Subrayen Roshanthni, Dhunpath Rubby
Disability Support Unit, School of Education, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
Teaching and Learning Office, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
Afr J Disabil. 2019 Jul 24;8(0):523. doi: 10.4102/ajod.v8i0.523. eCollection 2019.
South African higher education policy frameworks highlight renewed interest in equity, access and participation imperatives for students with disabilities (SWDs). However, students with visual disabilities continue to face barriers in their teaching practice school placements.
This article aims, firstly, to provide early insights into the barriers experienced by students with visual disabilities in their teaching practice school placements in under-resourced schools in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Secondly, it introduces learning communities and a teaching practice pre-placement booklet to enhance equity, access and participation in teaching practice school placements.
This study adopted a qualitative methodology using semi-structured interviews to elicit data from two Bachelor of Education students with visual disabilities, who were part of a teaching practice learning community managed by the Disability Unit at the University. Thematic analysis was used, using Tinto's Learning Community Model which generated valuable evidence to argue for institutional commitment to achieve equity, access and participation for students with visual disabilities.
Through engagement with a teaching practice learning community and a teaching practice pre-placement booklet, two students with visual disabilities responded to and managed the chalkboard in ways that promoted teaching and learning in the classroom. These retention support trajectories provide evidence to support enhanced equity, access and participation. Given the stigma associated with disability and the need for equity at policy level, higher education institutions should seriously consider systemic mechanisms for access, participation and success outcomes in the teaching practice school placements of students with visual disabilities.
Barriers to participation signal the need for accessible teaching and learning strategies for use by students with visual disabilities in their teaching practice school placements. Teaching practice assessors should be alerted to contextual differences in resourced and under-resourced school settings and the diverse ways in which SWDs navigate these differences.
南非高等教育政策框架强调对残疾学生（SWDs）的公平、入学机会和参与需求重新产生兴趣。然而，视力残疾学生在教学实习学校安置中仍面临障碍。
本文旨在，首先，初步洞察南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省资源匮乏学校中视力残疾学生在教学实习学校安置中所经历的障碍。其次，介绍学习社区和教学实习安置前手册，以增强教学实习学校安置中的公平性、入学机会和参与度。
本研究采用定性方法，通过半结构化访谈从两名视力残疾的教育学学士学生那里获取数据，他们是由大学残疾事务部门管理的教学实习学习社区的成员。使用了主题分析法，采用廷托的学习社区模型，该模型产生了有价值的证据，以论证机构致力于为视力残疾学生实现公平、入学机会和参与度。
通过参与教学实习学习社区和教学实习安置前手册，两名视力残疾学生以促进课堂教学和学习的方式应对并使用了黑板。这些留用支持轨迹提供了证据，以支持增强公平性、入学机会和参与度。鉴于与残疾相关的耻辱感以及政策层面的公平需求，高等教育机构应认真考虑在视力残疾学生的教学实习学校安置中实现入学机会、参与度和成功结果的系统机制。
参与障碍表明需要为视力残疾学生在教学实习学校安置中使用的无障碍教学和学习策略。教学实习评估人员应意识到资源充足和资源匮乏学校环境中的背景差异，以及残疾学生应对这些差异的多种方式。
