Inclusive school Based enquiry Questions and Answers level 100
1a) Ama is a 10-year-old person living with a disability in a village school. Ama started schooling but decided to stop entirely. As a newly posted teacher, what do you think could have accounted for Ama’s attitude toward school? 20 marks
1b) List five (5) strategies you can employ to help Ama to defy all odds to start schooling again. 5 marks
2a) What is technology? 5 marks
2b) Describe three (3) merits and two (2) demerits of using technology. 20 marks
3a) Distinguish between teaching as an Art and teaching as a Science. 5 marks
3b) Describe five (5) characteristics of a good teacher. 20 marks
4a) Describe using a conceptual framework, the four-year B.Ed. program. 10 marks
4b) Explain any three (3) of the teaching standards. 15 marks
5a) What is professionalism? 5 marks
5b) What four (4) ways can a teacher promote good school-community relationship using specific illustrations? 20 marks
Answers
1a) Ama is a 10-year-old person living with disability in a village school. Ama started schooling but decided to stop entirely. As a newly posted teacher, what do you think could have accounted for Ama’s attitude toward school? 20 marks
SOLUTION
Barriers to inclusive education
• Negative attitudes: Negative attitudes can be found at all levels: parents, community members, schools and teachers, government officials and even disabled children themselves. Fear, taboo, shame, lack of knowledge, misinformation and socio-economic values about human life, respect and dignity all encourage negative attitudes towards disability.
• Physical access: Travelling to and from school can be very difficult for all children, and is often used as an excuse for not sending disabled children to school. Once children have reached school, there are other physical access issues to consider as regards entering the school buildings, and ease of movement around the teaching and recreation areas.
• Class sizes: Large class sizes are seen as a barrier to the inclusion of disabled children in all countries. In economically wealthy countries, class sizes of 30 are considered too large, yet in poorly resourced countries, class sizes of 60–100 are the norm. Small, well-managed classes are, of course, more desirable than large classes with inadequate resources.
• Poverty: There is a strong correlation between poverty and low levels of schooling and educational opportunity generally. In the case of disabled children, poverty worsens and deepens the extent of their disability and social exclusion. Disability may be both a cause and a consequence of a family's poverty.
• Discrimination and stigmatization: Discrimination encompasses various forms of behaviour towards individuals as a result of their impairment, whether intentional or unintentional, caused by stigma. Disability-based discrimination refers to the distinction, isolation or restriction of impaired children, which “has the purpose or effect of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal basis with others, of all human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field” (UNCPRD, Article 2).
• Discrimination leads to poor education outcomes that destroy their self-esteem and interaction with the society, exposing them to further abuse and exclusion.
• Lack of policies to guide the development and implementation of inclusive education.
• Lack of skills among teachers.
• There are rigid curricula and examination systems that make it impossible for teachers to tolerate the child lagging behind.
• Lack of special education teachers to support regular school teachers.
• architectural barriers,
• lack of adequate learning resources,
• insufficient supply of teaching materials,
• Ghanaian disabled children are often kept in isolated rooms or even killed, away from the public eyes orplaced in segregated units from mainstream education, such as religious camps or special schools (Baffoe, 2013).
• myths and superstitions in the Ghanaian society that sees such children as possessed by evil spirits
1b) List five (5) strategies you can employ to help Ama to defy all odds to start schooling again. 5 marks
SOLUTION
Strategies for Promoting Inclusion in Schools
• School administrators clearly support and actively participate in providing leadership, guidance, and policies consistent with an inclusive philosophy.
• School Improvement Plans address school-based needs for including students with disabilities.
• All students receive instruction within an age-appropriate general education curricular framework.
• Teachers differentiate instruction for a variety of learners’ needs by incorporating visual, tactile, and kinesthetic materials and experiences.
• Teachers plan accommodations for students with disabilities, based on their IEP, and incorporate those accommodations into lesson plans and everyday instruction.
• Teachers use evidence-based instructional practices that are based on individual student learning styles and needs.
• General educators, special educators, and related service providers have time for collaborative planning.
• Students with disabilities receive most, if not all, of their special education and related services (e.g., physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech/language therapy) within the general education classroom, based on their Individual Education Program (IEP]
• Vary instructional methods and materials to meet the unique needs of learners.
• Assistive Technology: One of the support features of an IEP can be assistive technology, equipment or product systems that can meet some of the special needs of individual children with developmental disabilities (Parette, 1998). These assistive devices can use either low technology (such as communication boards or adapted books) or high technology (such as computerized visual amplification systems or augmentative communication devices that use digitized speech).
• Cooperative Learning: Cooperative learning is process whereby the teacher gives a task to a small group of students (typically four to six), who are expected to complete the task by working cooperatively with one another. The teacher may assign different responsibilities to different members of the group or ask each child to play a specific role (such as recorder, reporter, and searcher). Group instruction may actually be more advantageous than one-on-one instruction because of the economy of teacher effort, students learning how to interact with peers, and students learning from peers. Small-group instruction is the mode for the regular classroom if the students with special needs are to be included (King-Sears & Carpenter, 2005).
• Scaffolding: In scaffolding, the teacher models the expected behaviour and then guides the student through the early stages of understanding. As the student’s understanding increases, the teacher gradually withdraws aid (hence the name scaffolding). The goal is to have the student internalize the knowledge and operate independently.
• Positive Behaviour Supports (PBS): One of the most advanced moves made for children with disability has been the introduction of positive behavior supports (PBS) in educational programming. Behaviour problems and disruption have, unfortunately, been a major part of the lives of too many children with ID. This may be due in part to the fact that they have grown up in an environment in which such behaviour is the norm. It is therefore expected of teachers to help learners model and learn positive behaviour.
• Social Skills: Social skills are a critical component of the primary school or preschool curriculum for children with disability especially those with ID. Children can learn to take turns, share, and work cooperatively as part of their daily activities. The lunch table for young children is an excellent location for teaching social skills. Here, youngsters learn table manners, as well as how to pass and share food, help others (pouring juice, for example), and wait their turn.
• Differentiated instruction describes the process where the teacher adjusts the level of difficulty of tasks to fit the level of development of the child. For example, if the rest of the class is doing complex multiplication or division problems, the child with intellectual disability may be given addition and subtraction problems at his or her level of comprehension.
• Reinforce effort and provide recognition.
• Monitor progress consistently and continually and provide frequent feedback.
2a) What is technology? 5 marks
Technology is the set of knowledge, skills, experience and techniques through which humans change, transform and use our environment in order to create tools, machines, products and services that meet our needs and desires.
2b) Describe three (3) merits and two (2) demerits of using technology. 20 marks
Positive Impacts of Technology on Society
• Technology Has Mechanized Agriculture
Technology has mechanized agriculture: Modern agricultural technology allows a small number of people to grow vast quantities of food in a short period of time with less input which results into high yields and RIO” return on investment”. Through government subsidies, small and medium-sized farmers have managed to acquire plowing, sowing, watering and harvesting machines. The use of technology in agriculture has also resulted in the manufacturing of genetic crops which can grow fast and they can be resistant to many pests and diseases. Also, farmers have access to artificial fertilizers which add value to the soil and boost the growth of their crops and enable them to produce high-quality yields. Farmers in dry areas have been in a position to grow healthy crops, they use advanced water pumps and sprinklers which derive water from rivers to the farms, the all process can be automated to save time. A good example is Egypt, this is a desert country which receives little rain, but small and big farmers have used automated sprinklers to irrigate their farms. In Egypt, they grow a lot of rice, yet this crop needs sufficient water to grow well. The water is pumped from River Nile to the rice fields on a daily basis.
• Technology Has Improved Transportation
Transportation is one of the basic areas of technological activity. Both society and businesses have benefited from the new transpiration methods. Transportation provides mobility for people and goods. Transportation, like all other technologies, can be viewed as a system. It is a series of parts that are interrelated. These parts all work together to meet a certain goal. Transportation uses vehicles, trains, airplanes, motorbikes, people, roads, energy, information, materials, finance and time. All these parts I have mentioned work together to move and relocate people and goods. Technology has helped in advancing all the four types of transportation and these include; (1) road transport used by automobiles, (2) air transport which is used by airplanes, (3) water transportation which is used by ships and speed boats and (4) space transportation used to go to the moon. The most used of all these is Road transportation, this one facilitates the movement of goods and people. Technologies like automobiles, buses, and trucks have improved the way humans move and how they transport their goods from place to another.
• Technology Has Improved Communication
Communication is used for a number of purposes. Both society and organizations depend on communication to transfer information. People use technology to communicate with each other. Electronic media like radios, televisions, internet, social media have improved the way we exchange ideas which can develop our societies. In many countries, radios and televisions are used to voice the concerns of the society, they organize live forums where the community can contribute through mobile phones or text service systems like tweeter. During political elections, leaders use radio, television and internet media to reach the people they want to serve. A good example is the recent presidential election in Ghana, Akuffo Addo and John Mahama embraced the communication technology to reach and voice out their concerns towards the development of Ghana.
• Technology Has Improved Education And Learning Process
Education is the backbone of every economy. People need well and organized educational infrastructures so that they can learn how to interpret information. Many schools have started integrating educational technologies in their schools with a great aim of improving the way students learn. Technologies like smart whiteboards, computers, mobile phones, iPads, projectors, and internet are being used in classrooms to boost students moral to learn. Visual education is becoming more popular and it has proved to be the best method of learning in many subjects like mathematics, physics, biology, geography, economics and much more. The business community has invested money in various educational technologies which can be used by both teachers and their students. For example, on iTunes, you will find many educational applications which can allow students and teachers exchange academic information at any time, this has made learning mobile.
Negative Impacts of Technology on Society
• Resource Depletion
The more demand for new technologies and advancement of current technologies, the more pressure we put on earth’s natural resources. Look at the total number of mobile phones and computers being manufactured today; our population is increasing every day and all these billion consumers demand either a mobile phone or a computer in their homes or offices. This is good news for the manufactures, like Apple or Samsung, the demand for their gadgets is high, but to sustain this demand, they have to exploit Mother Nature for resources like aluminum, once these resources are extracted from the earth plates, they will never return back because it took them a billion years to mature. That means that at one time, we shall be left with no natural resource which can be a problem to the future generation and economy. Likewise, the intensive farming practices will deplete the soil. This makes heavy applications of commercial fertilizers necessary to yield healthy harvests, but also these fertilizers have chemicals which are dangerous to the soil and human lives.
• Improved health care
Technology has helped us live longer by improving health facilities and aiding in the research for solutions for most health problems which affect humans. This is good news for developed countries but is bad news for developing countries which have not been in a position to access these health care benefits brought by technology. In developed countries population growth is controlled by advanced birth control methods, this has helped them balance their population in relation to natural resources and other opportunities which come with a planned population. This is different in developing countries, the rate at which people produce is very high, the mortality rate is high, food is scarce and health care is poor.
• Increased Pollution
Pollution affects the land we grow crops on, the water we drink and the air we breathe. The increased demand for new technologies and advancement of technologies has resulted in many manufacturing and processing factories. As they work so hard to create the best technologies for both society and business, they release harmful chemicals and gasses which have polluted our environment and this has resulted in climate changes (global warming). So the more technology we enjoy, the more we harm our environment. Experts have tried to implement ways of reducing this impact by encouraging factories to go green, to a small extent, this has been achieved through the development of green technologies like; green cars, green computers, but a great effort is still needed to reduce the pollution of the air and the earth.
3a) Distinguish between teaching as an Art and teaching as a Science. 5 marks
Teaching as an Art and Science
The question that most people often ask is whether teaching is an art or science? This has led to the question whether teachers are born or made. To be an effective teacher you have to have an understanding of pedagogy as well as the finesse to translate the science of it to practical application
Some educators argue that teachers are born, not made, and that the ability to be an effective teacher cannot be taught. This theory of teaching suggests that there are some who possess a special gift with natural teaching instincts. As an art, it requires intuition, talent, and creativity-little of which can be taught. This means that some people have the talent and flair for teaching and teach naturally without having any formal training in teaching. They teach as if they were born to teach.
Teaching as an art is when the teacher used creativity, flexibility and natural ways to present his/her lesson so it is interesting for his/her students
The art of teaching was demonstrated by some ancient philosophers, writers and religious personalities such as Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, John Dewey, Pestalozzi, Jesus Christ and Mohammed. These people had the natural skill of teaching. Some teachers in primary and secondary schools display good teaching skills and styles even before training.
Teaching as a science consists of knowledge, skills and scientific principles or scientific bases which can be learned. Those holding that teaching is a science believe that good teaching is the result of having deep knowledge of the subject matter and a solid understanding of the principles of teaching and learning. They believe that it is possible to learn and master the skills and strategies needed to be a successful teacher. Teaching as a science is seen in terms of the application of systematically tested theories and approaches to teaching. As a result teachers could not begin to practice teaching without having some sound knowledge of the context of their practice.
It is worth stating that the combination of the art and science of teaching will make one an effective teacher.
3b) Describe five (5) characteristics of a good teacher. 20 marks
Qualities of a Good Teacher
Farrant (1980) deducting from different researches came with various professional skills of a teacher to include the following:
• Establishing a productive classroom atmosphere from the beginning by means of good organization and careful planning of classroom structures.
• Creating excellent teacher-pupil relations. The teacher should be friendly and humorous.
• Accepting constructive suggestions and ideas from the learners as much as possible.
• Giving rewards, praises frequently to deserving learners during the teaching learning sessions
• Being confident when teaching. He/she should control all classroom activities effectively.
• Explaining instructional activities clearly and including a variety of children’s activities in his/her learning.
• Handling problems promptly before they get out of hands.
• The teacher should always be fair and firm. A teacher’s weaknesses are exposed by his inconsistency in enforcing rules for acceptable mode of behaviour. Any attempt to show preferential treatment to his students will make him/her lose respect.
• Using efficient means to deal with routine administrative matters such as registration, giving out books, tidying up after practical lessons etc.
• Avoiding over-reaction to learners’ misbehaviour.
• Inspire and encourage students in his/her teaching
• Exhibit such qualities as empathy, dedication and zeal to discharge their duties diligently to society.
Acquiring professional skills
This skills can best acquire through the following
• Attending professional teacher education institutions
• Participating regularly in in-service training
• Attendance at staff meetings regularly
• Reading professional books, journals, etc
• Mentoring students.
Personal Characteristics of a good teacher
Olu Makinde (1991) has suggested that the characteristics of good teacher should include the following:
• Be emotionally stable.
• Be a good listener
• Must be warm and responsive
• Must have sense of humor
• Must be patient, tolerant, neat, pleasant and broadminded
• Must be morally upright so as not to exploit the situation of the students.
• Must genuine, honest, sincere and caring
4a) Describe using a conceptual framework, the four-year B.Ed. program. 10 marks
6 Structure of the B. Ed programme
The Vision for The Four-Year Bachelor Of Education Degree
To prepare new teachers to become effective, engaging and inspirational, and be fully prepared to teach the basic school curriculum in order to improve the learning outcomes and life chances of all learners as set out in the National Teachers’ Standards (NTS).
The aims are :
to instil in the new teachers the Nation’s core values of honesty, integrity, creativity and responsible citizenship and to achieve inclusive, equitable, high quality education for all learners in line with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Four (4).
Setting the Scene
This Four-Year Bachelor of Basic Education Degree (B.Ed.) is fully aligned with the expectations, principles and practices set out in the National Teacher Education Curriculum Framework (NTECF). Student teachers pursuing this degree will be fully prepared to meet the NTS and to be assessed against it. The intention of this B.Ed. curriculum is to transform initial teacher education (ITE) and through this secure the training of highly qualified, motivated new teachers who are able to inspire their learners to achieve better outcomes in basic education
The B.Ed. Curriculum conceptual framework
This four-year, eight semester curriculum, is made up of three distinct programmes: Early Years’ (KG 1-P3); Upper Primary (P4-6) or Junior High School. This will ensure depth of knowledge of what is to be taught and enable them to connect with the developmental level of the learners they teach.
The Early Grade Education Programme, KG1 to P3, will use a thematic approach to training and equipping student teachers with developmentally appropriate practices, which promote play-based learning.
The Upper Primary Education Programme, P4 to P6, will equip student teachers with the needed skills to be class teachers, able to teach all the subjects of the Basic School Curriculum and to support learning and development of the middle childhood learners.
The Junior High School Education Programme will equip student teachers with specialist subject knowledge and the ability to address the developmental needs of learners in early adolescence.
Each of the programmes is written to adhere to the ITE curriculum structure set out in the NTECF. The NTECF consists of the four pillars of teacher education. These represent the knowledge, skills and understanding necessary for effective teaching:
• Subject and Curriculum Knowledge;
• Literacy Studies: Ghanaian Languages and English;
• Pedagogic Knowledge and
• Supported Teaching in School.
The four pillars of the curriculum: these set out the essential knowledge, skills and understanding necessary for effective teaching, as defined by the NTECF
Subject and curriculum knowledge: secure, subject-specific content and pedagogic knowledge are the key to being able to teach the school curriculum including: subject knowledge for teaching; progress in learning in subjects; misconceptions, potential contextual barriers to learning and curriculum studies. All school curriculum subjects are addressed and made specific to each specialism.
Literacy Studies (Ghanaian Languages and English), including Early Grade Literacy in L1 and L2. As language is the key to enabling children to access the curriculum, this learning area is a pillar in its own right.
Pedagogic Knowledge, including: general pedagogic knowledge, assessment strategies, introduction to and development of cross cutting issues, education studies, preparation for supported teaching in school, classroom enquiry and research, Inclusion and equity, SEN and ICT.
Supported teaching in school: student teachers will spend 30% of their training in the field. For the KG-P3 and P4-6 specialisms this training period will be spent in schools with the support of mentors. For TVET this part of the training will be divided between TVET schools and industry with the support of mentors. The mentors will assess student teachers on the development of competencies and skills set out in the National Teachers’ Standards.
How specialisms are developed in the B.Ed. Curriculum
The first year is a foundation year for all student teachers. It introduces:
the nature and core knowledge of subjects, and locates the cross -cutting issues such as inclusion and equity in education; the school curriculum and approaches to teaching and learning, and the expectations for the learning and progress of learners in different subjects. It means student teachers will be able to locate their specialism within the wider curriculum.
The specialism is introduced in year two and continues through to the end of year four. All subjects and learning areas share core content across programmes and there is an opportunity for student teachers to work in opposing specialisms during year four supported teaching in schools. Thus, these will help them achieve depth and breadth of knowledge in and across specialisms.
*Model of Progress in Student Teacher Learning Across the Four Years*
4b) Explain any three (3) of the teaching standards. (15 marks)
You can find competences that teachers in Ghana must have in the National Teachers Standards for Ghana. It’s reproduced below for discussion (MOE, 2014).
Organisation of the teaching standards
The standards are divided into three main domains. These three domains and aspects encompass what teachers should value, know and do, and intersect with one another to develop a teacher competent enough to teach at the end of their four year initial teacher training. The Teaching Standards are:
• Professional Values and Attitudes
• Professional Development
The teacher(s):
• Critically and collectively reflects to improve teaching and learning.
• Improves their personal and professional development through lifelong learning and Continuous Professional Development.
• Demonstrates effective growing leadership qualities in the classroom and wider school.
*Community of Practice*
The teacher:
• Is guided by legal and ethical teacher codes of conduct in their development as a professional teacher.
• Engages positively with colleagues, learners, parents, School Management Committees, Parent-Teacher Associations and wider public as part of a community of practice.
• Develops a positive teacher identity and acts as a good role model for students
• Sees their role as potential agent of change in the school, community and country.
• Professional Knowledge
*Knowledge of educational frameworks and curriculum*
The teacher:
• Demonstrates familiarity with the education system and key policies guiding it.
• Has comprehensive knowledge of the official school curriculum including learning outcomes.
• Has secure content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge for the school and grade they teach in.
• Demonstrates knowledge of the curriculum (at pre-primary and lower primary) for the years appropriate to multigrade classes
• Has good knowledge of how to teach beginning reading and numeracy and speaking, listening, reading and writing, and to use at least one Ghanaian language as a medium of instruction.
*Knowledge of students*
The teacher:
• Understands how children develop and learn in diverse contexts and applies this in their teaching.
• Takes accounts of and respects learners’ cultural, linguistic, socio-economic and educational backgrounds in their planning and teaching.
• Professional Practice
Managing the learning environment
The teacher :
• Plans and delivers varied and challenging lessons, showing a clear grasp of the intended outcomes of their teaching.
• Carries out small scale action research to improve practice.
• Creates a safe, encouraging learning environment.
• Manages behaviour and learning with small and large classes.
*Teaching and Learning*
The teacher
• Employs a variety of instructional strategies that encourages student participation and critical thinking. Pays attention to all learners, especially girls and students with Special Educational Needs, ensuring their progress.
• Employs instructional strategies appropriate for multigrade, multilingual and multi-age classes
• Sets meaningful tasks that encourages learner collaboration and leads to purposeful learning.
• Explains concepts clearly using examples familiar to students
• Produces and uses a variety of teaching and learning resources including ICT that enhances learning,
Assessment
The teacher:
• Integrates a variety of assessment modes into teaching to support learning.
• Listens to learners and gives constructive feedback.
• Identifies and remediates learners’ difficulties or misconceptions, referring learners whose needs lie outside the competency of the teacher.
• Keeps meaningful records of every learner and communicates progress clearly to parents and learners.
• Demonstrates awareness of national and school learning outcomes of learners.
• Uses objective criterion referencing to assess learners.
Why do we need standards for Teachers?
As you are aware, teachers play a critical role in inspiring, challenging and providing opportunities for students to achieve their potentials. Teachers hold the key to a better future for all. They help educate children from different backgrounds and needs. They mentor and encourage them to be enthused about and remain in school. They inspire, challenge and empower innovative and responsible citizens. In view of this, it is important that teachers are prepared very well. Again, there are several institutions preparing teachers for our schools. To ensure that teachers work as professionals with the same required knowledge, skills and attitudes at their work places, they require approved standards. These standards are concise written statements of what teachers are expected to know and be able to do.
5a) What is professionalism? 5 marks
What is Professionalism?
Professionalism – according to Merriam
–Webster Online; is the skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well.
Professionalism is, showing a positive attitude towards the work you are doing and also becoming committed to the job. This is one of the most important qualities of becoming a successful worker. How you think and feel about your work shows in your behaviour and your performance at work. Every employer wishes to hire people who work hard and are committed to their work, and enjoy their work. Teachers handling infants require high moral standard and also the ability to behave ethically on the job. As teachers you are expected to develop professional attitude towards your work.
5b) What four (4) ways can a teacher promote good school-community relationship using specific illustrations? (20 marks)
The Role of the Teacher-Learner in Promoting Effective School Community Relations
The teacher and student are representatives of the school and thus have roles to play in promoting good school community relations.
The role of the teacher include the following:
• The teacher attends meetings and programmes organized by bodies established to enhance the teaching competence of teacher. Teachers who have been in the system without updating their knowledge and skills had to attend refreshers courses to be exposed to other technique to effectively handle children. This way the community will appreciate his role in turning out responsible individuals for society.
• Instilling discipline and good moral behavior in the pupils. The teachers influence pupils to learn to behave properly, through the use of rewards and punishment.
• Being substitute parent (loco-parentis). The teacher is the parents of the children when they are in school. He is to play the parental role in the school to enhance learning among other responsibilities. He must thus, play this role diligently.
• Liaises with parents to encourage them to provide and developing of the child. The teacher communicates with parents of the children through PTA meetings, letters, terminal report etc. on matter relating to the welfare of students.
• Serving as a role model. The teacher is the person the pupils look up to for guidance on what is good and had. It is therefore necessary for teachers to lead exemplary life for pupils to emulate. Teachers should avoid such practices like absenteeism, lateness, alcoholism, gambling and other inappropriate conducts. The pupils are likely to see such conducts as acceptable since their teachers engage in them.
• Using the right method of assessing the pupils. The teacher must be prepared to use objective assessment means like continuous assessment, class tests, class exercises and end of term tests to evaluate the pupil’s performance. Individual assessment must be devoid of discrimination and favoritism.
• Actively taking part in voluntary community services: the teacher must be prepared to actively partake in voluntary community services like educating the community on preventive measures, outbreak of diseases, good practices, communal labour, Sunday school teachers, secretary to important groups in the community etc.
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