Running head: OUT OF “DARK BACKROOMS AND SHEDS”

Marguerite Maher, M.ED Special Education

School of Education

Auckland University of Technology

Akoranga Campus

Auckland New Zealand

Abstract

Commitment to a single, inclusive education system has been the aspiration of reform in education in a democratic South Africa as articulated in White Paper 6: Special needs education: Building an inclusive education and training system (Department of Education, 2001, referred to hereafter as White Paper 6). Within a ‘barriers to learning’ approach to inclusive education, progress is being made with improved facilities and the implementation of AIDS awareness programmes. Managing the transition towards an inclusive education system has proved challenging in some areas, however, and the specific provision in policy documents directed towards children with disabilities is behind schedule. One component that is furthest behind in the proposed milestones is the implementation of the information and advocacy programme (Maher, 2007). This article discusses the need for the information and advocacy programme to be prioritised, and presents a model which weaves together an adaptation of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model (Bronfenbrenner, 1979, 1989, 1993) and the tenets of human agency theory (Bandura, 2001; Bandura, Barbaranelli, Caprara, & Pastorelli, 1996; Bandura, Pastorelli, Barbaranelli, & Caprara, 1999; Carlson, 1997), which are central to decision-making, self-regulation and self-determination. This model provides a framework within which people can enact their democratic right in a wider sense than casting a political vote, potentially advancing their self-efficacy. The framework, furthermore, encourages people to begin to reposition themselves and to adjust their beliefs towards a more positive notion of the inclusion of children with special needs in regular education.

Out of “Dark backrooms and Sheds” and into a “Caring Society”: A Model to Enhance the Self-efficacy of Learners with Special Needs in South Africa.

First, progress towards achieving inclusive education in South Africa within a ‘barriers to learning’ approach is discussed. Second, progress towards the achievement of the 20 year plan within White Paper 6, specifically addressing the needs of children with disabilities, is considered. Third, the theoretical exposition of a model is provided for comment and feedback from those involved with the education of children with special needs in South Africa as we move towards fully inclusive education. The model is proposed as a means to enhance the self-efficacy of learners with special needs and their families, and as a platform for the implementation of the advocacy and information strategy proposed in White Paper 6. This would support the vision, which is “to convince the thousands of mothers and fathers of some 280,000 disabled children — who are younger than 18 years and are not in schools or colleges — that the place of these children is not one of isolation in dark backrooms and sheds. It is with their peers, in schools, on the playgrounds” (Department of Education, 2001, p. 4).

The model weaves together an adaptation of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model (Bronfenbrenner, 1979, 1989, 1993) and the tenets of human agency theory (Bandura, 2001; Bandura et al., 1996; Bandura et al., 1999; Carlson, 1997), which are central to decision-making, self-regulation and self-determination.

Inclusive education within a ‘barriers to learning’ framework

The Ministry of Education released White Paper 6 in July 2001 entitled Special needs education: Building an inclusive education and training system (Department of Education, 2001). Inclusive education in this White Paper is defined as:

· Acknowledging that all children and youth can learn

· Enabling educations structures, systems and learning methodologies to meet the needs of all learners

· Acknowledging and respecting difference in learners, whether due to age, gender, ethnicity, language, class, disability, HIV or other infections diseases

· Broader than formal schooling, and acknowledges that learning occurs in the home, the community, and within formal and informal contexts

· Changing attitudes, behaviour, teaching methods, curricula, and environment to meet the needs of all learners

· Maximising the participation of all learners in the culture and curriculum of educational institutions, and uncovering and minimising barriers to learning. (Department of Education, 2001, pp. 6-7)

These six points reflect the major shift from parallel special education and regular education systems to a unitary system that responds to the needs of all students. As Francis and Muthukrishna (2004) explain, an “important proposal made in White Paper 6 relates to the need for changes in the general education system so that learners experiencing barriers to learning can be identified early and appropriate support provided” (p. 110). This is reiterated in the first point of the long-term goal: “4.4.1 Our long-term goal is the development of an inclusive education and training system that will uncover and address barriers to learning, and recognise and accommodate the diverse range of learning needs” (Department of Education, 2001, p. 45).

Research on inclusive education subsequent to 2001 has mainly taken place within this ‘barriers to learning’ model of inclusive education. Analysis of these findings shows that in the quest to identify barriers to learning, to address and eradicate them, important resource issues such as toilet facilities and leaking roofs were identified and the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic has been made explicit (Muthukrishna, 2000; Muthukrishna & Sader, 2004; Muthukrishna & Schoeman, 2001). These are barriers to learning for large numbers of students and, in getting funding to improve school facilities, positive gains have been made. Addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic, with dissemination of information as the top priority, is another really vital issue. Indeed, a leader of a Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) funded project focussing on inclusive education in South Africa from 2002 to 2004 noted, “Well, at the end of two years the Swedish Government was extremely pleased. They said it was the most successful project they ever funded in Africa” (Maher, 2007, p. 165).

Specific provision for students with disabilities

White Paper 6 clearly states the intention of achieving inclusion rather than mainstreaming or integration. It notes at the same time, however, that belief in, and providing support for, a policy of inclusive education are insufficient to ensure that such a system will successfully be translated into practice. Consequently, a strategy to meet the needs of students with disabilities in the interim was articulated in White Paper 6. This included the strengthening of special schools which would be called Resource Schools and which would serve severely disabled students and also provide support for teachers who would be including students with less severe disabilities in Full-service schools. It is envisaged that Full-service schools will provide education for regular students as well as those with disabilities in an inclusive setting, with there being supports for those with disabilities within the regular classroom.

The 20-year time frame, for the implementation of the key interim steps, was initially as follows:

• 2001 – 2003 Implement advocacy programme; transform 30 special schools to resource schools and 30 primary schools to full-service schools; implement support teams
• 2004 – 2008 Expand the above in line with lessons learned from initial implementations
• 2009 – 2021 Expand provision to reach targets (Department of Education, 2001)

It became apparent, however, that translating theory into practice would take longer than that. A UNESCO funded project has been undertaken to trial the British Index for Inclusion in South Africa so that a model can be developed for assisting the achievement of inclusive schools in South Africa. Phases one and two of a five-phase study have been completed, using schools in the Western Cape province (Engelbrecht, Oswald, & Forlin, 2006). These authors report that the majority of teachers were unfamiliar with the content of White Paper 6 or with the vision for inclusion in education in South Africa.

Between June and October 2005 several further documents were published to assist with the implementation of the inclusive education vision. These included making explicit the role of the district based support teams (Department of Education, 2005a); the practicalities of the establishment of full-service schools (Department of Education, 2005b); the adaptation of curriculum to meet the needs of diverse learners (Department of Education, 2005d); a clear management plan for the first phase of implementing inclusive education (Department of Education, 2005e), the practicalities of transforming special schools to resource schools (Department of Education, 2005c); and guidelines for teachers at both regular and special schools for inclusive learning programmes (Department of Education, 2005f).

While some aspects of the implementation of the 20 year plan are behind schedule, steps are being taken to progress this initiative. Examples would be the appointment of additional qualified staff at Resource schools (Maher, 2007) and the documentation noted above. One aspect that is furthest behind in all its milestones, however, is the implementation of the information and advocacy programme. This is an important aspect as it addresses people’s beliefs and assumptions, and its implementation could see an improvement in the efficacy of the disabled and their families.

Ecological model and human agency theory

The following model is therefore proposed as potential vehicle for the implementation of the advocacy and information strategy.

Ecological model introduced. Children with disabilities and special needs, at the centre of inclusive education, can be seen within an ecological model, described below. Elements within the various systems in this ecological model potentially influence the self-efficacy and educational outcomes of children with disabilities. Within the ecological model, transactions occur when there is an interplay between the child at the centre and the settings within which the child operates. Dynamic transactions occur as members of the systems interact with one another and the child, and as the child interacts in these transactions. It is not simply a one- or two-way interaction that occurs. As one element or system influences another in any interaction, so the influenced one changes, indeed, but at the same time the one which initiated the interplay is also affected and transformed and nothing remains the same.

Provincial Education

Department efficacy

Class

Culture

Figure 1. Bronfenbrenner’s Model includes but is not limited to noted elements in a disabled child’s environment (Bronfenbrenner as cited in Berk, 2001)

In response to his concern that inadequate attention was paid to environmental influences on human development Bronfenbrenner (1979) wrote:

The understanding of human development demands more than the direct observation of behavior on the part of one or two persons in the same place; it requires examination of multipe