Norma Nel

The extent and practice of inclusion in independent schools in South Africa

In line with international trends in education, South Africa has embraced inclusive education as the means by which learners who experience barriers to learning will be educated. As inclusion is beginning to be realised in South African schools, a gap in the emerging research base on inclusive education is that of inclusion in the independent sector. A study was undertaken to establish the extent to which learners who experience barriers to learning are included in independent schools belonging to ISASA (the largest independent schools association in South Africa) and the practices that facilitate inclusion. The results of a survey administered to principals were analysed quantitatively and reveal that most ISASA schools include learners who experience various barriers to learning and employ inclusive practices that are described in the international literature. We report on salient aspects emerging from the study and focus on the diversity of learners found in ISASA schools, as well as the inclusive practices found at school-wide, classroom, and individual levels. The practices described are the provision of on-site specialist personnel, support for teachers, building modifications to ensure access by persons using wheelchairs and various instructional practices and assessment adaptations. Recommendations arising from the study may give direction to South African schools pursuing inclusivity. South African Journal of Education Vol. 29 (1) 2009: pp. 105-126

South African teachers' views of collaboration within an inclusive education system

The development of sustainable collaborative partnerships between different role players within an inclusive education system seems to be a continuous challenge in South Africa. The focus of this research study was to understand how teachers view collaboration within an inclusive education system. Open-ended questionnaires were completed by 85 participating teachers and focus group interviews were employed with 24 educators. The findings indicate that educators still believe that they are not adequately trained and skilled to play an equal role in a collaborative partnership and prefer to rather refer learners experiencing barriers to learning to other support structures and professionals for support.

‘You can train us until we are blue in our faces, we are still going to struggle’: Teacher professional learning in a full-service school

AbstractTeacher educators internationally are concerned with how best to prepare and equip teachers to be pedagogically responsive to an increasingly diverse learner population. This concern is echoed in South Africa as inclusive education is entrenched in the school system, with many teachers claiming that they do not have the knowledge and skills needed to teach in classrooms that represent diverse learners and learning needs. This article reports on research conducted with teachers in a full-service (inclusive) school in South Africa regarding their perceptions of a workshop on multilevel teaching. Participants completed questionnaires immediately after the workshop, and selected teachers engaged in focus group discussions eight months after the workshop. The collected data support Opfer and Pedders (2011) complexity theory of teacher professional learning and we argue from our findings that teacher education for inclusion must consider individual teachers, the learning activities presented to teacher...

Do the language errors of ESL teachers affect their learners

At the University of South Africa (Unisa), a large, open and distance education university in South Africa, the majority of the practising teachers who enrolled as students (henceforth referred to as teacher students) for the practical component of the Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE): Inclusive Education (Learning Difficulties) for the year 2008 lacked English proficiency. Because these students’ primary language is not English, they found it difficult to master this course, as reflected by the low throughput rate of 44 per cent in 2008. The question arose: Does poor proficiency in English of English second-language (ESL) teacher students influence ESL learners’ progress during learner support lessons taught by teacher students as part of their teaching practice for the ACE: Inclusive Education (Learning Difficulties)? In an attempt to answer this question, we report on typical errors made by the learners and the teacher students and similarities between teacher errors and learner errors, against the background of a literature overview which includes the relationship between input and output and prominent theories of second-language acquisition. Departing from a phenomenological/interpretive paradigm, a qualitative analysis of the teacher students’ portfolios was undertaken (Hussey & Hussey, 1997:54). The d ocument analysis was done by means of error analysis of the teacher-student portfolios (which included ESL learner support lessons and ESL learner evidence) that were submitted by the teacher students to Unisa by 1 September 2008 . The results of this study are significant because it alerts academia to the fact that qualified practising ESL teachers are not necessarily proficient in English and that this may have an effect on the ESL learner’s ability to acquire English proficiency. However, it was pointed out that several other contributing factors may exist and that further in-depth research is required. Nevertheless, a re-evaluation of teaching methodologies and the upgrading of teacher-students’ levels of cognitive academic language skills are required as a matter of urgency.

Differentiated pedagogy as inclusive practice: The “Learn not to Burn” curriculum for learners with severe intellectual disabilities

Abstract The most significant barrier to learning in the inclusive education system of South Africa is the curriculum and differentiated pedagogy has been found to be an effective adjunct to inclusive practices in schools. Subsequently a special school in Gauteng implemented the “Learn NOT to Burn” (LNTB) fire safety programme through the provision of differentiated instructional adaptations and accommodations for learners with severe intellectual disabilities (SID). This study used a qualitative research design to elucidate themes surrounding teacher implementation of the LNTB curriculum. A pilot study was conducted whereby an ethnographic design was used to address the research question. Data collection methods included focus group interviews, questionnaires and journal analysis. The findings focus on the relevance of differentiated instructional practices such as visual stimulating focused activities, hands on learning and the importance of incorporating music in ensuring access to the LNTB curriculum ...

An overview of Grade R literacy teaching and learning in inclusive classrooms in South Africa

Pre-school literacy teaching in Early Childhood Education (ECD) inclusive classrooms is crucial in preparing learners for the transition to formal literacy teaching and learning. This article describes a collaborative exploratory research project between a university in South Africa and one in China, in order to gain an overview of early literacy teaching and learning in the two countries. In the case of South Africa, the focus was on Grade R literacy teaching and learning. Teacher participants in three rural schools, three township schools and four inner city schools in Mpumalanga and Gauteng were purposively selected. Data were gathered by means of open-ended questions in a questionnaire, individual interviews with Heads of Departments (HOD) and classroom observations. Coding, categorising and identifying themes were manually conducted. Persistent challenges were identified of which limited resources, low socio-economic conditions, English as the language of learning and teaching (LoLT), inadequate teaching strategies used to implement the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) and barriers to learning were highlighted. This overview of early literacy teaching and learning in South Africa served as a precursor for the second phase of the project between the two countries.

Diversity, exclusion and risk, as second-language learners of immigrant parents acquire first-time literacy in English

Research has shown that acquisition of literacy skills and the ultimate realisation of literacy, which involves comprehension of the written text, require more than the ability to decode individual words. This study provides a synopsis of current research on the topics of globalisation, the resultant cultural incompatibility in the classroom, emergent literacy, vocabulary development, reading, and reading comprehension. As such, it offers a discussion of a comparative study of limited English-proficient (LEP)/English language learners (ELLs) acquiring first-time literacy, with the attendant vocabulary deficits and lack of age-appropriate decoding skills. Quantitative and qualitative approaches were combined to examine the differences between reading skills, comprehension, and vocabulary when a learner born of foreign parents acquires first-time literacy in a language other than his or her home language. Statistical techniques were used to analyse and interpret the research results. Analysis of the study results isolates and specifies an at-risk educational minority through the identification of a hidden comprehension deficit (HCD).

Research partnership between South Africa and China : emergent literacy teaching and learning in early childhood education in South Africa

Due to concern about the literacy situation in South Africa (schools being near the bottom of the international systemic measures of performance in literacy), and the important role that literacy plays in China, the researchers of both countries embarked on a collaborative research project. The overall aim is to explore the literacy perceptions and classroom practices of teachers in primary schools in both countries. In this article, the second of a series, the researchers explored Grade R teachers’ attitudes towards reading literacy in primary schools and what the reading-literacy teaching practices are that they employ, with particular emphasis on reading comprehension. The expected outcome was to provide an overview of the literacy situation in Grade R in South Africa as a precursor for the next phase of the project. An exploratory, mixed methods design was employed of which the quantitative part is reported in this article. Grade R teachers were selected from ten schools which had Grade R classrooms in two cities in Gauteng Province and one city in Mpumalanga Province. Data was collected through the use of questionnaires. The statistical analyses were conducted using the SAS/STATS module of the Statistical Software System (SAS), version 9.4 statistical package. The findings are presented as part of the overview.

Challenges of Improving Literacy and Numeracy Skills of Prison Inmates in Nigeria

Abstract This paper is designed to explore the challenges confronting the improvement of literacy and numeracy skills of prison inmates as perceived by prison inmates themselves. The study adopted a qualitative approach and used a focus group discussion to obtain data from seven prison inmates who were teachers in the school within the Nigerian prison system. The study identified emotional and behavioral problems associated with incarceration, lack of educational resources and inability to ascertain teachers’ educational qualifications as some of the challenges militating against the literacy and numeracy skills of prison inmates. On the basis of the study it was recommended that the government employ counseling psychologist to help resolve the emotional and behavioral problems of prison inmates as well as specialist adult educators able to take account of the life circumstances of their students. Implementing these recommendations will improve the literacy and numeracy skills of prison inmates, which will in turn contribute to their effective rehabilitation.

The Birth of University Affiliated Early Childhood Centres of Excellence: Investing in Children, Families and Communities.

ABSTRACT The wellbeing of young children is of national and international concern. Urgent action is therefore required to address issues of childrens wellbeing, and failure to do so will have adverse consequences for children today and in generations to come. This paper addresses issues arising from recently published literature in the areas of Early Childhood Development and Education (ECDE) within the global arena. It covers aspects such as policy implications, various theories and Bronfenbrenners bioecological model of early childhood development (ECD) as the theoretical basis of the paper, education and inclusion, teachers and parents and, finally, ECD centres of excellence. Universities need to establish ECD centres that can operate as centres of excellence, which can assist neighbouring centres focussing on day-to-day operational and managerial issues; training teachers on the curriculum and pedagogical aspects of ECDE; and conducting research with a view to ensuring cutting-edge ECDE practices