Towards formulating a management model to enhance inclusivity at a teacher training college in Zimbabwe
| dc.contributor.advisor | Dube, B. | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Chimbi, G. | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.author | Ncube, Nozinhle | en_ZA |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-01-10T14:20:06Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-01-10T14:20:06Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2024 | en_ZA |
| dc.description | Thesis (Ph.D.(Higher Education Studies))--University of the Free State, 2024 | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | The aim of this study was to formulate a management model to enhance inclusive education at a teacher training college in Zimbabwe. Throughout the world student teachers with disabilities face many barriers in teachers’ training colleges and other higher education institutions. People with disabilities constitute some of the poorest economically and are socially excluded and marginalized. In Zimbabwe, people with disabilities constitute about 7% of the population, yet they make up 20% of the poorest people at the national level. The purpose of this study was to explore the barriers to academic and social inclusion faced by students with disabilities at a teacher training college in Zimbabwe. The objectives were to determine the challenges faced by student teachers with disabilities at tertiary institutions, explore policies on students with disabilities at tertiary institutions and suggest possible strategies that could be adopted to overcome these challenges. The study is located in critical emancipatory research (CER) and adopted the transformative paradigm. Qualitative research methods, specifically participatory action research (PAR), were employed. The study used purposive sampling which is synonymous with qualitative research. The target population comprised all students with disabilities at a teacher’s training college in Zimbabwe. Research instruments were triangulated by using interviews and focus group discussions. Qualitative data analysis was done through the thematic analysis of responses from both lecturers and students. The study revealed that there was no inclusive education policy at national level as well as in teachers’ training colleges in Zimbabwe, only circulars were in place. The study also found that students with disabilities had some barriers on physical access to different places at the college under study. The study also established that staff’s lack of competencies was one of the major barriers that hindered the implementation of inclusive education in teacher training colleges in Zimbabwe. There was no effective inclusive policy in teacher training colleges that could promote the implementation of inclusive practices. Stigma and discrimination among students and staff regarding students with disabilities was also prevalent. The rigid curriculum was another major barrier against the implementation of inclusive education in teacher training colleges in Zimbabwe. The study also revealed that there was a lack of funding to purchase equipment and assistive devices for students with disabilities. The study recommended that the inclusive management model should consider easy accessibility to all places that are currently inaccessible to students with disabilities. The other recommendation was that staff members ought to be trained on inclusive education through workshops and staff development programmes. There is a need to review syllabi in order to accommodate students with disabilities, especially in practical subjects. The study also recommended that there was need to have a working policy for inclusivity in teacher training colleges so as to implement inclusive practices. | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/12975 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Social and academic inclusion | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Students with disabilities | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Stigma | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Discrimination | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Barriers | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Management model | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Policy | en_ZA |
| dc.title | Towards formulating a management model to enhance inclusivity at a teacher training college in Zimbabwe | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Thesis |