Assessment of the education of deaf students in the integrated primary schools of Amhara national regional state : practices, opportunities and challenges

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the educational practices, opportunities and challenges of deaf learners in Amhara National Regional State Integrated Primary Schools. Both qualitative and quantitative research approaches and descriptive research design have been used to accomplish this purpose. The samples of this study were deaf learners, teachers of deaf learners, and principals from ten (10) Integrated Primary Schools in the research area. From 343 deaf learners in Grades 5–8, only 170 (50%) of them were selected through simple random sampling technique. Of the 110 teachers of deaf learners, 55 (50%) of them were selected using probability sampling method of simple random sampling technique and from the 10 Integrated Primary Schools, 10 principals were selected using the non-probability sampling technique of the purposeful sampling method. The data was gathered by means of observation, interview and questionnaire. Deaf learners, their teachers in the classroom and the school compound of the Integrated Primary Schools were observed. Deaf learners, teachers of deaf learners and school principals were interviewed, and questionnaire was also administered to deaf learners and their teachers. The result indicated that the overall school environments of the Integrated Primary Schools are not conducive for deaf learners. In the classrooms, oral communication is used as a means of instruction and to exchange ideas among deaf learners, teachers and learners without hearing impairment that did not help deaf learners to be socially integrated. In the teaching-learning process, deaf learners’ classroom participation was poor, and their overall achievement is found to be less than learners without hearing impairment. Besides, in the Integrated Primary Schools, teacher’s inability of sign-language, shortage of teaching materials and resources, absence of different types of teaching and assessment methodologies were the major challenges faced by deaf learners. The opportunities that deaf learners receiving were monthly pocket money and school uniform from the Integrated Primary Schools. The Integrated Primary Schools need to design policies, strategies and mechanisms that solve and/or minimize the educational challenges of deaf learners and on how to maximize the integration of learners with and without hearing disabilities, teachers and the school community in general to achieve better in the education system.