The ‘curious gap between hope and happening’ inclusive education in Guyana’s primary schools
I explore the experiences of children with Special Education Needs and disabilities (SEND) placed in two mainstream primary schools within postcolonial Guyana. It is a qualitative study, which employed situational analysis as posited by Adele Clarke (2005, 2008). I embraced the social model of disability. I also used the poststructuralist lens to understand the discourse, meaning and interpretations of the experiences of children with SEND. Throughout the nine chapters in this thesis, I argue that the placement of children with SEND in the two mainstream primary schools I studied was an unpleasant, marginalising and depersonalising experience for the children. In this study, I make five significant contributions to the literature. First, I provide an understanding of the experiences of children with SEND in the two mainstream primary schools studied. Second, I provide a southern inclusive framework to guide the placement of children with SEND in mainstream schools in Guyana. Third, I give a southern inclusive checker as a tool to support the framework and guide mainstream teachers to self-monitor and regulate their practice. This could initiate more meaningful experiences for all children in an inclusive learning environment. It could also support mainstream teachers in making simple, reasonable adjustments to reduce barriers faced by children which are unique to the mainstream schooling within postcolonial Guyana. Fourth, I provide guidelines for the development of the structures, practices and values within the Guyanese education system. Finally, I offer an analysis of the northern social model of disability frameworks from a southern perspective and explain the challenges and opportunities within these frameworks if they are to be used extensively in Guyana.
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| Format: | Thesis biblioteca |
| Language: | en_US |
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University of Roehampton, London
2021
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| Subjects: | inclusive education, primary schools, special education, disabilities, SEND, |
| Online Access: | https://pure.roehampton.ac.uk/portal/files/5471977/The_curious_gap_between_hope_and_happening_.pdf https://hdl.handle.net/2139/56807 |
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