DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.08.1.2

 

 

 

Mst. Maleka Pervin^a and Monzia Mushtaq^b

^a Department of Psychology, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh

^b Psychosocial Counselor and Lecturer Counseling Unit, BRAC University, Bangladesh

 

(Received 14 April 2020, Final revised version received 30 September 2020)

 

The purpose of the study was to investigate the attitudes of teachers towards inclusion of pupils with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in regular classrooms and also aiming to examine the relationship between teacher-related factors and teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion of pupils with ASD in regular classrooms. Three hundred regular primary teachers were selected as participants by using random sampling. A demographic questionnaire and TATIS (Teacher Attitudes toward Inclusion Scale) developed by Cullen et.al.(2010) were used for measuring teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion of pupils with ASD in regular classrooms. The descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analyzing data. The findings indicated that teachers’ attitudes toward inclusion of pupils with ASD in regular classrooms were slightly positive. One interesting finding was that half of teachers are willing to make classroom modifications and to follow inclusion model to meet the individual needs of students with ASD. However, the majority of the teachers are still in favor of the option of maintaining special classrooms for students with ASD. The result also indicated that the statistically significant correlation was highlighted between teachers’ attitudes and the following teacher-related factors: gender, age, educational qualification, teaching experience, being personally acquainted with a person with ASD, adequate training and formal training on ASD. The regression analysis suggested that about 21% of the variance on attitudes due to the variables like gender, age, educational qualification, adequate training and formal training on ASD. These variables contributed significantly to the prediction of teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion of pupils with ASD.

 

Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Inclusive Education, Teachers’ Attitudes, Regular Classroom

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.08.1.3

 

 

 

 

Karma Jigyel^a, Judith A. Miller^b, Sofia Mavropoulou^c and Jeanette Berman^d

^a Paro College of Education, Royal University of Bhutan, Paro, Bhutan

^b University of New England, School of Education, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia

^c Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

^d University of New England, School of Education, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia

 

(Received 24 March 2020, Final revised version received 05 July 2020)

 

Within the context of the International Conventions for the rights of children in education, countries around the world have been developing policies and practices to establish universal and inclusive education. A key aspect of this situation is the recognition that parents, who know the rights of children to education and are aware of the education policies and practices, can advocate for, and make informed decisions about, the education of their children. This qualitative study investigated parental awareness and understanding of educational rights and access to educational policy relevant to their children with a disability in Bhutan. Both parents of 13 children with a disability, were individually interviewed to determine their knowledge of policies and rights in inclusive education. Manual thematic analysis of the interview transcripts in combination with computer-assisted analysis (Leximancer, 2016) revealed that the majority of parents (n=21/26) were not aware of the educational rights and policies and had minimal knowledge related to education for their children: however, parents expressed their strong desire to know more. This study highlights the need for greater parental awareness of their children’s rights for participation in schools and provides the basis for initiating parent advocacy groups to support the inclusion of children with a disability in Bhutan.

 

Keywords: inclusive education, disability, parents, policy, rights, Bhutan

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.08.1.4

 

 

 

 

Divya Dawadi^a and Kerry Bissaker^b

^{a b} Flinders University, Australia

 

(Received 27 March 2020, Final revised version received 30 December 2020)

 

Nepal’s Early Childhood Education and Development (ECED) programs are designed to support young children’s holistic development including a focus on physical, emotional, social, moral and intellectual development. They are also designed to support children’s successful transition to school. As such, inclusion of children with disabilities in these ECED programs would appear to be an important early intervention strategy for this already marginalised group. However, while inclusion of these children in ECED programs is viewed as desirable by the government and communities, in reality, it is not widespread. This research examined the reasons for the lack of inclusion of children with disabilities in the ECED programs with the aim of constructing a stakeholder-informed framework that would serve as a foundation for increasing enrolment of children in ECED programs. Through interviews, focus group discussions with key stakeholders and document reviews, it became evident that several contextual and organisational factors interacted to create multiple barriers to successful inclusion. Contextual factors included spirituality, caste, ethnicity, language, economic status and geographic location. Organisational factors included policy, attitudes, teacher efficacy, resources, coordination and communication processes and parental engagement. The identification of these factors by stakeholders provides an opportunity to develop a framework in which these factors can be explicitly addressed, and policy and strategic resourcing to address current barriers to the inclusion of children with disabilities in ECED programs in Nepal. This action is critical to ensuring increased numbers of young children with disabilities access early intervention and education programs to support their holistic development and the opportunities that education affords.

 

Keywords: early childhood education and development, disabilities, Nepal, inclusion framework.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.07.1.2

 

 

Komal Reshma Gungapersand^a

 

^a English Department, Mauritius Institute of Education, Mauritius

 

(Received 01 July 2019, Final Revised Version Received, 17 December 2019)

 

This research explored the perspectives of trainee Support Teachers at the Mauritius Institute of Education on inclusive education, based on their practice. It showed that the concept of inclusive education is not well understood, and that inclusion is still not a reality in Mauritius. The purpose of the study was to find out the extent to which inclusive education is possible in Mauritius at Grades 1 and 2 level when support is provided. It examined the practices of trainee support teachers in the light of the concept of inclusion and how it impacted on learning. It traced aspects of inclusive education which are essential for the implementation of the national curriculum framework (NYCBE, 2015). A qualitative approach was used and data from a questionnaire, a focus-group interview and a write-up on a metaphor was collected through a funnel approach and was analyzed qualitatively. The findings indicated that trainees took a practical and pragmatic position on inclusive education instead of adhering to general beliefs on this topic. Moreover, trainees had a pedagogical, academic, philosophical and a metaphorical perspective on inclusive education. The analysis of findings indicated that painstaking reforms, teacher education, change in mindset and innovations can bring positive results.

 

Keywords: inclusive education, inclusion, reform, perspectives, trainee support teachers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.07.1.3

Salpa Shrestha^a

^a Kathmandu University School of Education, Kathmandu, Nepal

 

(Received 30 January 2019, Final revised version received 22 November 2019)

 

The constitution of Nepal provides an inherent right to every child with special education need to attend community school nearby. But lack of necessary infrastructure and appropriate teacher trainings hinders the inclusive education process. In this context, the teachers’ attitude plays a major role in mainstreaming students with special education need in regular classroom. This study was carried out to measure the attitude of teachers towards the practice of inclusive education for one of the largest group of students with special education needs, the students with intellectual disability (SWID). The quantitative study investigated: a) the demography of teachers affecting the attitude and b) degree of strength of attitude affecting the intention of teachers to practice inclusive education in their classroom. The study design adopted the theory of planned behavior. Total of 197 general education teachers teaching in 33 different schools of Kathmandu participated in the study. The sub-scales of attitude significantly explained the variance in Intention with a strong effect. The perceived behavior control was a major behavioral predictor of intent of teachers to practice inclusiveness in the classroom. The age and level of experience of the teachers had inverse proportional relationship with the intention of teachers to teach SWID.

 

Keywords: Students with Intellectual Disability (SWID); Inclusive Education; Theory of Planned behavior; Perceived control behavior.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59595/ajie.07.1.4

 

 

Muhammad Afzan Munir^a  and Salman Abdullah^b

 

^a Independent Researcher,Pakistan 

 

^b Aitchison College, Lahore,Pakistan

 

(Received 13 June 2019, Final Revised Version Received 20 December 2019)

 

This paper explores the issues that the third gender faces in terms of education and labor market opportunities in Pakistan in the Post “Transgender Protection of Rights Bill 2018” scenario. The findings, based on a qualitative study involving detailed unstructured interviews with 15 self-identified transgender individuals and a focus group discussion with five more transgender individuals, suggest that transgender are discriminated against in all walks of life. They are discouraged from getting an education, both by people in the family home and those at school. Transgender face severe discrimination not only from their fellow students but also from their teachers, which discourages them to continue their education. In addition to this, one of the principle reasons for failure to secure a respectable job was identified to be their lack of education and the skills required for such jobs. Similarly, discrimination and harassment in the workplace also play a key role in a lack of jobs for transgender. Lastly, the paper provides policy recommendations for catering to transgenders’ needs and addressing the issues faced by the transgender community of Pakistan.

 

Keywords: Transgender; Khawaja sara; Pakistan; Education; Labor Market; Issues.