Practical Aspects of Special Education Needs: Children with Hearing Impairment in China - Coursework Example

Theoretical and Practical Aspects of Special Education Needs: A Case Study of Children with Hearing Impairment in China By University Date Introduction This essay analyses the theoretical and practical aspects of the special education needs of children with hearing impairment in China. China was selected because of its trend toward inclusive education which functions to include children with learning disabilities into the regular classroom (Lynch, 1994). By focusing on how China responds to the special education needs of children with a hearing impairment through inclusion, this essay can highlight challenges and solutions for teachers. This essay will also serve as a source of information for parents and children with special education needs when deciding whether or not inclusion can be effective in a particular classroom or school. The Theoretical Basis for this Essay The social constructivist theory of learning incorporates inclusive learning with implications for special education needs children (Mallory and New, 1994). According to social constructivist theory, learning is socially constructed and children are more motivated to learn if learning is a social endeavour and classrooms are presented as a social community (Mallory and New, 1994). Thus social constructivist theory contemplates an inclusive learning environment in which each child participates in the learning and teaching process (Mallory and New, 1994). Social constructivist theory informs international initiatives for including children with special education needs and children with disabilities requiring special education in the general classroom (Meynert, 2014). This initiative is based on the assumption that all children should have an equal opportunity to learn and placing children with special education needs in a special environment is inconsistent with equal opportunity education (Meynert, 2014). Schools should therefore strive toward inclusive education for children with special needs and ensure that teachers and communities have the ability to meet the needs of children with special education needs. After all, the social constructivist theory advocates for inclusive classrooms where teachers respond to each child’s different interests and abilities (Meynert, 2014). The previous practice of segregating children with special needs is contrary to the social constructivist model (Fletcher, 2007). Segregation represents a social and institutional response that discounts the significance of interaction and socialization in the learning process. Segregation comes across as labelling and shaming and at the same time, deprives the disabled child of an opportunity to benefit from the equal education goals of the curriculum (Fletcher, 2007). Segregation and mere integration only serves to label and distinguish the disabled child from the normal child and this can negatively interfere with the disabled child’s academic and social growth (Fletcher, 2007). Placing the disabled child in the classroom removes this label and distinction and changes the way that institutions and individuals respond to disabled children (Fletcher, 2007). Theoretically, inclusive education is a ‘process with which schools’ attempt to ‘respond to all students as individuals, reviewing the organization and provision of their curriculum’ (Angelides, 2005: 33). Inclusive education makes provision for special education needs children to share the same ‘school experience’ in the ‘same school and classrooms’ with children in the general education system (Angelides, 2005: 33). The objective is to ensure that all children are educated irrespective of their ‘differences, problems and difficulties’ (Angelides, 2005: 33). A school adhering to an inclusive education ‘accepts all children, understands their individuality and responds accordingly to their individual needs’ (Angelides, 2005: 33). The inclusive education movement became an international initiative under the auspices of the United Nations’ Salamanca Agreement, 1994. The underlying philosophy of the Salamanca Agreement is the idea that inclusion involves participation and is therefore a human right and an important aspect of ‘human dignity’ (Culham and Nind, 2003: 66). An inclusive education is therefore viewed as anti-discriminatory and necessary for promoting an ‘inclusive society’ (Culham and Nind, 2003: 66). Inclusive education is tantamount to ‘respect, equality and collective belonging’ and ‘positive responses to diversity’ (Culham and Nind, 2003: 66). Special Education Needs for the Hearing Impaired and in General in China Confucianism, an influential doctrine in China highlights support for, and understanding of the weaker members of society (Pang and Richey, 2006). Therefore, it is hardly surprising that the special needs for the disabled can be traced back 2,000 years in China. Ancient historical documents suggest that China promoted tolerating and ‘learning about the causes disabling conditions’ (Pang and Richey, 2006: 78). Compared to Western societies, ancient China was supportive and kind to the disabled (Pang and Richey, 2006). Still, the disabled was treated less favourably in social settings and their special education needs were not attended to until around the 19th century and this was due largely to European and American missionaries(Pang and Richey, 2006). China’s first school for the blind was established by a Scottish missionary in Beijing in 1874. The first school for the blind and deaf was established in 1887 in Shandong by US missionaries. These efforts were followed by other US and European missionaries and by the early part of the 20th century, Chinese started setting up schools for the disabled (Pang and Richey, 2006). Special education under charitable donors during the early part of the 20th century was directed toward the deaf and the blind. However with the establishing of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, laws were implemented reforming the education system and required teachers’ training for children with special needs and special education for the disabled or children with disabilities. Local governments were required to establish schools or classes for children with special education needs (Pang and Richey, 2000). By the 1980s, China began integrating children with special needs into regular schools and the rate of enrolment for children with special education needs increased. By 1988, the prospect of inclusion began in earnest (Pang and Richey, 2000). The inclusion policy is founded on China’s Compulsory Education Law 1986 which mandates that ‘all children are entitled to 9 years of free public education’ (Kritzer, 2011: 58). Four years later China implemented the Law on the Protection of the Disabled Person which ‘emphasized that families, work unites and community organizations must share the responsibility for caring’ for the disabled (Kritzer, 2011: 58-59). The Ordinance of Education for Persons with Disabilities 1994 established requirements for certifying teachers in special education (Kritzer, 2011). Inclusion policies were a solution to China’s problems with funding special education schools as a vast majority of China’s population resides in rural areas which is labour intensive and a formal education is not important to the workers and their families (Kritzer, 2011). Since 1990, inclusion of children with disabilities in the regular classroom has gained increasing currency in China. Yet there are problems that can be discerned. The two main problems however are the sheer number of students per class. Classrooms in China average between 40 and 75 students making it nearly impossible to individualize teaching pursuant to the tenets of social constructivism (Kritzer, 2011). In addition, teachers are not sufficiently trained in teaching children with special education needs (Kritzer, 2011). The classroom size and the teachers’ lack of training can be especially problematic for inclusion strategies relating to children with hearing impairment in China. Chinese scholar (Yuhan, 2013) reports that one of the greatest difficulties for inclusion of children with hearing impairment is their interaction with and relationship with their hearing cohorts. Children with hearing impairment prefer to communicate through sign language, while their hearing cohorts prefer to lean closer and use facial expressions or to point at objects to aid in communications with their peers who have a hearing deficit (Yuhan, 2013). The child with hearing impairment will therefore feel rejected and will lack a feeling of belonging. These problems are more acute when the social setting is large and the teacher is not actively involved in the socialization and collaboration of peers made up of both the hearing impaired and the hearing (Yuhan, 2013). The teacher’s role is significant in helping the hearing impaired and the hearing students collaborate and learn. There are many possible solutions to communication problems for the deaf or hearing impaired in a social setting such as an inclusive classroom. A suitably trained teacher will have the ability to identify and build on the appropriate solution. For example, the student with the hearing disability might be able to solve the communication problem by simply wearing a hearing aid. Or the student might actually benefit from lip reading or signing or both (Dowson, 2007). A teacher trained in the special needs of the hearing impaired will be able to notice the deficit and the nature of the hearing deficit and will recognize solutions. However, in China’s large classrooms where teachers are inadequately trained, the obstacles to effective inclusion will persist. In China the Performing Arts Troupe has stepped in to empower children with disabilities. The Troupe include children with hearing impairment and provides them with opportunities to perform in art, dance and music. The children have found their niche where they can flourish and feel like important contributors to the performing arts. The troop performed at the Beijing Olympics and received international attention. Children with disabilities participating in the performing arts troop have explained how this has helped them gain confidence in their abilities (China Disabled Dance, 2009). Thus inclusive education’s emphasis on participation can be effective for meeting the special education of children with disabilities. The Special Needs of Children with a Hearing Impairment: The Positive and Related Support Needs The significance of inclusive education is highlighted by Scott-Hill’s (2004) definition of a health identity. A healthy identity is a socially constructed phenomenon in which social relations acknowledge and accept both similarities and differences among individuals (Scott-Hill, 2004). Thus people with disabilities are accepted and acknowledged for their differences and not segregated because they are different (Scott-Hill, 2004). As a teen known only as Kelly relates about finding out that she had rheumatoid arthritis, her immediate reaction was embarrassment and social occlusion (Wolf, 2009). Her parents opted for home schooling. Kelly recalls, ‘I didn’t want my best friend to see me because my face was so fat from the prednisome and I was embarrassed’ (Wolf, 2009: 6). The implications are that Kelly grew up in an environment where identity formation was not about differences, but about what constitutes sameness and normalness. Had she been a part of an inclusive education environment where everyone is accepted despite their differences, she would not have felt a compulsion to isolate herself. Her parents would not have supported her desire to hide from her peers. An inclusive education also helps children with disabilities learn to manage their tasks in ways that accommodate their disabilities. This is because children learn that differences does not necessarily mean that they have to surrender their ambitions and dreams. As a teen named Lindsay suffering from a chronic illness pointed out: Do not let your illness control you. Just because you have an illness doesn’t mean your life has to stop. Yes, you have to make some lifestyle changes, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do what you want to do and go where you want to go (Wolf, 2009: 115). An inclusive education at an early age will help children to establish this mind-set as they navigate their differences in a social setting. This prepares the child for future goals and ambitions in the real world. It is unlikely that the child’s future career will be in a social setting with only individuals that share their specific disabilities. The real world is comprised of differences and sameness alike interacting with and adjusting to one another. An inclusive education ensures that this later interaction is respectful, accepting and supportive. A study conducted by Mapolisa and Tshabalala (2013) identified two primary obstacles to effective inclusive education in respect of children with a hearing impairment. The first of which suggests that inclusive education that attempts to merely include the hearing impaired in a regular classroom without adjustments to the curriculum, does not prepare the hearing impaired for a multicultural and diverse world. The second problem discovered was that teachers participating in the study reported that they found the curriculum demanded that they teach as if they were teaching children with no hearing impairment (Mapolisa and Tshabalala, 2013). However, as Mapolisa and Tshabalala (2013) argue, it is the teachers’ responsibility to make changes to the curriculum to accommodate the differences of the students in the classroom to ensure that all students have the opportunity to learn. Conclusion and Recommendations As revealed in this essay, inclusive education as informed by the social constructivist theory of teaching and learning, special education needs is better served by including the child in regular classrooms. This approach only maximises academic and social outcomes where inclusive education is child centred and seeks to identify and respond to the different learning styles and requirements of all children. As discovered in the case study of China there are two major barriers to accomplishing the goals of inclusive education for children with special needs. First there is the large classroom setting where teachers are unable to pay special attention to individual children’s needs and abilities. Secondly, there is a lack of training with respect to responding to the special needs and abilities of children with disabilities. The obvious solution to these problems identified in China’s special education needs’ inclusive education practice is to ensure that children with special needs or disabilities are placed in classrooms with the smallest population possible. More importantly, teachers should be trained to understand, identify and respond to specific disabilities and the appropriate interventions or adjustments to maximise the child’s potential. With respect to children who are suffering from a hearing impairment, there are specific concerns identified in China’s classrooms. According to (Dowson, 2007), teachers lack the training necessary for helping hearing peers interact in helpful ways with their non-hearing or hearing impaired peers. A simple solution would be to place children with hearing impairment at the front of the classroom (Dowson, 2007). Other solutions can include a greater emphasis on writing out instructions on the chalk board at the front of the classroom (Dowson, 2007). Obviously, with the child closer to the front of the classroom, the child can read the instructions and not wholly rely on lip reading or sign language or miss out on the lesson and instructions altogether. Ideally, the teacher would be trained in sign language and can communicate with the student with a hearing impairment one on one without disrupting the classroom instruction or lesson. This would obviously serve as an ideal way to include the child with a hearing impairment in regular classroom settings without having to isolate the child and make the child feel different in a negative way. Bibliography Angelides, P. (2005). ‘The missing piece of the puzzle called “provision of equal participating in teaching and learning” (?).’ International Journal of Special Education, Vol. 20(2): 32-35. China Disabled Dance. (29th April 2009). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq2j0iavSQc [21st March 2015]/ Culham, A. and Nind, M. (2003). ‘Deconstructing normalisation: Clearing the way for inclusion.’ Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Vol. 28(1): 65-78. Dowson, C.R. (2007). ‘Specific language impairment and hearing impairment.’ In Phillipson, S.N. (Ed.). Learning diversity in the Chinese classroom. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 157-204. Fletcher, M .W. (2007). ‘Children with special educational needs.’ In Zwozdiak-Myers, P. (Ed.) Childhood and youth studies. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 99-109. Kritzer, J.B. (Spring 2011). ‘Special education in China.’ Eastern Education Journal, Vol. (40)1: 57-63. Lynch, J. (December 1994). ‘Provision for children with special educational needs in the Asia Region.’ World Bank Technical Paper, No. 261, 1-120. Mallory, B.L. and New, R.S. (Fall 1994). ‘Social constructivist theory and principles of inclusion: Challenges for early childhood special education.’ Journal of Special Education, Vol. 28(3): 322-337. Mapolisa, T. and Tshabalala, T. (2013). ‘The impact of inclusion of children with hearing impairment into regular schools: A case study of Dakamela Primary School in Zimbabwe.’ International Journal of Asian Social Science, Vol. 3(7): 1500-1510. Meynert, M. J. (2014). ‘Inclusive education and perceptions of learning facilitators of children with special needs in a school in Sweden.’ International Journal of Special Education, Vol. 29(2):1-18. Pang, Y. and Richey, D. (2006). ‘The development of special education in China.’ International Journal of Special Education, Vol. 21(6): 77-86. Scott-Hill, M. (2004). ‘Impairment, difference and ‘identity.’ In Swain, J.; French, S.; Barnes, C. and Thomas, C. (Eds.). Disabling barriers, enabling environments. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. 87-93. Wolf, P.B. (2009). I still dream big: stories of teens living with chronic illness. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse. Yuhan, X. (2013). ‘Peer interaction of children with hearing impairment.’ International Journal of Psychological Studies, Vol. 5(4): 17-25. Booklet: Theoretical and Practical Aspects of Special Education Needs: A Case Study of Children with Hearing Impairment in China This booklet analyses the theoretical and practical aspects of the special education needs of children with hearing impairment in China. It is anticipated that the contents of this booklet will serve as an informational and point of reference for teachers, children with hearing impairment and parents of children with hearing impairment. The informational value and reference points are contained in highlighting the theoretical basis for effectively meeting the special education needs of children with hearing impairment. Further informational value and reference points are contained in identifying how the theoretical basis for effectively meeting the special education needs of children with hearing impairment can be improved. A child with hearing impairment listening in the classroom. Source: http://www.wbur.org/npr/150245885/cochlear-implants-redefine-what-it-means-to-be-deaf [21st March 2015]. The theoretical basis for this booklet is the social constructivist theory. The social constructivist theory supports inclusive education. This booklet will explain how inclusive education is effective for meeting the special education needs of children with hearing impairment. In essence inclusive education seeks to maximise the potential of all children by identifying and addressing the educational needs and abilities of the child. Inclusive education also supports democratic values such as equal education opportunities for all children and helps to eliminate shaming and labelling of children who are different and/or have learning disabilities. This booklet will describe the value of social constructivist theory for children with hearing impairment so that children, teachers and parents can understand and embrace inclusive education. Inclusive Education: Making education about the child’s abilities. Source: http://www.selfadvocacyonline.org/research/FINDS/school/ [21st March 2015] From a practical standpoint, this booklet provides a case study on China’s children with hearing impairment and offers some discussion on children with special needs in general. The purpose of this exercise is to identify how inclusive education can be improved. China’s inclusive education for children with special needs has been moving forward impressively in terms of enrolment in the general education system. However, some problems such as large classrooms and insufficient teachers’ training point toward solvable problems for improving inclusive education for the benefit of children with special education needs and especially children with hearing impairment. Deaf Students Rehersing for China’s Performing Arts Troupe. Source: http://cccda.ca/category/details/ [21st March 2015]. This booklet explains why inclusive education is important for children with special education needs. In particular, comments and input from young students who have had life changing disabilities through chronic illness will be shared. These young students provide a perspective that shows how disabilities can be managed and why they should be managed. Their voices make a case for inclusive education. The final part of this booklet looks back at the lessons learned from the case study on China and combines that with the theoretical basis for inclusive education and in doing so, makes recommendations for improving inclusive education directed toward children with hearing impairment. This section of the book therefore uses the problems identified in China’s inclusive education system as a means of improving inclusive education for children with a hearing impairment. The idea of this booklet is to help teachers, parents and children with hearing impairment understand that inclusive education is not mere integration of children with special needs, but rather about empowering children with special needs. Read More