Browsing by Author "Mfuthwana, Thembeka"

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    Establishing inclusive schools : Teachers’ perceptions of Inclusive Education Teams
    (Education Association of South Africa, 2018) Mfuthwana, Thembeka; Dreyer, Lorna M.
    The international debate on colonialization is gaining momentum, primarily in the Americas, Africa and Australasia. Recent incidents in South Africa, such as the #Rhodesmustfall movement and the protest over rules on black girls’ hair at certain schools, have sparked renewed debates on (de-)colonisation in the education system. It has become critical that those concerned with educational transformation in a post-colonial, post-apartheid South Africa consider socio-political and historic contextual factors. This is especially so in their endeavours to implement inclusive education, with its imperative to provide equal and quality education and support for all. Educational transformation in South Africa is based on systemically positioned support structures. However, these structures have their roots in countries which do not have the same socio-political history and current contextual constraints as developing countries. The focus of this research was to understand teachers' perceptions of the role Inclusive Education Teams (IETs) play in establishing an inclusive school in the Western Cape Province. For this case study, teachers were purposefully selected from an inclusive school. Data were collected through semi-structured individual interviews and a focus group discussion. The findings show that, despite the in-service training provided by the IET, teachers still need continuous, contextually responsive support.
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    Teachers’ perceptions regarding the role of district-based support teams as well as inclusive education teams in establishing inclusive schools
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03) Mfuthwana, Thembeka; Dreyer, Lorna; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT : According to the UNESCO document of 1994, the fundamental principle of the inclusive school is that all children should learn together, wherever possible regardless of any difficulties or differences they may have. In the South African context inclusive education was initiated as an integral part of democratisation and transformation of the education system. Within this transformation, certain schools were identified to be established as inclusive schools. These schools should have a continuum of support and services to match the continuum of barriers to learning encountered by every learner. Teachers play one of the most influential roles in the successful establishment of inclusive schools. This study investigates the perceptions of teachers regarding the role of the District Based Support Team (DBST) as well as that of the Inclusive Education Team (IE Team) in establishing inclusive schools. The study’s research methodology can be described as a basic qualitative research which is embedded within an interpretive paradigm. Purposive sampling was used to select six teachers as research participants. Two methods of data collection were used, semi-structured interviews and focus group interviews. Furthermore, qualitative content analysis was employed to analyse data. The analysis revealed that four interconnected themes emerged concerning the teachers’ perspectives regarding the role of the DBST and the IE Team in establishing inclusive schools, namely their self-knowledge regarding the establishment of an inclusive school, perceptions of their role in establishing inclusive schools, the role of the DBST and IE Team as well as the assistance required by the teachers in order to improve their practice. The results suggest that teachers’ outlook should be comprehensively re-orientated in relation to policy-informing documents in the South African context, as well as the policy documents that guide the establishment of inclusive schools. The DBST and the IE Team should engage in structured on-going follow-up support, which should be gradually withdrawn to enable staff to take full responsibility.