Educators' preparedness for inclusive education
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Date
2008
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Abstract
The aim of this investigation was to establish educators' preparedness for inclusive education:
Educators seem to embrace the human rights philosophy underpinning the introduction of inclusive education. However the implementation of inclusive education is not easy as it signals a dramatic paradigm shift for mainstream educators. It involves a new way of thinking and behaving. Many experienced educators have found that they are no longer experts in their field and are concerned that they are novices regarding inclusive education. The success of inclusive education hinges on the effective preparedness of educators. The level of preparedness of educators will determine their degree of acceptance and their efficiency in the implementation of inclusive education.
The first phase of this study comprised a comprehensive overview of the literature on educators' preparedness for inclusive education. The second phase involved research by means of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was administered to a stratified random sample of 120 primary and secondary school educators in the Umdoni Ward of the Scottburgh circuit, KwaZulu Natal. The results of this questionnaire provided evidence that educators are not adequately prepared for inclusive education.
The literature review indicated that educators in mainstream schools are generally not prepared to include LSEN in the mainstream class for the following reasons:
■ Large class sizes.
■ Lack of support.
■ Lack of knowledge.
■ Lack of skills and competencies.
■ Lack of resources
■ High stress level.
■ Time constraints.
For the purpose of the empirical investigation a self- structured questionnaire was utilized. The data from the questionnaires completed by educators from primary and secondary schools was processed and analysed by means of descriptive statistics. From the findings of the research, the following recommendations were made:
■ The Department of Education must provide adequate support to
educators concerning all aspects of inclusive education.
■ In-service training regarding inclusive education must be available to
mainstream educators.
Description
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education of the Faculty of Education at the University of Zululand, 2008.
Keywords
Inclusive education, Inclusive education -- Educators' preparedness