4.4 Interview with the Grade 2 Teacher
4.4.2 Extrinsic factors
Inflexible Curriculum – Reading
Ms Miya explained that there was a standardised set reader for the term and all learners should be able to read it. This, however, was not always possible, as certain learners had not achieved the level of the set reader.
Ms Miya: …..but at the same time I have to take into consideration the level that the child is in, so to me it is giving them what they can read.
We spend more time with the ones that are struggling, giving individual time for the ones who need to go back to basics.
Interviewer: You had readers coming from [the] university – students?
Ms Miya: Yes ….. they (the students) come and assist the learners with reading and then read on the level the child is on. You see that there is some improvement with the reading one-on-one.
Next year they will come again for the Grade 2s.
There is also the [….] Centre for Maths and [a university initiative], and the donation of the libraries from Grades 1, 2 and 3.
The community gets very involved with supporting learners to learn.
Ms Miya expressed the need to spend more individual time with those learners who were struggling to read. It was beneficial to her and her learners that students from the university would come to help individual reading after which she saw an improvement in the reading ability of the learners. She was pleased that the programme with the students would continue in the following year. She mentioned her appreciation of the support from the community and other initiatives, such as the Mathematics workshops and the donated classroom libraries.
Inappropriate languages of teaching and learning (LoTL)
Ms Miya confirmed that she taught in English.
Interviewer: How do you find learners whose first language is say isiXhosa or Afrikaans?
How do you find they are when learning in English?
Ms Miya: Since they have started in Grade 1 with their English classes, then they have got the basics in communication in English and writing, then in Grade 2 we have to
develop that. With some you notice that they are still reliant on their own home language to be able to identify the things in English, so if they are confused then I say it in their own language.
Ms Miya would assist learners with the understanding of an English word or term, by translating in the learner’s home language of isiXhosa or Afrikaans. It was an asset and of benefit to the learners that Ms Miya was multilingual.
Inadequate/inappropriate support services
I asked Ms Miya what support services she received from the Department of Education.
Ms Miya: It’s a process from the Government. It is taking time. You go through the District Based Support Team (DBST), you fill in all the SNA forms.
Interviewer: Have you received any help from the DBST?
Ms Miya: This year I haven’t gotten any help.
I have been in contact with the parents a lot. So they advise that you find your own means before you go for trying the Department.
So with Asanda, the Aunt took him to a psychologist on her own private [at her own expense].
She works at [a psychiatric hospital], so that helped. So that is how she is getting these sessions for him. So he managed to go for psychological sessions and get psychological help.
Ms Miya sent completed SNA forms to the DBST, but had not received a response. There was no further feedback from them as to their receiving help for Asanda. Fortunately, his aunt could organise for Asanda to receive counselling with a psychologist at the psychiatric hospital at which she worked.
Inaccessible/unsafe learning environment
Ms Miya felt the learning environment at the school was adequate. Her only concern was her small classroom into which her 36 learners and their desks and chairs could barely fit. When seated, Ms Miya and the learners had difficulty walking between the chairs. Ms Miya consequently did not have easy access to the learners at the back of the classroom. This could have resulted in a learner being overlooked if he or she struggled with a particular concept that was being taught.
Inadequate implementation of policies and legislation
Ms Miya said she learnt about the policies and legislation on inclusive education at university.
Ms Miya: We had a lot of teaching on it. With the implementation of the policies and legislation, it is quite difficult. It is the tricky part.
Interviewer: Have you had further in-service training?
Ms Miya: Last year there was a meeting with social workers and one of the ladies from the Department who was present, on how to fill in a form for a child with difficulties in learning, which was quite helpful.
There are workshops on the processes of filling in a form, but the thing is we don’t know what happens when it gets to the Department. We don’t know what makes the process take so long when it gets there. There is no feedback.
Ms Miya stressed her frustration with the actual implementation of the policies on inclusive education. She felt there was no follow up or action after the completed SNA forms were sent to the Department of Education and DBST. She also made the comment that there was no in- service training by the Department for the implementation of inclusive education in the classroom.
Poverty and underdevelopment
Ms Miya mentioned that the poverty and underdevelopment experienced by the learners was an on-going concern.
Ms Miya: There was a girl who came without a jacket over winter.
Interviewer: What did you do to help?
Ms Miya: Children leave things at school or others who make donations.
There are a lot of cases that you notice. Shoes torn, the well-being of the child.
When you are cold and wet it is difficult to learn.
Ms Miya felt that the poverty of some of the learners affected their learning ability as they were at times cold and wet.
Lack of parental recognition/involvement
Ms Miya said there was a lack of parental involvement.
Interviewer: Can you think of any way you could get them more involved?
Ms Miya: Difficult one, because some parents don’t come to the school even if they are called by the principal . It is quite tricky.
Only a certain amount come to the workshop for the parents. It is the same people who come over and over again. The parents you need to see, you don’t see.
Ms Miya was concerned that there were parents who were not involved in the well-being of their children at school, and did not even come to the school for meetings with the teacher or principal to discuss their child. There were only a certain number of parents who were continuously involved.