Paving the Way for Successful Inclusion
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PAVING THE WAY FOR SUCCESSFUL INCLUSION
INVESTING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF INCLUSIVE PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THE WESTERN CAPE
A Programme of Inclusive Education Western Cape,
Supporting diversity in education
1. ORGANISATIONAL BACKGROUND
Inclusive Education Western Cape (IEWC) is a registered NPO that has, since 1995, been committed to promoting and supporting positive models of inclusive education in schools, preschools and other cen- tres of learning in the Western Cape Province as well as work remotely in other provinces where need has arisen.
The organisation’s mission is to ensure that families, educators and service-providers of children with disabilities or experiencing other barriers to learning have access to information, and are introduced to support networks and services that can facilitate inclusion into ordinary neighbourhood schools.
IEWC services include:
i. A Resource Centre - from which we provide an information & advice service to parents, teachers and other professionals working with children with all types of special needs regarding accessing schooling and support in schooling. The centre houses a small library, resource materials and an information database of services across the province and beyond.
ii. An ongoing Advocacy and Awareness Programme - which fosters consciousness of and discus- sion around the concept of inclusion.
iii. Inclusive Education Training & Development Programmes - IEWC’s training team offers skills training to teachers, Educare Centre staff and Education Department support staff which pro- mote an understanding of inclusive education, provide tools to identify barriers to learning and give practical strategies to manage diversity in classrooms.
iv. Community Project Work - specific community projects focused on Inclusion in response to identified needs
2. The identified problem
Recent statistics 1 show that only 33.6% of learners who started Grade 1 in 2000 passed Grade 12 in 2011. Of those, only 9% gained university exemption. With 2 in 3 learners not successfully completing their schooling, it is clear that our education system is in crisis. These educational challenges can be summarised as follows:
. Inadequate, poor quality early learning programmes. Extensive local and international research proves that good quality early learning opportunities for young children significantly improve their long term educational success. South Africa has only recently sought to address early learning through the insistence on registration of ECD facilities and the training of ECD Practitioners in the basics of early childhood development and learning. Unfortunately this has not yet translated into quality early learning for many young children, especially those in under- resourced community centres.
. The inability of ordinary public school educators to support and teach the diverse learners in their classrooms. The deteriorating socio economic conditions in many of our communities, together with the cultural, religious and racial diversity of our learner population, have resulted in large, over- -crowded classes of children at many different levels of learning and experiencing a wide variety of barriers to learning. Educators lack the skills and teaching strategies required to teach to this di- versity.
. Poor parental involvement in education. This can be as a result of parents who are themselves illit- erate and unable to assist in their child’s learning, or are intimidated by the school. As a result of poor social conditions in the home environment, parents of children with disabilities are often un- aware of both their child’s educational rights and their own rights with regards their child’s access to support. Conditions of abuse, alcoholism and single parent households all impact on the parent’s apparent apathy towards their children’s education.
1 Cape Times, 10 January 2012, Eric Atmore . Systemic barriers to learning. The poor implementation of education policy by relevant Govern- ment Departments is one of the most significant factors resulting in the high drop out rate and poor education performance of the country.
WHY INCLUSIVE EDUCATION? Referring back to the statistics mentioned earlier, it stands to reason that the majority of the 66.4% of learners who did not pass through Grade 12 last year have struggled with significant barriers to learning at some point in their schooling, and did not receive the support required to overcome these.
Barriers to learning are widespread in South Africa, and are classified as anything which stands in the way of a child being able to learn effectively. These can be broadly categorised as follows:
. Intrinsic Barriers - A child with a disability may experience that disability as an intrinsic barrier to learning and will require varying levels of support to accommodate their disability in order to reach their full academic potential. These include for example Autism, ADHD, Foetal Alcohol Syn- drome, Cerebral Palsy, and Downs Syndrome.
. Extrinsic Barriers (Societal / Environmental) - It has been shown that in areas of extreme poverty, dysfunctional family units, violence and high unemployment, prevailing socio-economic circum- stances create real barriers to learning for children. These include extreme poverty, abuse, neg- lect, HIV/Aids.
. Systemic Barriers - limitations in the education system itself, e.g. overcrowding in classrooms, 2nd language teaching, inadequate facilities. Most often in South Africa, children with disabilities bear the most severe consequences of an inadequate, under resourced education system.
3. Developing the Project.
Inclusive Education Western Cape recently completed a 3-year Inclusive Schools project funded by Mo- mentum, which enabled us to gain significant knowledge around the issue of inclusive education in South Africa’s Primary Schools.
This project was aimed at facilitating the inclusive journey of 4 primary schools over a 3 year period. During this time, we were able to observe a number of sound inclusive practices. This project enabled us to partner with two urban and two rural schools on their journey to inclusion, and resulted in clear atti- tudinal changes throughout these school communities regarding inclusion. The schools all developed a deeper understanding of inclusive education, which enabled them to implement practical strategies to become more inclusive of children despite their barriers to learning.
Through this project we gained valuable insight into the interventions that have been successful, as well as those that have not. On this basis, we developed a comprehensive 1 year intervention program for schools to “Pave the Way” for greater inclusion, which we believe addresses the major obstacles to in- clusion. This is a whole school, integrated approach, designed to strengthen inclusive schools in order to maximize the intervention’s impact.
Through a combination of skills development and on-site support to educators, Senior Management and the Institutional-Level Support Team at these primary schools, we believe we can bring about a sense of empowerment and increased confidence to move forward with inclusion.
4. Proposed Model Of Intervention
Project Outcome: To effectively address the major obstacles to inclusion at identified Primary Schools in the Western Cape through a comprehensive 1-year intervention program, focusing on the implementa- tion of learner support systems and educator training. IEWC has developed a whole school, integrated approach to strengthening inclusive schools in order to maximize the intervention’s impact. Through a combination of skills development and on-site support to educators, Senior Management and the Institutional-Level Support Team (ILST) at these schools, we believe we can bring about a sense of empowerment and increased confidence to move forward with inclusion and be able to teach equally all children in the school regardless of any disability.
One of the best approaches to an education system that is inclusive is tailoring solutions for South African classrooms according to what best fits the existing teaching and learning needs. As a result, all the training done by IEWC has been developed to suit the unique classroom environments that are in the country. Most often, these are very large classes working with learners at many different levels. Interventions and strategies provided to teachers must work under their specific circumstances.
In this light, IEWC has introduced additional on-site support to ensure that educators feel able to effectively implement these strategies in their classes, and are provided with relevant support that goes beyond a training workshop.
IEWC’s strategies are tested against the parameters of the Department of Education’s curriculum and assessment standards, and as such educators are assured the training is in line with departmental guidelines.
In order for schools to become more inclusive of all learners, the ethos and culture, policies and procedures of the schools need to be aligned with good inclusive practice. Therefore, the proposed schedule of activities below seeks to examine these areas in a whole school context, i.e. with regards to the School Management Team (SMT), School Governing Body (SGB), Institutional-Level Support Team (ILST) as well as, Educators, Learners and Parents.
5. Proposed Schedule of Activities per School over a 1 year period
The Adapted Index for Inclusion is given as an exercise at the The Adapted Index for Inclusion start and end of the program to educators and a sample of learners and parents. This is used as a tool for monitoring fuller understanding of Inclusion and to identify areas which need further development. SMT Meetings 1 x 1.5 hr meeting per term.
SGB Meetings 2 x Meetings with SGB. Discussion of role and functioning of SGB with particular emphasis on Inclusion and creation of a Special needs sub-committee. Use of adapted Index for School governors.
Educator Workshop: Managing 1 X 2 hr Session: Multi-level teaching (Universal Design for Diversity in the classroom (3 x 2 hr Learning) Which entails teachers designing instruction in such Sessions) a way that the individual needs of all students are taken into account. MLT also allows learners to engage in learning activities that allow them to function at their level of ability BUT are also challenged at their zone of proximal development to continue growing and learning.
1 x 2hr Session: Understanding Multiple Intelligences and different learning styles; Co-operative learning
1 x 2hr Session: Assessment and lesson planning for Multi- level teaching
Grade R & 1 Educator Workshop: Early 1 X 2hr Session: training teachers on how to identify different identification and intervention barriers to learning in Grade R & 1 so as to be able to address strategies these barriers through early intervention strategies and support.
Educator / ILST Workshop: How to 1 x 2hr Session: Identifying the role players involved, conduct an ISP (Individual Support Plan) information collection, identifying barriers to learning. which entails drafting a support plan for each individual learner according to 1 x 2hr Session: Practical completion of SIAS SNA Forms their needs. (2 x 2hr Sessions + on-site follow up and support)
Educator Workshop: Positive Behaviour 1 x 2hr Session: Understanding behaviour as a barrier to Management (2 x 2hr Sessions) learning and the underlying causes of behavioural issues
1 x 2hr Session: Strategies to manage behaviour in your class
ILST Workshop: Establishing an Effective 1 x 2hr Session: Ideas on establishing an effective ILST in your ILST (1 x 2hr Session) school, the roles of members of ILST, effective case management.
ILST Workshop: Community Mapping 1 x 2hr Session: Accessing support, identifying resources in and Active Referral (1 x 2hr Session) the community and effective referrals.
Parent Meetings 2 x Parent meetings – Parental involvement in school and their child’s education. Positive Role modeling as parents.
Liaison with Circuit Teams & District Ongoing partnership with Circuit & District Teams to strengthen support and relationships with the schools
Whole School Development 4 x school visits per term and access to phone-in support. On-site Support Visits Support to educators to assist in implementation of strategies introduced in training, model good practice through facilitation of ISP processes, etc.
6. Projected Impact of the Project 1. Teachers are imparted with skills that enable them to manage their class despite the diverse learning needs, they are able to practice multi-level teaching methods that enable them to identify barriers the child is experiencing, teaching in a way that includes all these learners accommodating the different needs and learning styles. Staff will be confident and better equipped, through the effective training they would have received.
2. Learners experiencing barriers to learning, instead of being prescribed to a “special school” which might be far away from their home, they are able to be absorbed into the next school within their community an environment which they are familiar with as it has structures in place to manage the barrier they might be experiencing, thereby significantly improving their educational outcomes. 3. With well-functioning structures such as a well-informed teachers, functioning SGB, SMT and ILST’s it ensures the whole school community is developed to teach learners in a way that brings the best out of them. Overall school performance is improved as learners are learning in an environment that includes their needs.
7. Monitoring and Evaluation All projects and programmes are managed and monitored the trainers and chiefly by a Project Manager, employing sound project management practices throughout the various project phases. Monitoring of project budgets, human resource and time allocations as well as the achievement of overall project goals are all part of this function.
Evaluations are conducted periodically throughout our various programmes. Educator, parent and learner questionnaires (Adapted Index for Inclusion); training evaluation forms and requests for feed- back from beneficiaries and donors are all ways in which we evaluate the impact and efficacy of our work. This programme’s outcomes and therefore success/impact is tracked via the following measurable indic- ators:- i. Impact Evaluations conducted at each school – once per quarter ii. Index for Inclusion questionnaires at school - beginning and end of project iii. Participant Workshop Evaluations - conducted after every workshop iv. Implementation monitoring site visits at schools – once per term v. Parents/caregivers actively voice their experiences at workshops and conference and their con- cerns included in IEWC’s government and media submissions vi. Number of media releases taken up by media outlets
In addition to these activities, monitoring of projects after completion date is costed into project budgets in order to ensure their sustainability and smooth running, post-implementation or involve- ment.
8. Impact of IEWC’s efforts in the last 12 months . Training over 500 educators on various aspects of Inclusive Education, including, Identifying barriers Multi-Level Teaching, Positive Behaviour Management, Bullying, Individual Support Plans, The Word Picture. . Providing support to 250 parents and professionals working with children experiencing barriers to learning. . Training over 45 ECD Practitioners to identify children with barriers to learning and promote their development through play as part of a Toy Library project. . Training 33 district officials on the Role of District-based Support Teams in SIAS (Screening, Identification, Assessment and Support), and Inclusive Education. . IEWC has in the past 12 months been contracted by the Department of Education to offer training at 3 high schools in the province on Staff Development Training and School Management Team Leadership. . The completion of a 3-year project with two rural and two urban schools, successfully assisting them to become more inclusive institutions. . Launching and hosting the first Inclusive Education Teachers Recognition Awards event, held on 5th October 2011 – World Teachers’ Day. Attended by Minister Donald Grant, the Provincial Minister of Education and in 2012 on the same date hosted the 2nd one.
INCLUSIVE SCHOOLS PROJECT BUDGET PER SCHOOL
DESCRIPTION AMOUNT PER SCHOOL
Facilitator Fees R 24 250.00 Workshop catering, handouts and materials R 4 000.00
Telephone R 1 500.00 Travel R 3 500.00 Monitoring and evaluation R 2 000.00
Administration R 4 000.00
TOTAL PER SCHOOL R39 250.00
This is the cost of training one school is R39 250.00. Bayer could contribute towards the number of schools they would want to see trained.