Instructional Practices and Challenges in Inclusion of Students with Visual Impairment in Selected Government Secondary Schools in Harari Region (original) (raw)

The Influence of Demographic Factors on Teachers' Instructional Practices and Challenges in Including Students with Visual Impairment in Government Secondary Schools of Harari Region

2019

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of demographic factors on instructional practices and challenges teachers face in teaching students with visual impairments in the government secondary schools of Harari regional state. A quantitative method with a survey design was employed. The sample consisted of 100 (with 95% response rate) participants selected using simple random sampling technique. Data was collected using questionnaire in the form of Likert scale. Frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviation, independent t-test and One-Way ANOVA were used to analyze the data. The study revealed that teachers' level of qualification has implications to the instructional practices, namely their collaboration with other professionals, classroom supplies and equipment and teaching strategies. Teachers with training on inclusive or special needs education were found to use more specialized or individualized teaching strategies in the classroom for SVI than those who did not have training. Furthermore, years of teaching experience was found to influence teachers' collaboration with other professionals. Teachers with bachelor's degree and MA/MSc holders were found to face more challenges in adapting teaching strategies, materials and identifying the needs of SVI compared to teachers with diploma holders. The study concluded that the identified demographic factors were found to influence at least one of the teachers' instructional practices in inclusion of SVI. The study concluded that teachers' level of qualification has an influence on the challenges they face in teaching SVI in the government preparatory and secondary schools of Harari regional state.

A Follow up Study for Inclusion of Students with Visual Impairment in Regular Schools of the Punjab

International Review of Social Sciences , 2021

The main purpose of the study was to review the efforts made by Government of the Punjab for the inclusion of students with visual impairment in the regular schools of the Punjab, by taking the views of students with visual impairment who are studying in inclusive schools and their concerned teachers. A quantitative approach was used to conduct the study. The type of research was descriptive .The population of the study consisted of all teachers and students with visual impairment studying in inclusive schools of the Punjab. A total number of 152 students with visual impairment (N=152) by using convenient and teachers teaching in inclusive schools (N=110) by using random sampling technique were taken as a sample of the study. We used two different close ended questionnaires, comprising dichotomous (Yes, No.) items. In addition to demographic information, the questionnaires consisted of eight domains related to the students and teachers' views about the inclusive education schools. The reliability of the instruments was estimated as 0.87and 0.86 (Cronbach Alpha), whereas the content validity was estimated by taking the opinions of experts from the field of special and inclusive education. The IBM version 20 was used for the data analysis. Frequency of the responses along with their percentages was calculated. Majority of the teachers teaching in inclusive education have shown their concerns regarding lack of training to deal the students with visual impairment, strategies to adapt curriculum, provision of latest teaching technology and lack of extrinsic motivation by school administration. Majority of the students with visual impairment who were placed in regular schools highlighted unavailability of adapted material, lack of supportive services and facilities, guidance and counselling, lack of medical facility and unavailability of adapted curriculum as deficient areas of their schools. Majority ratio of teachers and students had positive opinions about inclusive education. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations were given to the stakeholders.

Developing Teachers' Work for Improving Teaching and Learning of Children with Visual Impairment Accommodated in Ordinary Primary Schools

European Educational Research Journal, 2009

The study investigated how to facilitate teachers in developing their work in improving the teaching and learning of children with visual impairment (CVI) accommodated in ordinary classrooms. The study takes the form of collaborative action research where the researcher works in collaboration with the teachers. The project is being conducted in the three ordinary primary schools accommodating CVI in Tanzania. The findings for the first phase of the project indicate that there are qualitative differences in views about the challenges facing CVI in their learning. Teachers indicated lack of skills in preparing teaching aids, and knowledge and skills in managing classrooms as main challenges. As a result CVI were of the opinion that lack and use of teaching aids and classroom communication were the main barriers to their learning process. On the other hand, parents of CVI had views that learning is of value if their children will be employed later on, otherwise, they learn so that they...

Changing teachers´ practices in regular schools enrolling children with visual impairment

2014

The number of persons with visual impairment in Tanzania is estimated to over 1.6 million. About half a million of these persons are children aged 7-13. Only about 1% of these children are enrolled in schools. The special schools and units are too few and in most cases they are far away from the children's homes. More and more regular schools are enrolling children with visual impairment, but the schools lack financial resources, tactile teaching materials and trained special education teachers. Children with visual impairment enrolled in regular schools seldom get enough support and often fail in examinations. The general aim of this study was to contribute to increased knowledge and understanding about how teachers can change their teaching practices and thus facilitate the learning of children with visual impairment included in regular classrooms as they participate in an action research project. The project was conducted in a primary school in a poor rural region with a high frequency of blindness and visual impairment. The school was poorly resourced and the average number of pupils per class was 90. The teachers who participated in the collaborative action research project were the 14 teachers who taught blind or visually impaired pupils in grades 4 and 6, in total 6 pupils. The action research project was conducted during a period of 6 months and was carried out in five cycles. The teachers were actively involved in all the project activities; identifying challenges, planning solutions, producing teaching materials, reflecting on outcomes, collaborating and evaluating. Empirical data was collected with questionnaires, interviews, observations and focus group discussions. The findings of the study show that the teachers managed to change their teaching practices through systematic reflection, analysis and collaboration. The teachers produced a variety of tactile teaching materials, which facilitated the learning of the pupils with visual impairment. The pupils learned better and felt more included in the regular classes. The teachers gained new knowledge and skills. They grew professionally and started to collaborate with each other. The study contributes to new knowledge of how collaborative action research can be conducted in the area of special education in a Tanzanian school context. The study has also relevance to the planning of school-based professional development programs and teacher education programs in Tanzania and in other low-income countries. The results also point at strategies which can promote inclusion of children with disabilities in regular schools.

Influence of Learning Environment on Inclusion of Visually Impaired Learners in Public Primary Schools in Bungoma South Sub County

Learners with visual impairment (VI) are a heterogeneous group with varied nature of difficulties that require adequate attention in curriculum implementation in order to achieve good academic performance when placed in regular or main stream institutions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of school physical and social environment on inclusion of visually impaired learners, in Bungoma South Sub County, Kenya. The study was anchored on Vygotsky theory of social-cultural learning. The study adopted cross-sectional research design. The study targeted 97 head teachers and 97 senior teachers from 97 public primary schools. Through simple random sampling, 78 senior teachers and 27 head teachers were selected to take part in the study. The head teachers' interview schedule and senior teachers' questionnaire were employed to collect data. Piloting involved three public primary schools in the neighbouring Bungoma East Sub County. Content and construct validity of the data collection instruments was ascertained by two university supervisors' scrutiny while reliability was estimated by computing chronbach's alpha coefficient. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics included frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations and graphs while multiple regression analysis to test the formulated three null hypotheses. Both quantitative and qualitative data from interview schedules were analyzed concurrently and as per the objective, the study found that most of the schools lacked internal policy on how to relate and support VI learners. Despite long teaching experience, most teachers knew very little about the braille alphabet a key tool in VI learners' education. The study concluded teachers' lack of skills and knowledge on how to apply VI learners' assistive technology was the major hindrance to effective inclusion of VI learners in regular schools. The study recommended that the teachers training curriculum should be revised to include the key special education units targeting all teachers regardless of their speciality.

Challenges Encountered by Learners with Visual Impairment in Integrated Classroom in Bungoma County Kenya

International Journal of Academic Research in Public Policy and Governance

Learning is a continuous process of acquiring skills, knowledge and attitudes within any environment that learning takes place and begins at early age when a child starts to explore the surroundings around him/her. However, this may not be uniform for all children because of numerous challenges that some of them encounter. This study was to determine how teachers mediated for learner classroom performance among the Visually Impaired learners in integrated secondary schools in Bungoma, Kenya. Variables in the objectives were, different categories of visual impairment, teacher characteristics, influence of instructional resources, challenges encountered and how the challenges were mediated for. The study was in line with the argument of Dewey which has been supported by Gutek, Schiro, Taylor, Flinders and Thornton in the 21 st Century. Dewey was the proponent of progressive education which emphasized the need to learn by doing. He stressed that, there was a need to see education as a single process involving teaching and learning. The study was carried out in integrated secondary schools in Bungoma County, Kenya. Descriptive survey research design was adopted by the study. The population that was targeted was derived from integrated secondary schools. The schools were stratified in categories of boys' school and girls' school. The respondents for the study were sampled using Simple random sampling. The collection of data was done using teachers, learners, teacher aide and caretakers questionnaire. Interviews were scheduled for teachers, visually impaired learners and learners with sight. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze quantitative data presenting data in summary frequencies and percentage. Tables and charts were also used to present data. The study findings were presented as per the objectives of the study and could be used by educational policy makers and stakeholders to plan on how to provide education that was quality for learners who had difficulties with sight and enhance their active participation in class, school and community activities in Bungoma County. It was concluded that, learners with visual impairment were categorized as blind, low vision and visual disorder. Teachers found it difficult though they tried to interpret the curriculum to suit all learners. They found difficulties in following a lesson plan prepared for learners with visual impairment, and providing differentiated tasks. There were inadequate learning resources and those available did not benefit all learners and were not readily available during class instructions. Learners with visual impairment encountered more challenges in integrated classrooms which were overcrowded and the

Framing the Inclusion of Students with Visual Impairment in the Regular Schools of Punjab: Efforts and Challenges

Pakistan Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The main objective of this study was to frame the inclusion for students with visual (SWVI) in the public schools of Punjab. For this purpose, researchers took the opinions of principals and teaching staff of the regular schools where SWVI are enrolled. Researchers used the survey method to conduct the study. A descriptive type of research was used. The study population compromised of all principals and teaching staff teaching in general inclusive schools of Punjab. The total ratio of the sample is 151(N=38). Principals and teachers teaching in inclusive schools (N=113) were taken as a sample of the study. The two-structured questionnaire was used, encompassing a dichotomous scale (Yes / No). The reliability of the instruments was estimated respectively 0.77 and 0.86. In contrast, the content validity of the instruments was assessed through experts who had experience in the field of special and inclusive education. The IBM version 20 was used for the analysis of the results. Results...

Learning Opportunities and Challenges Faced by Visually Impaired Students in Special Schools of District Rawalpindi

Pakistan Social Sciences Review, 2020

The research was designed to highlight the challenges visual impaired students had to experience during their learning opportunities set forth at these institutions. Study targeted the children with visual impairment enrolled in special education institutions at Rawalpindi. A purposive random sampling technique was applied to identify 150 students with visual impairments selected from six special education centers of Rawalpindi. The data was collected through well design, structure, validated and pretested questionnaire. One volunteer key informant was also accompanied during data collection. The data was collected by using questionnaire. After collecting data, it was analyzed through Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). The descriptive as well as inserted statistics was used to discuss the findings and draw conclusion. The study found out that the specialized facilities were limited. It also found that students with visual impairment lacked support from the school administration. Ministry of Education was recommended to help in construction of specialized facilities for use by students with visual impairment. It is also recommended for more in-service courses, workshops, and seminars to keep the teachers abreast with current trend.

Teaching Students with Visual Impairments in Inclusive Classrooms : A Case Study of One Secondary School in Tanzania

2013

This study aimed at investigating the way general teachers teach students with visual impairments in inclusive classrooms and the challenges facing them. The intention was specifically to find out the ways general teachers adapt their teaching to make sure that inclusion of students with visual impairments is appreciated and realized. Furthermore, it intended to uncover the challenges these general teachers face when teaching students with visual impairments in inclusive classrooms. This study was conducted at one of the secondary school located in southern part of the country. It employed qualitative case study design using four (4) general teachers teaching in classes having students with visual impairments. Data collection was done using semi-structured interviews and participant-observation methods. The findings revealed that general teachers have little knowledge about inclusive education and how it should be practiced not only for students with visual impairments but for all students with special needs. The knowledge about inclusion and teaching in inclusive classrooms is highly needed among general teachers to practice inclusive teaching for students with visual impairments in a professional manner. Preparation of teaching resources, like audio and tactile materials, reading braille writings, and instructing students with visual impairments the proper ways of using their visual devices, is said to be the role of a special needs teacher. However, it is also advisable for a general teacher to have some of this knowledge in order to counteract the challenges associated with teaching students with visual impairments in inclusive classrooms. Furthermore, findings showed that, general teachers were not using the little knowledge of teaching in inclusive classrooms they have, due to many challenges surrounding the whole inclusive teaching in secondary schools like scarcity of both general and special needs teachers and lack of commitment among them, scarcity of resource and rigid curriculum. Building from the findings, it is recommended that, the Government should improve the situation of inclusive teaching, such as training teachers in the area of special education to help them conduct their teaching properly. The government should also allocate enough funds to inclusive schools to ensure availability of teaching and learning facilities that will help facilitate teaching students with visual impairments in inclusive classrooms. Finally, due to the fact that, there are few studies conducted on the area the current study has ventured on, it is recommended that, further studies should be carried out. VI Acknowledgement Many institutions and individuals have contributed very much to the successful completion of this study. Although it is not possible to mention all of them here, their direct and indirect