Search results for ‘Subject term:"learning disabilities"’ Sort:
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Finding employment and inclusion in society for people with learning disabilities
- Author:
- HUMBER Lee
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 13(1), January/February 2013, pp.22-24.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
Finding a job may be a way for people with learning disabilities to become included in society. However, the employment rate for people with learning disabilities in the UK remains very low. This article presents the findings of research which explored the experiences and reflections of people with learning disabilities about employment. Interviews were conducted with students with learning disabilities at further education colleges and other education providers, older people with learning disabilities who spent time at day centres, and a range of teachers and other education providers. The findings showed that people with learning disabilities considered employment as a way of showing their social value. Wages were seen as a measure of how highly an employer values you and gave access to the things non-disabled people enjoy. The vast majority of the participants wanted work. However, systematic failure, attitudinal problems and the assignment of abstract identity types combine to continue to constrain the extent to which people with learning disabilities can find and keep work. The research demonstrated problems both with the way that employment support providers help people with learning disabilities to find work and with the ways people with learning disabilities are prepared for work by specialised education systems.
Commentary on: “Ordinary lives” means ordinary schools: towards a unitary 0-99 years policy for adults and children with learning disabilities
- Author:
- HARDIMAN Becky
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 25(1), 2020, pp.47-52.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to reflect on some of the challenges faced by caregivers when making decisions relating to school placements for their child with a learning disability. Design/methodology/approach: Quotes from parents and caregivers, contacted via a national syndrome support charity, are shared, along with broader perspectives gained through the charity’s helpline service. Findings: A number of themes are discussed, including friendships and role models; expectations and educational targets; training, speciality and capacity of staff and managing a widening gap. Originality/value: When considering the future of education provision, it is important to consider some of the tensions between an ideology of inclusion and the current realities of service provision. To create effective solutions to achieving more effective inclusion, the concerns and experiences of families, as well as children, must be considered. (Edited publisher abstract)
Ordinary lives means ordinary schools: towards a unitary 0-99 years policy for adults and children with learning disabilities
- Author:
- GOODEY Christopher
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 25(1), 2020, pp.40-46.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: This paper aims to look forward to the next generation of policymaking on learning disability and recommends a unitary strategy covering all phases of life including childhood. Design/methodology/approach: In this paper, the author addresses the policy gap between inclusion in ordinary (“mainstream”) schools and inclusion in ordinary adult life. The author asks why what has been accepted, at least in principle, for the adult two-thirds of the learning disabled population is still contested for the other, younger third. In the following sections, the author summarises the present discrepancy, compares the rights of children in general with those of people with learning disabilities and outlines the rationale for a 0-99 years focus in research and practice on learning disability, and for future government strategy to establish a 0-99 policy. Findings: It is in the broad context of a unitary 0-99 years approach that policymaking must in future be addressed. The education of children is key to the success of their adult lives, and makes the policy of educating them together in ordinary schools (i.e. giving them from the start the “ordinary lives” that are the main goal of adult policy) an imperative. Originality/value: The need to consider children’s rights in a general sense has not previously been applied to the field of policymaking for adults with learning disabilities. (Edited publisher abstract)
Learning disability and social inclusion
- Author:
- MACINTYRE Gillian
- Publisher:
- Dunedin Academic Press
- Publication year:
- 2008
- Pagination:
- 96p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Edinburgh
People with learning disabilities, in Scotland and across the UK as a whole, have been the target of considerable legislative and policy change over the last five years. A key theme relates to the inclusion of people with learning disabilities in the community - in education, in training and employment and in relation to accessing health, housing and leisure services. This is perhaps best exemplified by the review of learning disability services Gillian McIntyre acknowledges and addresses this complexity by mapping and reviewing critically these relevant policy developments. Drawing on the available research evidence, the author adopts a life cycle approach, tracing the journey taken by young adults with learning disabilities upon leaving school and making the transition to adulthood and beyond. Focusing on the major areas identified she identifies key messages in the fields of education, training and employment, health and social work. The book thus contributes an inter-professional perspective to the field of learning disability.
Variables that affect teachers’ attitudes towards disability and inclusive education in Mumbai, India
- Author:
- PARASURAM Kala
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 21(3), May 2006, pp.231-242.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Teacher attitude is one of the most important variables in the education of children with disabilities. Attitudes of general educators in the city of Mumbai, India, toward disabilities and inclusion of students with disabilities into regular schools were studied through the usage of two attitude scales. The study investigated whether variable background characteristics such as age, gender, income level, education levels, years of teaching experience, acquaintance with a person with a disability, having a family member with a disability, frequency of contact and closeness to a person with disability affect the attitudes of teachers towards people with disabilities and towards inclusion of students with disabilities into regular schools. The analyses revealed that while some of the variables of interest did affect teachers’ attitudes towards disabilities, the only variable that affected teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion was prior acquaintance with a person with a disability.
Disability and development: learning from action and research on disability in the majority world
- Editors:
- STONE Emma, (ed.)
- Publisher:
- Disability Press
- Publication year:
- 1999
- Pagination:
- 294p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Leeds
Features 15 original contributions from leading disabled activists, international development planners and practitioners, and researchers working on disability issues in 'developing countries' (the majority world). The book asks: What do we know about disability in a global context? What are the issues that face disabled people, their families, and those who work with them in 'developing countries'? What happens when western ideas and practices around disability migrate to non-western settings? Issues explored include: strategies for social change; empowerment and rights; disabled people's organisations; community-based rehabilitation; inclusive education; cultural perceptions of impairment and disability; disability services in historical perspective; and the difficulties inherent in disability action and research in the majority world. Contributions are based on work in a wide range of countries including: Afghanistan, Jordan, Lesotho, Nepal, China and India.
Linking user and staff perspectives in the evaluation of innovative transition projects for youth with disabilities
- Authors:
- McANANEY Donal F., WYNNE Richard F.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 20(2), 2016, pp.165-182.
- Publisher:
- Sage
- Place of publication:
- London
A key challenge in formative evaluation is to gather appropriate evidence to inform the continuous improvement of initiatives. In the absence of outcome data, the programme evaluator often must rely on the perceptions of beneficiaries and staff in generating insight into what is making a difference. The article describes the approach adopted in an evaluation of 15 innovative projects supporting school-leavers with disabilities in making the transition to education, work and life in community settings. Two complementary processes provided an insight into what project staff and leadership viewed as the key project activities and features that facilitated successful transition as well as the areas of quality of life (QOL) that participants perceived as having been impacted positively by the projects. A comparison was made between participants’ perceptions of QOL impact with the views of participants in services normally offered by the wider system. This revealed that project participants were significantly more positive in their views than participants in traditional services. In addition, the processes and activities of the more highly rated projects were benchmarked against less highly rated projects and also with usually available services. Even in the context of a range of intervening variables such as level and complexity of participant needs and variations in the stage of development of individual projects, the benchmarking process indicated a number of project characteristics that were highly valued by participants. (Publisher abstract)
Understanding the parents of children with special needs: collaboration between health, social and education networks
- Authors:
- TETREAULT S., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Child: Care, Health and Development, 40(6), 2014, p.825–832.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Context: In 2003, Quebec's Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS) and the Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sports (MELS) concluded the Agreement for the complementarity of services between the health and social services network and the education network. The objectives of the current investigation were to evaluate the implementation of this Agreement and its impact upon renewal of practices and services, and to investigate the consequences for children with special needs and their families. The specific focus of this article is to describe parents' perspectives regarding the impact of this Agreement upon them and their children. Methods: Interviews were conducted with 56 parents of children with disabilities, social maladjustment or learning difficulties across the province of Quebec. Data were analysed using content analysis. Results: Most parents were not directly aware of any contact between school staff and health or social professionals, although discussions might have been held without their knowledge. The intervention plans seemed to be the main vehicle through which some parents perceived collaboration to be occurring. For parents, the impact upon actual practices or collaborative work is either minimal or non-existent. Conclusion: School inclusion of children with special needs is a challenge for all societies. The Agreement illustrates the Quebec government's intent to promote an alliance between two complex networks and has the potential to greatly benefit children and their families. However, more concrete action is required in order to realise specific changes regarding work cohesion and service organisation for these groups. (Edited publisher abstract)
Community participation of people with an intellectual disability: a review of empirical findings
- Authors:
- VERDONSCHOT M. M. L., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 53(4), April 2009, pp.303-318.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
A systematic literature search was conducted for the period of 1996–2006 on PubMed, CINAHL and PSYCINFO. Search terms were derived from the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. Three investigators assessed the relevance of the initially identified studies using predefined content and methodological selection criteria. Included domains of community participation were: (1) domestic life; (2) interpersonal interactions and relationships; (3) major life areas; and (4) community, civic and social life. Of 2936 initial hits, 23 quantitative studies eventually met the selection criteria and were included in the study. Only two studies are based on a theoretical framework. Research instruments were various and were most often ad hoc and not validated. The average number of persons in the social network of people with ID appears to be 3.1, one of them usually being a professional service staff member. People with ID are 3–4 times less employed than non-disabled peers; they are less likely to be employed competitively and are more likely to work in sheltered workshops or in segregated settings than those with other disabilities. People with ID are less likely to be involved in community groups, and leisure activities are mostly solitary and passive in nature. Most of the people with ID had been accompanied in an activity by training/therapeutic staff. It can be concluded that on the basis of empirical evidence, within the time frame of this literature search, little is known about community participation of people with ID. Many researchers did not clearly define community participation and were concerned with limited areas of community participation; research is seldom based on a theoretical framework. Most studies focus on people with mild ID, and there are few reports of the subjects' sample. However, one conclusion can consistently be drawn from the review: people with ID living in community settings participate more than people living in a segregated setting, but their participation level is still much lower than non-disabled and other disability groups.