M.Ed. / In response to South African policies, including White Paper No 6 on Inclusion of differently-abled learners, most regular schools have opened their doors to all learners in particular, learners who could have been previously placed in special schools are increasingly included in regular schools where they can experience quality education alongside their peers at schools located in their own neighborhoods. [For this study differently-abled learners will refer to those learners who are intellectually challenged]. They are to be provided with appropriate support necessary for enabling them to experience success. Despite this noble action, differently-abled learners continue to drop out of school before they reach Grade 10. Due to limited job opportunities; some of them resort to roaming in the streets, engaging in inappropriate and/or illegal activities in the community. Some fall victims to early pregnancy. These problems raise a concern with regard to differently-abled learner`s engagement in inclusive schools, in particular, whether these learners are engaged fully in inclusive schools or are they just there for window dressing? This paper reports on the findings of a qualitative case study for my Master’s degree in Inclusive Education. The research was undertaken in one of the school which is considered a model of inclusion, in District 3, Gauteng province, South Africa. A qualitative research design was adopted for the study so as to gain thick descriptions from teachers, differently-abled learners and their parent(s) or guardian(s). Data were collected by means of observations and two forms of interviews, namely individual and focus groups with learners and educators. An additional method of collecting data using diaries was also used with learners only. Ten [10] teachers were interviewed in groups of two and individually following observations on how they engage their differently-abled learners in the classroom. Ten [10] learners were interviewed individually and asked to complete diaries about four weeks. Data was coded and analysed using Creswell`s spiral method of analysing data and presented against a backdrop of literature and ecosystemic perspective of Bronfenbrenner.which guided the study. The findings are discussed under two broad headings, which are academic engagement and non-academic engagement. The findings revealed that through their frustations, teachers are trying hrd to come to terms with inclusion of differently-abled learners in inclusive schools and they do support them. Findings also revealed that teachers employ different strategies to engage in academic and non-academic situations inclusive schools. For this study, differently-abled learners will refer to learners who are intellectaully challenged only.

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract.

Handicapped Children's Services is a provincial program designed to support the families of children with disabilities to maintain their children at home. Recently, the government of Alberta has shifted responsibility and authority for the implementation of this program to regionally based Child and Family Services Authorities. This study examined Handicapped Children's Services from four perspectives. First, the legislation establishing the program was reviewed. Secondly, the program policy supporting the program was explored. Thirdly, the practice of workers in Handicapped Children's Services was examined. Finally, the experience of families who use the program was probed. The multiple perspectives were included in order to explore Handicapped Children's Services from legislation and policy to the experience of families. This study looked at the implementation of Handicapped Children's Services in one of the eighteen regions of the province. The examination suggests that a program, which is solidly based in legislation and policy, is not being implemented in accordance with the principles, values and desired outcomes on which it was established. Workers implementing the program, as well as the families using the program, have much to offer in the way of input. The challenge is to the regional authorities and their willingness to incorporate that input into future action. The applicability to other jurisdictional areas within Alberta is considered. As Alberta continues to embrace community governance, every opportunity should be taken to learn from those regional jurisdictions that have begun to incorporate this model of governance. / Graduate

M.Ed. / Owing to South Africa’s changing socio-political climate post 1994, the educational environment has adapted its policies so as to mirror the nature of society, as reflected in the Constitution. Thus children with disabilities have been included into the mainstream education environment, through the introduction of policies such as The South African Schools Act of 1996 and the Education White Paper 6 of 2001. This paradigm shift within education has been further promoted through inclusion trends throughout the world, which are promoted by way of the Salamanca Statement and similar documents. Inclusive education research has primarily focused on the perceptions of the child with a disability, as well as his or her parents and teachers. Relatively little has focused on the sibling, potentially the only family member to share both the home and school environment with the child with a disability. The purpose of this research is therefore to explore the experiences of the siblings who share the mainstream education environment with a brother or sister with a disability. A qualitative research design was adopted so as to gain thick descriptions from the siblings of children with disabilities. Siblings were asked to take photographs which illustrated activities performed by them and the child with a disability. These were to act as a catalyst for conversation and form the basis of semi-structured interviews. In addition to these primary sources of data, a researcher journal also provided secondary data. Together all sources of data were combined in the constant comparative method of analysis. Through analysis, the data revealed the following: These siblings see the child with a disability for the person they are and not for the disability they experience, however they do not have the same level of acceptance for all children with disabilities. They believe that their sibling with a disability is accepted by peers within the mainstream school environment because of their positive attitude and determined effort made in integrating themselves whole-heartedly within the school environment. Despite this positive experience of their sibling with a disability, like other siblings, they have separate lives at school and thus the child with a disability is dependent upon alternative support provision. Lastly, many of the siblings lacked in-depth information regarding their brother or sister’s disability and often responded to questions with, “I don’t know.”

The raison d'être of my research is simple: it’s about tossing one more starfish back into the surf. Down syndrome is not a disease, nor is it contagious or a death sentence (it only feels that way when you find out for the first time). At the moment of conception, the apprearance of extra genetic material results in a total of 47 chromosomes in every cell. Usually each cell has only 46, thus making an individual with Down syndrome far more like others than different from them. Yet, this extra chromosome presents special circumstances regarding their ability to acquire new skills, be it academic or practical, encompassing a specific learning profile with typical characterisitcs, strengths and weaknesses. Twenty-first century family life is simultaneously challenging and richly rewarding and the expectancy of most families are of a life lived on paved highways with well-marked signs, and rest stops never far apart. Adding an extra chromosome to the luggage sends the family travelling down a vastly different highway instead, not always knowing what is ahead. It’s scary, but in reality even those on the wide smooth roads do not know the future. Echoing the feelings of many parents, Leonard (1992: 5) states, “The trouble is that we have few, if any maps to guide us on the journey or show us how to find the path…” Assumptions from previous decades that used to increase stress associated with rearing a child with Down syndrome would negatively impact on individual family members and the family unit as such. This has made way for the growing consensus that it is not necessarily the norm. Whilst some families have trouble in adapting to the increased stress, other families adjust easier and even thrive. Successful adaptation seems more likely in resilient families who enjoy high levels of parental well-being and strong relationship bonds. Findings of this qualitative research study confirm that unresolved marital strains are more likely to result in divorce as opposed to the birth of their child with Down syndrome. Correspondingly, siblings of children with Down syndrome reported mostly positive impact than negated opportunities to participate in a normal childhood. My motivation for this research was to explore the nature of challenges faced by modern families and to provide mechanisms to facilitate positive adaptation for the family and aid vii inclusion of the child with Down syndrome into school and greater society. Recommendations are also presented for the medical professionals who, ironically, have proved to be the last people parents want to go for support, owing mostly to their decidedly objectionable treatment of parents; as well as the generally uninformed public, who seldom understand or support attempts of parents to include and expose their child to everyday experiences. In conclusion, I summarize: Should it be that I may influence but one person to see persons with Down syndrome for the potential that they hold instead of the associated problems of their condition, this would afford me the satisfaction and contentment knowing that I have succeeded in making a positive contribution to their plight. I would have successfully portrayed the families for the ordinary people they are with anticipations, aspirations and anxieties, but later tasting the elation of being empowered, and the resultant enjoyment and pride of the achievements of their extraordinary “starfish” child. The simple story below explains it all. A little boy was walking on the beach when he noticed scores of starfish washed onto the beach by the previous night’s high tide. He curiously watched as an old man bent down, came up slowly and tossed one starfish after the other into the surf. He went closer to investigate. “Excuse me, sir, what are you doing?” he enquired. The old man said: “I am throwing the starfish back into the ocean before they die, my boy…come, lend a hand”. The boy looked up and down the beach at the hundreds of starfish scattered along the shoreline. “But there’s too many…” said the boy, “it’ll make no difference!” The old man smiled, bent down, picked up another starfish, and carefully tossing it into the clear blue water, he replied, “…It makes a difference to this one…”

The purpose of this study was to provide a description of the physical performance of a group of slow learning children who participated in a perceptual-motor program and to observe the effects of special training in motor skills on the visual perception and motor capacity of each child. Eight subjects, ranging in age from six to nine years, were selected to participate in the study. Each subject was referred to the program because of a diagnosis of retarded perceptual-motor development. The subjects were given pre-training standardized tests in General Motor Capacity and Visual Perception. They then received approximately fifty minutes of daily instruction in motor skills for a total of sixty-five days. At the conclusion of the special training period, the subjects were once again tested in general motor capacity and visual perception. The scores on the initial and final tests in motor capacity and perceptual ability were compared and the differences were recorded. A case study was conducted on each subject in order to obtain as much information as possible on each individual participating in the program. Information was obtained from medical and school records, psychologist and teacher reports, and the detailed observations of the investigator. The results indicated that difficulties in differentiation, balance and coordination appeared to be characteristic of the child having inadequate perceptual-motor development. A comparison of pre- and post-training test results showed that an improvement in motor capacity and visual perception occurred in all the subjects. Marked improvements were also observed in the children's behavior and attitude. From the findings of this study it appears that a special motor training program is a major contributor to the overall rehabilitation of the perceptually-motor handicapped child. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

This study examined problems referred to Teacher Assistance Teams (TATs) during the 1988-89 school year in four Vancouver schools. Exploratory analyses were conducted to discover: (a) similarities or differences between problems referred to Teacher Assistance Teams and those referred to School-based teams (SBTs); and (b) similarities or differences between problem statements before and after the problem identification phase of the TAT process was carried out. Significant differences were found in the nature of problems referred to TATs and to SBTs. No significant differences were found in problem statements before and after problem identification was carried out. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate

"This study is a report of the Exceptional Children's Unit in Lake Placid, Florida. The purposes of this report are as follows: 1. To clarify the thoughts of the writer on what the Exceptional Children's Unit has accomplished. 2. To arrive at conclusions on the contributions the Lake Placid Exceptional Children's Unit has made to children and to teachers of other grades. 3. To clarify the values and techniques of case histories in teaching exceptional children. 4. To compare the curricula and program which have been used in the exceptional unit with that reported in well-known schools. This study will attempt to trace the development of the mental pattern of two mentally defective children and a borderline subnormal boy over a period of three years in a public school"--Introduction. / "August, 1954." / Typescript. / "Submitted to the Graduate Council of Florida State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science." / Advisor: R. L. Witherspoon, Professor Directing Paper. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 53).

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