Teachers Role In Inclusive Education

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

1.0.0 Introduction

The directive principle to guide state policy Article 45 states that "free and compulsory education should be provided for all children until they complete the age of 14". The 93rd amendment to the Indian Constitution passed in December 2001, confirms the Government’s commitment to (EFA) or Education for All or Sarv Shiksha Abhyaan (SSA). The preamble explicitly states that this includes children with disabilities. The SSA provides significance to early childhood care and education and apt intervention for children with special needs. The positive factor is the change combined in the Education Act by including a relevant clause which explains that "ALL" includes children with disabilities. The objective of SSA is to bring all children between 6-14 years in the net of 1-8 elementary, free and compulsory education, keep them in school till they complete the eight year cycle and see that they attain standards of a specified quality. SSA framework clearly states that "SSA will ensure that every child with special needs, irrespective of the kind, category and degree of disability, is provided education in an appropriate environment. SSA will adopt zero rejection policy so that no child is left out of the education system. It will also support a wide range of approaches, options and strategies for education of children with special needs."

India is a participant to the 1990 United Nations World Declaration on Education for All, (EFA) which reiterated the rights of all children comprising of children with special needs to access education in regular school settings and to the Biwako Millenium Framework for Action towards an inclusive, barrier free and rights based society for persons with disability, the Declaration on the Full Participation and equality of People with Disabilities in the Asia Pacific Region. India also contributes to the philosophy of the 1993, UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities and the Salamanca Statement and Frame work For Action (1994). This is possibly set out in brief terms for the first time the concept of inclusive education and as one needing global consensus and urged all "governments to adopt as a matter of law and policy the principle of inclusive education and emphasized that " children with special needs must have access to regular schools ". The Normalization Principle of Wolfensberger had placed focus on the person with disability and a well-known quote in this context is "change the environment to suit the child not the child to suit the environment".

Over the years, the concept of inclusive education has replaced the term integrated and Special education. Inclusion is not confined to the disabled. It also means non exclusion (NCF-2005). It refers to an education system that accommodates all children regardless of their physical, intellectual, social emotional, linguistic or other conditions. Inclusive education is about embracing all (NCF-2005). An inclusive class may have amongst others, differently abled children or gifted children, street or working children, children from remote or nomadic populations, children belonging to ethnic, linguistic or cultural minorities or children from other disadvantaged or marginalised groups. The national curriculum framework for school education (NCFSE) (2000), carried out by the NCERT, suggested inclusive school for all without exact reference to pupil with special education needs as a way of providing quality education to all learners.

The Draft of Inclusive Education Scheme, MHRD, (2003) "Inclusive Education means all learners, young people-with or without disabilities being able to learn together in ordinary preschool provisions, schools, and community educational settings with appropriate network of support service.".

National Curriculum Framework (2005) policy of inclusion needs to be implemented in all schools and throughout in our education system. The involvement of all children needs to be made sure in all domains of their life in and outside the school. Schools need to become center that prepare children for life and ensure that all children, especially the differently able children from marginalized sections, and children in difficult circumstances get the maximum benefit of this critical area of education (NCF 2005, P85)

Kugelmass, (2004) Inclusive education means including differently abled children in regular classrooms that have been designed for normal children. It refers to an education system that accommodates all children regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other conditions.

In overall terms, Inclusive Education implies four key elements: UNESCO 2006

It is essentially a process of looking for the most appropriate ways of responding to diversity as well as trying to learn how to learn from the differences;

It is linked to stimulating, through multiple strategies, the creativity and the capacity of addressing and resolving problems by students;

It comprises the right of the child to attend school, express his/her opinion, have quality learning experiences and attain valuable learning outcomes; and

It implies the moral responsibility of prioritizing those students who are at risk of being marginalized and excluded from the school, and of obtaining low learning outcomes.

1.1.0 Teachers Role in Inclusive education

Mastropieri & Scruggs, (2010), teachers play a pivotal role in mainstreaming inclusive education. The literature on inclusive education is undisputed about no matter how excellent the educational infrastructure might be, how well articulated educational policy might be, how well resourced a program might be, effective inclusion does not take place until regular classroom teachers deliver relevant and meaningful instruction to students with disabilities.

The teacher has to provide high quality, holistic support and focused involvement with the children with special needs based on a joint perspective, mutual understanding and networking. Teachers with the support of the principal of school, colleagues, special educators and parents should develop effective ways of overcoming barriers to learning and supporting effective teaching through observing the quality of teaching and standards of pupils’ achievement and by setting targets for enhancement. Teacher works as a catalyst between the principal of the school and children with special needs and their parents. It is the teacher who sees new and innovative ways in order to fulfill the educational, social and emotional need of child with special needs. Whatever may be the type of resource room the teacher with her commitment, skill and knowledge can redesign it into useful, creative and interesting. One of the main roles is to support the teacher in meeting the needs of children with special needs.

Willms et al, (2002) what appears clearly from the research is that inclusive education results from the leadership of teachers in the classroom. Child development research also confirms the centrality of the teacher’s role and of environments that are rich with opportunities to learn .Sincere and responsive teachers who are dedicated to the inclusion of learners in stimulating learning environments are key to securing not only access to the classroom, but a quality of education that results in positive progressive outcomes. When teachers possess knowledge, classroom supports, leadership and support from their school administrators and the broader education system, an inclusive approach to quality education for all learners can take root in regular classrooms and schools.

The key responsibilities of a teacher for inclusive education are as follows:

Overseeing the day to day operation of the scheme IEDSS in particular and inclusive education in general.

Coordinating the provision of support services for children with special needs

Regular liasioning and seeking advice from fellow special educators in regard to the education of child with special needs

Liasioning with other special educators’ of other schools for updating the information and knowledge.

Keep constant liasioning with different Non-Government organisation working in this field for aiding support services for child with special needs

Maintain the database of child with special needs

Develop the assessment portfolio of child with special needs

Prepare a list of required materials and equipment before the beginning of the session

Organize continuous, periodic and regular parent meeting

Ensuring that a child with special needs joins in the activities of the school together with other pupils.

1.1.1 Teachers Role in the changing scenario

Hyam, (2004) the role of educators in changing environment is also required to change, if there is to be a smooth transition from mainstream education to inclusive education. Change will not yield the desired results, if those who implement it are resistant or are not committed. Educators must see the value of the change and be prepared to embrace this change. They may need to acquire new skills and reject some of their beliefs and practices. This implies taking risks and facing challenges. Educators are required to reconsider their roles, construct new knowledge and learn new skills to equip themselves for the change.

The inclusion of differently abled students in regular education classrooms requires regular school teachers to upgrade their skills in-order to respond to the new challenges provided by their changing roles and responsibilities. These teachers are now expected to address problems and provide solutions or facilitate solutions to challenges posed by special needs students who may vary in their skill levels. They are now required to undertake initial screening of students who are at risk, adapt instruction to make them responsive to special needs students, contribute in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings, work collaboratively with parents and other professionals and use technology to assist students overcome their shortfalls.

Kochhar and West (1996) laid stress that, in inclusive education classrooms regular school teachers are required to teach ‘content’ differently. It must be integrative, flexible and interdisciplinary. In contrast to traditional, teacher centred instructional approaches in which the teacher stands in front of the classroom and delivers lectures to the entire class; in the inclusive classroom the focus shifts from teaching to learning. Teachers are now required to create situations in which student’s learning is maximized. The regular classroom teacher is now viewed primarily as a "thoughtful professional", one who is able to understand the relationship between teaching and learning as well as develop the cognitive functioning of the differently abled students. He asserts that a regular school teacher needs to be a professional diagnostician, a decision maker and an instructional manager in order to deal effectively with the challenges posed by exceptional/gifted learners. He further says that this professional should be in the best position to help these students in working with the group, to follow routines and to follow the accepted standards of group behavior. It can be seen that the roles and responsibilities of regular school teachers has now been comprehensive after the introduction of inclusive education programs. It now includes the responsibility of meeting the needs of the differently abled students in addition to meeting the needs of their normal peers. It is therefore vital that regular school teachers have the appropriate knowledge, skills and attitudes to fulfil their new roles and responsibilities.

1.2.0 Concept of Teachers Competencies and Training Needs

Competency is a term used widely by different people in different contexts. So it is defined in different ways. Teacher education and job performance of a teacher are the contexts in which this term is used. Houstan (1987) competencies are the requirements of a competency based teacher education, which includes knowledge, skills and values the teacher trainee must demonstrate for successful completion of the teacher education programme. A few characteristics of a competency are as follows.

1. A competency consists of one or more skills whose mastery would affect the achievement of the competency

2. A competency has its linkage with all the three domains on which performance can be assessed. It includes the domains of knowledge, skill and attitude.

3. As competencies, have a performance dimension of them, they are observable and demonstrable.

4. As the competencies are observable, they are also measurable. It is possible to assess a competency from the performance of a teacher. It is not essential that all competencies of a teacher have the same extent of knowledge, skill and attitude. There may be some competencies of a teacher which have the same extent of knowledge, skill and attitude. There may be some competencies involving more of knowledge than skill and attitude, whereas, same competencies may be skill/performance loaded.

List of teaching competencies. Whichever way we would like to classify teacher competencies, the teacher’s repertoire would seem to constitute the following:

Knowledge of subject matter

Plan the course or lesson including teaching strategies, teaching materials, and classroom organisation.

Motivate learner groups

Presentation and communication skills including lecturing, explaining, eliciting response, questioning, discussing, dramatizing, reading, demonstrating, using audio-visual aids, etc.

Evaluation includes informal observations of student progress, diagnosing learning difficulties, encouraging peer, self-evaluation, handling evaluative discussions, etc.

Classroom management and discipline

1.2.1 Teachers’ competencies for inclusive education

The current reforms put in effort towards school restructuring aimed at implementing effective inclusion programs present significant challenges for regular school teachers. The success of these efforts depends largely on the responsiveness and willingness of these teachers to meet the educational and social needs of students with varying abilities. The teachers are now required to have a number of additional skills and competencies, not generally practiced in regular education classrooms. The Open File on Inclusive Education (UNESCO, 2001) suggests a number of requirements from teachers, from the perspective of inclusive curricula such as, teachers participation in curriculum development at local level, their skill development for curriculum adaptation, management of a composite range of classroom activities, providing support to students’ learning, working outside the traditional subject limitations and in culturally sensitive ways. Few researchers argue that teachers are now expected to do almost all of the role functions as that of a special education teacher. The difference, however, is that they have not received an intensive training in the skills that are possessed by special educators.

These teachers are now expected to incorporate the adaptive dimension in all their efforts for children with special needs. As Hargreaves and Fullan (1992) state, deeper knowledge of and greater confidence in teaching their subject(s); emerging better expertise in classroom management so that more time can be provided to instruction; knowing how to teach mixed-ability classes; increasing awareness and becoming proficient in new teaching strategies like co-operative learning or ‘whole language’ approaches to learning; and becoming knowledgeable about and able to respond to the different learning styles of their pupils – attention to all these things can certainly help teachers increase their pupils opportunities to learn.

According to Mastropieri & Scruggs (2010) regular school teachers need to be knowledgeable about the learning styles and the motivational patterns of differently abled children. The teachers must have a clear understanding of the resources and support systems which are available to help them for working with students with disabilities. They should present information to the students in a manner which enables them to assimilate the information easily. Vaughn & Bos (2012) suggested a number of strategies that regular school teachers would require in order to accommodate students with disabilities in the classroom environment. These include peer tutoring, mastery learning, cooperative learning, and applied behavior analysis. The literature also points out that classroom teachers are required to use instructional strategies such as differentiated instruction, activity-based learning (Krishnaswamy & Shankar, 2003), adaptive and individualized instruction (Jangira, Singh & Yadav, 1995) and culturally responsive teaching and culture specific pedagogy (Valmiki, 2003) to facilitate differently abled students’ learning outcomes in regular classroom environment. The Council for Exceptional Children (2010) developed and validated a common core of minimum essential knowledge and skills necessary for entry into professional practice in special education. "It includes — philosophical, historical and legal foundations of special education; characteristics of learners; assessment, diagnosis and evaluation; instructional content and practice; planning and managing the learning environment; managing student behaviour and social interaction skills; communication and collaborative partnerships and; professionalism and ethical practices." While all of these skills may not be needed for regular classroom teachers, a certain level of ability in these competencies, however, is required from these teachers when they are expected to work with special needs children. There are some competencies that are field tested and supported as probable methods for delivering effective instruction to students with diverse learning needs. Some of them, that are extensively used, include: class-wide peer tutoring, cooperative learning, self-management skills, differentiated instruction and use of assistive technology. The school teachers especially need to be skilled in skills like effective instruction delivery and appropriate management of a classroom that is characterized by diversity.

1.2.2 Competency: Categories and Types

There are efforts that have been made, especially in western countries, to identify the competencies that regular school teachers need to work effectively with differently abled students. A variety of methods including literature reviews, survey of stakeholders, of educators and classroom observations, examination of teachers’ daily records, experts’ opinions, and initiatives of professional organizations such as the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) have been used to identify such competencies. A wide range of respondents including students with and without special needs, parents of children with disabilities, school principals, special and regular education teachers, and teacher educators have been surveyed to identify these competencies. As a result, several lists of vital teacher competencies have been created; all of which are context and situation specific. These competencies have been classified under the seven categories. Each of them is briefly discussed regarding their relevance to inclusive education. The seven core competencies include:

1. Professional knowledge

2. Classroom management

3. Collaboration

4. Assessment and evaluation

5. Instructional techniques

6. Individualized and adaptive instruction

7. Assistive Technology

1. Professional Knowledge

Professional knowledge in the context of inclusive education includes a knowledge and understanding of: basic terminology and concepts used in special education; a rationale and history of inclusive education; various disabling conditions; policies, programs and legislations related to inclusive education; rights, roles and responsibilities of parents, students, teachers and other professionals as they relate to individuals with special learning needs.

Murray and Payne (1974) piloted a survey of school principals regarding the desirable competencies by regular school teachers to work effectively with differently abled children. The principals graded the knowledge of disabling conditions as the most important competency for these teachers. The results of the needs assessment conducted by Gear and Gable (1979) showed that the teachers indicated a high need of training need in the ‘professional knowledge’ area. In a study carried out by Celotta and Goodspeed (1982), the researchers surveyed thirty seven professors and sixty four regular school teachers to identify the competencies that regular school teachers deliberated most important to work with differently abled students. Both professors and school teachers reported ‘knowledge of disabling conditions’ as the most significant competency for school teachers to work in inclusive education classrooms. Sharma (2002) had also reported that Indian teachers require information on the types of disabilities, educational implications, curriculum adaptation, and skills and strategies required for meeting the needs of students with disabilities.

2. Classroom Management

Classroom management for inclusive education includes the knowledge of: Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA); basic classroom management theories, methods and techniques for individuals with different learning needs; research-based best practices for effective management of teaching and learning; materials arrangement creating a positive atmosphere in the classroom and organization of aids and support services, .The diversity in the classrooms presents a range of management encounters for school teachers. For example, differently abled students, particularly those identified with emotional and behavior disorder (EBD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), may present unique behavioural challenges for these teachers. According to Wang, Haertal and Walberg (1993) effective classroom management has been found to contribute more to school learning than classroom instruction, curriculum design, student demographics, and home support and school policy.

As a supportive educational environment has an important positive effect on overall learning of differently abled students, Nielsen (1997) argues that regular classroom teachers need to be competent in making a positive psycho-social environment for all differently abled students. Along with psycho-social environment, the physical aspects of classroom also exert a great influence on the inclusive classroom environment. The physical environment comprises of aspects such as arrangement of desks, lighting and temperature. The placement of the special needs child in the classroom, in relation to the rest of the students, is also very important. It depends on the severity of the child’s disability that the teacher should be able to decide the proximity control. Such control can be easily handled in primary schools. However a secondary student’s proximity control must be handled carefully as most of them do not like to be identified or singled out. It is the responsibility of the teacher to adjust and adapt the physical and psycho-social arrangement of the classroom to be responsive to the needs of the differently abled children.

3. Collaboration

Friend and Cook (2010) define teamwork/collaboration as an interactive process that enables people with diverse expertise to produce creative solutions to commonly defined problems. An ever increasing diversity in the classrooms has made it necessary for regular classroom teachers to work with special education teachers, school psychologists, para-professionals (such as speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, recreational therapists etc.) parents of students with disabilities, and instructional assistants. The joint effort in dealing with the problems creating solutions would enhance the chances of the success of the programme or the course. Their shared expertise and shared ownership of problems would help the educators to deal with the problems collaboratively, rather in isolation. Friend and Cook (2010) point out that collaboration between regular school teachers, parents of differently abled students and other school staff is one of the most significant issue in the education of differently abled students in regular school settings. West and Cannon (1988) conducted a study involving hundred experts from forty seven states in the United States of America to recognize necessary collaborative consultation competencies needed by both regular and special educators in inclusive education settings. These experts rated awareness of consultancy theory and models, ability to communicate interactively and solving problems collaboratively as the most significant collaborative-consultation skills for regular school teachers who are involved in the implementation of inclusive education. Regular school teachers could use the given collaborative strategies in order to deliver effective instructional programs to differently abled students — peer collaboration, co-teaching and teacher assistance teams. Peer collaboration involves pairs of teachers working together to resolve classroom problems. Pugach and Johnson (1990) found that teachers using this strategy are likely to have fewer problems. Friend and Cook (2010) defined co-teaching as "two or more professionals delivering substantive instruction to a diverse or blended group of students in a single space. This is an effective method to utilize each teacher’s strengths. Friend & Cook, 2010; Hart & Whalon,(2008) there are researches available that show the benefits of co-teaching to improve academic achievement of not only differently abled students but all students. Teacher assistance teams are also known as support teams, intervention assistance teams and planning teams. Here a group of teachers meet and brainstorm options for a teacher experiencing problems in the classroom.

4. Assessment and Evaluation

McLoughlin & Lewis, (2001) state that regular school teachers are required to exhibit competency in assessment in order to identify the specific needs of differently abled students. Assessment, the process of using testing and other formal and informal means of evaluation to make educational decisions, is one of the most vital skills for a regular classroom teacher to have in the implementation of inclusive education programs. The teacher has to employ both, basic skills such as gathering, learning and background information of differently abled students and also highly specialized skills such as selecting, administering, scoring and interpreting standardized measurement instruments. Friend and Bursuck (1999) suggested that regular school teachers could use assessment information for six instructional and placement decisions for differently abled students. These contain screening, diagnosis, program placement, instructional evaluation and program evaluation. The main decision related to diagnosis is eligibility for special education services. To some extent, regular school teachers will play a role in making placement decisions (such as a general education classroom, resource room or full-time special education classroom). Although the main decisions are made by administrators and school psychologists regarding the placement, regular classroom teachers will assist them in making such a decision as part of the multidisciplinary team. Wang, Anderson and Bram (1985) suggested that regular school teachers should be able to evaluate three aspects of differently abled students’ performance while evaluating their success in inclusion programs — performance, attitudes and process. Performance measures relate to the student’s achievement in content areas. Attitudinal measures relate to differently abled student’s self-concept and their attitudes toward their teachers and non-disabled peers. Process measures include the types of interactions differently abled students have with their teachers and peers. Regular school teachers need to be knowledgeable about different kinds of evaluation methods in order to determine the learning outcomes of differently abled students. They need to demonstrate competency in performance-based assessments, portfolios and curriculum-based assessments. A performance-based assessment allows teachers to assess students’ understanding and proficiency. These assessments allow differently abled students to construct a response, create a product or demonstrate what they understand and can do. Friend and Bursuck (1999) said that these assessments are more likely to reveal student understanding since they call for students to apply knowledge and skills rather than to only recall and recognize. Alternate assessments such as portfolio assessments are also effective ways of evaluating differently abled students. Portfolios make it possible to collect the learning process over time as well as the assessment of non-traditional strengths and talents such as artistic or visual abilities of students. Curriculum-based assessments (CBAs) also provide teachers with information on the demands of instructional tasks and allow them to determine the content and pace of an instructional program. Thus, in addition to providing information on a student’s progress, CBAs help regular school teachers to match specific instructional practices and materials to a disabled student’s learning needs which results in improved performance on school related tasks. A research study, by Mukhopadhyay (1990) found that regular and special education teachers in India recognized evaluation as one of the most important skill for regular classroom teachers who work with exceptional children. Shukla & Singh (2011) suggested that a flexible and implementable scheme of Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) assumes evaluation as a routine activities and exercise of teaching learning process and it includes all aspects of pupil’s growth such as intellectual, physical, personal- qualities, social, interests, attitudes and values through using a variety of tools and techniques by a teacher. CCE is a most suitable procedure due to its fundamental principles of flexibility, functionality, accountability and economy in evaluating a child with disability in an inclusive setting.

5. Instructional Techniques

This skill is at the heart of all the competencies that regular teachers need to exhibit while working with diverse student population. These skills are the ones that they should use on a daily basis to provide appropriate instruction to special needs students. A number of specific instructional techniques that regular classroom teachers would require to be competent in include — differentiated instruction, activity based and peer tutoring, experiential learning and collaborative learning. Each one of them has been tested in the field and validated to demonstrate their effectiveness. Other practices that have also been field tested with students with special needs include response cards, guided notes, and error correction and time trials.

Differentiated Instruction

Earlier, regular classroom teachers employed the ability grouping to deal with variations in student skill levels. Gamoran (1992) studied the research on ability grouping and decided that an educational practice perpetuated low achievement and increased the gap between high and low achieving students. To overcome these difficulties and to successfully accommodate differently abled students, regular school teachers needed to practice differentiated instruction. This method requires the teachers to teach one main lesson for all students with variations for each individual student’s needs. It is an instructional approach that allows the regular classroom teacher to plan for all students within one lesson, thereby decreasing the need for separate programs while allowing the teacher to weave individual goals into classroom content and instructional strategies (Tomlinson, 2003). Thus, a diverse group of learners share an instructional activity in which individually appropriate learning outcomes happen in the same curriculum area. Differentiated instruction allows students to learn from one another in an environment of human diversity. In such classrooms individual differences are the standard rather than the exception. This technique has been accepted by regular school teachers who state that it is easier than preparing many lessons and that classroom instruction has coherence despite individualization (Porter, 1997).

Activity-Based and Experiential Learning

Krishnaswamy & Shankar, (2003) in the classrooms that have instruction passively or in isolation and use a lecture format as the central form of instruction, many students do not learn, retain and apply knowledge as effectively and efficiently. Such instructional delivery methods are, difficult for differently abled students who are included in regular education classrooms. These students require the teachers to deliver instruction that is activity-based and facilitates learning of students through personal experiences. With the use of both activity-based and experiential learning, students become involved in discovery, movement, interaction with the environment and manipulation of materials. As this learning uses real-life activities and materials, skill generalization and transfer are facilitated. According to Choate (2000) hands-on interactive instructional approaches to a lesson appeal to the senses and make it easier for differently abled students to learn. This active learning promotes student attention, increases on-task behaviour and decreases the incidence of negative behaviour. Freiberg and Driscoll (1992) found that students who were actively involved and engaged in lessons learnt better and faster than students who were "instructionally inactive".

Peer Tutoring

Peer tutoring is an instructional strategy that involves of student partnerships, involving high achieving students with lower achieving students or those with comparable achievement, for organized study sessions. Lot of research has been done to demonstrate the effectiveness of this strategy in inclusive classrooms (Stephenson & Warwick, 2002; Fuchs, Fuchs, & Burish, 2000). Peer tutoring has been found to minimize problem behaviors, increase opportunities to respond and improve activity comprehension (Marchand-Martella & Martella, 1993). It is effective in improving on-task behavior, math performance, reading performance and social interactions of differently abled students in inclusive classrooms (Fuchs et. al., 2000).

Cooperative Learning

A competitive classroom environment and educational approaches grounded on comparing pupils with a predetermined standard are not favourable to inclusive education. Cooperative learning, encourages students to work together to complete tasks and solve problems. Here the teachers need to specify each student’s role for the task, clarify the sequence of activities and monitor and evaluate the interactions between the group members. Jenkins, Antil, Wayne & Vadasy, (2003) it has emphasized that regular school teachers need to be competent in the application of cooperative learning strategies to successfully include differently abled students in their classroom activities . Putnam, (1998) these approaches enhance learning, improve inter-group relations, develop problem solving skills and improve the academic and social skills of students with special needs in regular education classrooms. Studies have also displayed that teaching social skills to differently abled children and their nondisabled peers in cooperative groups results in increased frequency, duration and quality of social interactions (Jenkins et. al., 2003).

Individualized and Adaptive Instruction

Individualized and adaptive instructions are educational approaches that recognize, anticipate and program for variation according to the student’s background knowledge, learning styles, motivation and personal interest. Creating an educational program (individualized) that is tailored to the unique needs of a differently abled child and this is the hallmark of special education. This is what makes special education different from regular education. However a union of both well-established stream of instruction is needed from regular school teachers if they are to serve all students in their classrooms including those with exceptionality. A conceptual framework for instructional adaptations for students with disabilities was provided by Glaser (1977). He envisaged instructional adaptations as a process of choosing and applying an appropriate teaching action following an assessment-based determination that previous lesson for a student was unsuccessful. These adaptations, therefore, require teachers to implement alternative teaching actions such as modifying assignments, materials, testing procedures, grading criteria and varying presentation styles in order to improve the achievement of differently abled students in regular education classrooms. Teachers can also accommodate variations in learning styles by developing each student’s educational program using a variety of environmental, physical, social and psychological conditions. For example, necessary adjustment of materials (e.g. varying sequence, reducing the length of assignments, highlighting essential content, alternate assignment presentation format such visual, auditory etc.) and useful learning aids (e.g. checklists of steps, advanced organizers, study guides, story starters etc.) form individualized instruction. Vaughn & Bos, (2012) state that instructional adaptations such as variations in teaching materials and grouping arrangements lead to enhanced student outcomes.

7. Assistive Technology

Recent progresses in technology for special needs students has made it possible for tto accomplish a number of tasks, while being in regular education environment, that was not possible earlier. It is imperative that regular classroom teachers must have at least some level of knowledge and understanding in the use of such devices and software applications (Dimmitt et al., 2006).Apart from the "traditional" knowledge and skill domains, regular school teachers are now also expected to demonstrate ability in a number of emerging competencies. The ‘new’ competencies derive from the social dynamics that impact the school curriculum. The emerging competencies include maintaining ethical and professional standards (CEC, 2010) and sensitivity toward the cultural background of differently abled students with disabilities. (Mitchell, 2000).

1.2.3 Need of in-service Training

Among its numerous objectives, the SSA pursues to empower teachers through extensive training. It offers grants for developing teaching-learning materials and strengthening of academic support structure at a cluster, block, and district levels. The special focus is on ‘Children with Special Needs’ (CWSN). CWSN includes kids with sensory impairments (hearing and vision), physical handicap, mental retardation and learning disability. Equity and integration of education for these kids does not only mean to simply enrol them into regular schools or classrooms. It means that physical and psychological barriers between these children and the others are broken. There is predominantly a great attitudinal barrier that deters integration or inclusion of CWSN. Teachers in the traditional mode are likely to to view these children — incapable, difficult to handle, or merely worthy of segregation into special schools. These children require physical and emotional acceptance at home and school. They need a flexible curriculum, barrier free classroom or school environment, modified schemes of examination and teaching practices, adapted teaching aids and above all-a sensitive teacher (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan 2007; Mehrotra 2006; Jha 2002). Therefore, training becomes a needed bridge between teachers and pupils with special needs. Training is the systematic and organized process or act of increasing specific knowledge, attitudes, and skills of an employee or non-personnel to fulfil a specific purpose or for doing a particular job as well as for preparing to hold future positions (Hart 1991). It is necessary that teachers take the responsibility for improving the learning and involvement of all children in their classes in order to develop teacher competences for inclusive education. For this, teachers need to develop competences that comprise knowledge, skills and dispositions to teach equitably and to encourage the learning of all pupils. Moreover, teachers need to be able to pursue and practice the support of other people who can serve as valuable resources in inclusive education, such as support staff, parents, communities, school authorities and not to miss the relevant others. Therefore, pre-service and in-service teacher education and training should be in line with inclusive education approaches in order to build the teacher capacities necessary to make diversity work.

1.2.4 In-service Training of Teachers

In-service teacher training and development refers to education and training activities involved in by primary and secondary school teachers subsequent to their initial professional certification, intended mainly or exclusively to improve their professional knowledge, skills and attitudes so that they can educate children effectively in contexts of social and cultural diversity. Teacher’s education is essential to implement the concept of inclusive education for the differently abled children; consequently it is essential to train all teachers in same way to enhance their skills and update their knowledge. Teachers can be benefited by the approach of Inclusive education in various ways. Such as-

• It helps teachers appreciate and understand the diversity of individual human being.

• It helps teachers recognize that all students have strengths and potential.

• It creates a realization of the significance of direct individualized instruction.

• It enhances ways of creatively addressing challenges.

• It develops collaborative problem solving skills.

• It develops skills related to teamwork.

• It acquires different ways of perceiving challenges as a result of being on a multi-disciplinary team.

• It enhances accountability skills.

• It overcomes monotony.

1.3.0 Rationale of the present study

In "World Declaration on Education for All"— it has been stated in Article 1: Meeting Basic Learning Needs, that "Every person - child, youth and adult - shall be able to benefit from educational opportunities designed to meet their basic learning needs." These needs include both vital learning tools (such as literacy, oral expression, numeracy, and problem solving) and the basic learning content (such as knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes) required by human beings to be able to live, to develop their complete capacities, to live and work in dignity, to contribute fully in development, to improve the quality of their lives, to make informed decisions, and to continue learning. The scope of basic learning needs and how they should be met varies with individual countries and cultures, and unavoidably, alters passes.

In "Article III: Basic education should be provided to all children, youth and adults- To this end, basic education services of quality should be expanded and consistent measures must be taken to reduce disparities." To achieve this, quality teachers are vital to fulfil the need of quality education and also inclusive education where special needs children will be included and obtain education with other non-disable children.

Fundamental to this presumption that the success of inclusive education depends on various variables; the most significant one, is the teacher. The nature of their work has undergone great change since the implementation of inclusive education. They are now required to accomplish a number of extra tasks in order to meet the needs of diverse learners. In order to perform such a crucial role the teachers need to build up or develop their competencies and enhance their quality by taking up in-service training to up skill themselves.

This research will attempt to identify and examine teachers’ competency when educating the children with special needs in regular education setup i.e. inclusive school.

From the above discussion one can conclude that for successful mainstreaming of the inclusive education, it is imperative to improve the quality of teachers in relation to competencies required and in-service training, the emphasis should be placed on:

To innovate and devise teaching and learning methodologies/ strategies that fill the lacuna (if any) present in the system.

Identification of training needs inclusive school teacher in the context of their competencies to improve the quality of in-service training programmes.

To identify the shortcomings of present day in-service programmes.

1.4.0 Title of the study

"A study of teachers’ competencies and training needs for inclusive education".

1.5.0 Objective of the study

To identify the competencies of inclusive school teachers.

To study the existing teachers’ competencies for imparting inclusive education — as perceived by the teachers.

To study the training needs in the context of teachers’ competencies as perceived by the teachers.

1.6.0 Research questions

What teacher competencies are needed for inclusive education?

To study the existing teachers’ competencies for imparting inclusive education - as perceived by the teachers.

What are the training needs of teachers’ in inclusive education?

1.7.0 Delimitation: - This study has been restricted only to the teachers’ competencies and training needs of inclusive schools of Delhi region.

1.8.0 Definition of the operational terms used:

In order to understand the key concepts of this study, it is necessary to define them to avoid misinterpretations.

Inclusion: It is defined as mainstreaming the education of the children with special needs.

Inclusive education: Inclusive Education is defined as, all children irrespective of their strengths and weaknesses will be part of the mainstream education.

Teachers: It includes all the teachers (regular teachers who have a child in their class who needs support for a special need) of elementary grade.

Teacher’s Competency

It includes all the skills required in a teacher for conveying units of knowledge, application and attitude to student in an interesting way.

Training needs: It is defined as the perception of needs of in-service training by teachers themselves for their improvement and development.

1.9.0 Chapterisation

Chapter 1: Introduction of the study

Chapter 2: Review of related literature

Chapter 3: Methods and procedures

Chapter 4: Analysis and interpretation

Chapter 5: Summary and Conclusion