners
Sensory barriers are mainly:
Hearing loss
Visual impairment
Cognitive barriers are also referred to as intellectual disabilities. They are classified as:
Mild
Moderate
Severe
Profound
In light of the above, it is clear that teachers need to understand disability as a barrier to learning and participation. The most common barriers
experienced in schools include:
Visual loss
Hearing loss
Speech and language difficulties
Intellectual disabilities
Physical disabilities
Psychological disorders
Neurological disorders
According to the Guidelines for inclusive teaching and learning (DoE, 2010), children with disabilities might need to be able to straddle grades in
order to prevent them from being excluded. The impairments that should qualify for this accommodation (straddling) may include:
Dyslexia and the acquisition of additional language
Dyspraxia and communication
Dyscalculia and numeracy
In addition, schools may require financial support to provide resources and assistive devices needed by children with disabilities who find
themselves in ordinary mainstream and inclusive schools.
Negative attitudes to difference as a barrier
Negative attitudes have serious implications for the socio-educational needs of learners with disabilities. Schools should combat negative
attitudes towards children with disabilities and encourage their inclusion in mainstream education by:
