An exploration of the parents' experiences of the inclusion and retention of their disabled children in public schools in the Eastern Cape Province
Doctoral Thesis
2014
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University of Cape Town
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Abstract
South African national policy on Inclusive Education, as expressed in White Paper 6 of 2001, regards the role of parents as key to making schools inclusive sites for learning. For parents who have been historically discouraged from participating in the education of their children, this is a challenging role. The aim of this study was to assemble data which would shed light on what parents of disabled children in public schools view as relevant support for them to actively participate in the process that ensures inclusion and retention of disabled children in schools. In line with the social model of disability, this qualitative study follows a participatory action research design using critical theory as the lens through which the world of parents with disabled children was examined. Purposive sampling was used to select five parent participants in the study within a District Municipality (South Africa). They were all members of a support group of parents with disabled children. Parents were given a detailed outline of the study aims which were explained to them by the researcher at the outset and were informed that they could resign at any time without any implications thereof to their children and themselves. Individual interviews with parents, school meetings involving parents, children and teachers, researcher personal journal, narrative and focus group sessions were used for data collection. A transformative paradigm informed the data collection procedures and interactions with parents. Data was analysed through content analysis of the full data set, including the researcher’s reflective journal. Recurring patterns were identified, coded and then categorised according to similarities and meanings. Data management and analysis took place through an iterative process of selecting, simplifying and transforming raw data during and after meetings held with the assistant researcher after each meeting with the parents and in discussion with a research mentor.
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Includes bibliographical references.
Reference:
Tshabalala, N. 2014. An exploration of the parents' experiences of the inclusion and retention of their disabled children in public schools in the Eastern Cape Province. University of Cape Town.