Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the
Degree of Master of Technology: Education, Durban University of Technology, 2013. / This study investigated the management of inclusive education in the four selected
junior primary schools in the Empangeni District, KwaZulu-Natal.
Despite the fact that the White Paper 6 on Special Needs Education and Training:
Building Inclusive Education and Training System was released in 2001, aiming at
providing quality education for all learners, the implementation and management of
inclusive education in schools still remain a challenge. This research, therefore,
investigated possible challenges and suggested solutions that could be used for the
effective implementation and management of inclusive education in schools.
This study was conducted to answer the following questions:
i.
What are the challenges at school level that delay the implementation of
inclusive education?
ii.
What skills do teachers and principals have or acquired in order to identify and
support learners who experience barriers to learning and development?
iii.
What are the teachers’ perceptions regarding the inclusion of learners who
experience barriers to learning and development?
iv.
Does our education system provide teachers with relevant training to meet the
challenges that come with inclusive education?
An ethnographic research was conducted in four junior primary schools at the
Empangeni District, KwaZulu- Natal to find out what happens in their school setting.
Fifteen foundation phase teachers from four junior primary schools, four principals
and six final year university student teachers participated in the study. The findings of
data collected from teachers, principals and student teachers regarding their views on
inclusion of learners who experience barriers to learning were used to make
recommendations.
The findings from the study revealed the need for schools to effectively implement
the White Paper 6 on Special Needs Education and Training: Building Inclusive
Education and Training System (2001). Inclusion of learners who experience barriers
to learning and development is an international initiative, which aims to provide quality education for all learners. The success of inclusion is based on the adoption
and implementation of the international, national and provincial inclusive education
policies, declarations and guidelines.
In this study, it became evident that there is a shortage of teachers who have
specialization in Special Education: Barriers to Learning. In- service teacher training
and special education element should be included in all courses of initial teacher
training.
Ongoing professional development of teachers on inclusive education issues is also
crucial. Teachers need to be provided with necessary skills to identify developmental
delays and barriers to learning early. This study highlighted the importance of the
establishment of the functional support structures, Institutional Level Support Team
and District Based Support Team so that inclusive education is effectively managed in
the education system. Provision of skills that will assist teachers to provide relevant
support to learners who experience barriers to learning, lies on the existence of the
support structures.
The findings also revealed that schools or any other stakeholder cannot address
barriers to learning in isolation. Linkages with Tertiary Institutions, Department of
Health, Department of Social Development, Non-Governmental Organizations,
parents/ caregivers and teacher unions need to be prioritized, in order to ensure that
diverse needs of learners are met and barriers to learning and development are
addressed.
The positive response from the National Department of Education to the international
initiatives for promoting single inclusive education system that is responsive to the
diverse needs of all learners, resulted to the release of the White Paper 6 on Special
Needs Education and Training: Building Inclusive Education and Training System in
2001. The need to close the gap between theory outlined in all the policies and
guidelines that promote inclusive education and practice becomes evident in this
study.
The management of inclusive education in schools, therefore requires the School
Management Team to facilitate, amongst other things, human resource development
and establishment of the Institutional Level Support Team.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:dut/oai:localhost:10321/947 |
| Date | 05 December 2013 |
| Creators | Majola, Happy Maureen |
| Contributors | Siyakwazi, Peggy Doris |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 97 p |
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