Inclusion of pupils with special education needs in Sudan : teachers' perceptions of their competence and their perceived training needs

In Sudan, the education of children with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools shows slow progress. The traditional medical approach, whereby the majority of children with SEN are educated in segregated schools or receive no education at all, is still the dominant recourse for educating pupils with all types of disabilities that may require special needs education. This research is the pioneering attempt to explore Sudan's context of special education, and teachers' perceptions of their competencies and training needs within mainstream education in relation to inclusion of pupils with SEN. The research was carried out in Khartoum, the capital city of Sudan, where three visits were made throughout the study to collect the relevant literature and data. Following extensive literature review of teachers' competencies related to SEN, a questionnaire was developed by the researcher. It was tested and used to collect quantitative data for the study. A total of 301 completed questionnaires, out of 325 distributed, were collected from fifty basic schools with a response rate of 92.6%. This was complemented by qualitative data obtained from semi structured interviews with 20 qualified teachers, 10 teacher trainers from the Faculty of Education University of Khartoum, and 10 educational supervisors responsible for advising and assessing teachers' performance in the state. The completed research concluded that teachers are open to inclusion, however, they need training in SEN. This is a genuine situation that could add to knowledge in literature on teachers' perceptions to inclusion and children with SEN. It was found that only 12 teachers had received any in-service or pre-service training in special educational needs. The findings also revealed that most educational supervisors had little or no training in this area. Teachers' perceptions did not vary with their personal characteristics. They generally showed lack of confidence in their competencies in all the dimensions investigated except personal skills. Importantly, they expressed a need for training to identify pupils with SEN, besides the need for support and advice in practical aspects of inclusion. As a result of these findings, a number of recommendations are made to modify the existing in-service and pre-service teachers training to include competencies related to SEN. It also recommends provision for continuing professional development and consultancy support for teachers; which in turn will help facilitate implementation of responsible inclusion.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo