chapter i introduction

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CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

Education is a fundamental right of every child. Programmes on universalization of primary education are being carried out worldwide. In India, with the initial efforts of district primary education programme (DPEP) followed by Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA), the primary education has become a priority of the Country. Providing the elementary education (literacy and numeracy) is the main priority and the national strategy in most of the countries in the world (Quinn, 2011).World widely there are various types of educational plans and practices used for improving literacy and numeracy. In India, Improving literacy and numeracy rates among the citizen are considered as the main educational priority. And the national educational system has listed various strategies for improving the literacy and numeracy for children in India. Since the early 1990s the movement to have education for all was launched at the World Conference that involved various international organizations such as UNESCO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and the World Bank. The main agenda for this conference was education for all in the entire world. However, special education is currently a topical subject that is widely discussed and debated upon in the field of education. It has invariably been referred to as part of the global education for all agenda as a new education paradigm and as an educational reform goals to make our societies inclusive. The aspect of education for all is not effectively implemented despite of having policies and legal framework that advocate education for all. The education should enhance teachers who teach children with learning disability and also create awareness in the society to accept children with special educational needs. Therefore there is a need to introduce comprehensive special needs education in all teacher professional development programs. However, children with learning disability need extra attention in terms of curriculum adaptation, teaching methods, and availability of teaching and learning materials, assistive technology, assessment systems, as well as resources and funds for more assistance in adapting the school environment. In the late 1990s, most countries realized that improving literacy and numeracy among children has a strong connection with children ability. Since then, the spectrum of research on literacy and numeracy

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has been expanded into education for special needs (Mumpuniarti, 2017). In educational context the experts believe that pedagogical strategy for teaching literacy and numeracy for special population requires different approaches and techniques because of the diversified learners and their diversity in terms of their intelligence, emotional development stages and cognitive levels. Disability is a restriction or an inability to perform an activity in the manner or within the range considered normal for a human being, mostly resulting from impairment (Barbotte, Guillemin, Chau, & Lordhandicap Group, 2001). It is important to emphasize that activities and roles that a society considers to be “normal,” depend on age, sex, as well as a number of social and cultural factors. In the light of the current scenario the learners with developmental disability find difficult to learn literacy and numeracy in a conventional school systems and to keep pace with other learners and consequently suffer in terms of their educational progress and academic achievement. They are often seen to suffer from educational failure by playing truancy, repeating the class or leaving the school education in between as a drop out. In fact the parents and educational institutions are more focused on academic achievements rather than the extracurricular activities. And most of the educational institutions are using the conventional curriculum, education for learners with developmental disability require a specific teaching approach and techniques. Teachers in integrated educational institutions play a great role in teaching such learners and also they carry great challenges. Teachers try different ways to help them. They spend a large amount of time on these learners. And the remedial teachers are facing various challenges while they were teaching learners with developmental disability. At present, in India, LD is considered the prerogative of a few in the big cities. Even Directors of State Education are known to express doubts at the existence of any such disability. Unfortunately, the confounding factors of English as a foreign language and lack of proper education and exposure whilst aggravating the academic difficulties for the children, also play a major part in masking the processing problems and hence make LD an elusive entity. Teachers attribute the learning difficulties to a “language problem”, not realizing that LD too is a language based disorder. Most of the (research and intervention) work in the area of LD is being done by private organizations and the NGOs. There is little communication between these organizations and the state educational authorities. Adding further to the problems, there is a divide between the personnel in the health and the educational fields, be they private or government. LD as all

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other developmental problems is both a health and an educational issue, but regrettably, the meeting point between the two is few and far between. The multilingual social context in India, where children often have to learn to study through a medium other than their mother tongue is a complexity that makes not only diagnosis extremely difficult but also, estimation of prevalence next to impossible. The language issue is further compounded by factors such as age of enrolment in school, preschool exposure and literacy support available in their respective homes during the school years. Consequently, relating “adequate instruction” and “social opportunity” as is required by definition of SLD to children from varied backgrounds from an urban child enrolled in preschool at age 2½ years with early and sustained support to a rural child attending school for the first time at age 6½ years with no additional literacy support of any kind is a tremendous challenge (Karanth, 2002). If this is true of identification and assessment, the challenges faced with respect to remediation and management is no less daunting. Our educational system with its overwhelming emphasis on knowing rather than learning, theory rather than application, is illsuited for the child with LD. The overwhelming influence of Western thought with lack of indigenous research has led to a situation where even ones strengths are turned into liabilities, an example being the ‘phonemicizeation’ of the Indian scripts under the influence of the phonic method of the West. The near total lack of alternate systems of education and the social premium for a handful of vocational courses with an utter disregard for all other vocational training are other major hurdles in the ‘education’ of the child with LD. These are but some of the issues faced by the individual and the family of the learning disabled, to date in India (Karanth, 2002). An epidemiological study (1995-2000) of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders in urban and rural areas of Bangalore was done by the Dept of Psychiatry, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore to determine prevalence rates of child and adolescence psychiatric disorders for the Indian Council of Medical Research. The total prevalence rate in 4-16 year old children in urban middle class, slum and rural areas was 12%. However the children with SLD were eventually excluded from this study as most of them lacked adequate schooling as per the ICD-10-DCR criteria for SLD. In addition, many of the assessments were incomplete due to lack of cooperation for the lengthy testing for Specific Learning Disabilities (Srinath S, et al., 2005). The prevalence study on Learning Disability conducted at the L.T.M.G. Hospital, Sion, Mumbai reveals that of the total number of 2,225

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children visiting the hospital for certification of any kind of disability, 640 were diagnosed as having a Specific Learning Disability. These children came from the lower, middle and upper middle socioeconomic strata of society. Referral was due to their poor school performance (LTMG, 2006). Studies conducted by the Sree Chithira Thirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology in Kerala in 1997 revealed that nearly 10% of the childhood population has developmental language disorders of one type or the other and 8-10% of the school population has learning disability of one form or the other. The Institute for Communicative and Cognitive Neurosciences (ICCONS), Kerala, has been conducting research programs in child language disorders and developing research and rehabilitation programs for learning disabilities. Screening for LDs for Classes I to VII in schools with follow up assessments by experts in 10 panchayats in Kerala revealed that 16% of these school children have a learning disability (Suresh, 1998). Other studies have been done at child guidance clinics in India (Khurana, 1980; John & Kapur, 1986) where 20% children attending the clinic were diagnosed to be scholastically backward. However, variables such as the socioeconomic class, exposure to language act as confounding variables in such clinic-based studies (GEON, 2005) HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE “No other disabling condition affects so many people and yet has such a low public profile and low level of understanding as LD”, Washington Summit 1994 (Reid L, et al., 1994). Morgan, a general practitioner in Sussex, England, published the first case of what is now known as dyslexia, a word derived from the Latin word “dys”, which translates to ‘difficult’, and the Greek word “lexia”, which translates to ‘words’; it literally means, “difficulty with words”. On 7th November, 1896. Morgan wrote in the British Medical Journal, about Percy F, a 14-year old, who was intelligent, bright, quick with learning games, and the intellectual equal of his peers, but fell behind, in his inability to learn how to read. Today, as in 1896, most people associate intelligence with the ability to read, but Percy F. and the experience of millions of people with dyslexia breaks down the relationship between reading and intelligence. Researchers were left with the question, “What causes dyslexia if intelligence is not the marker?” Morgan and Hinshelwood, an ophthalmologist also writing at the turn of the Century, speculated that such

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difficulties with reading and writing were due to “congenital word blindness”, and for many years, the dominant view was that dyslexia was caused by visual processing deficiencies. There is still interesting the role of visual factors in the etiology of dyslexia, especially in low level impairments of the visual system. However the most widely accepted view today is that dyslexia is a verbal deficit and can be considered part of the continuum of language disorders. Indeed, converging evidence supports a specific theory, that dyslexic readers have phonological (speech) processing deficits (Snowling MJ, 1996). The identification and description of Learning Disabilities as being deficient general learning processes centering mostly on what we today call distractibility, hyperactivity and visual perceptual and perceptual-motor problems began in the Western world in the 1950s and 1960s (The Nalanda Institute, 2002). The major developments of the LD movement during this period centered on children who appeared normal in many intellectual skills, but who also displayed a variety of cognitive limitations that seemed to interfere with their ability to read, write and learn in the classroom. LD was seen primarily as a processing disorder with difficulty in cross-modal integration (Karanth, 2002). Dyslexia at this stage was a term coined to describe right brained thinkers who have difficulty in reading, think in pictures and are very imaginative and multidimensional (Eklavya School). Famous personalities, Walt Disney and Albert Einstein were cited as examples. It was a unanimous thought even at this time that these children needed to be accommodated in the mainstream class and rather than expecting them to mould themselves to the system, the system needed to become flexible to adapt to their needs. Gardner’s theory (1983) of Multiple Intelligences talked of different ways to teach these children. In addition, detailed assessments in various processing areas such as auditory or visual sequencing, auditory / visual memory and discrimination (which are still included in most test batteries for LD) resulted in specific remedial measures to deal with a deficient processing pathway. The 1980s, however, witnessed a renewed emphasis on the association of language disturbances with Learning Disabilities. Today it is accepted that LD is a language based disorder. In the years following the report on the first case of dyslexia, different types of specific learning disabilities were defined: dyslexia (difficulty in reading), dysgraphia (difficulty in writing), dyscalculia (difficulty in numbers and mathematical concepts) and dysnomia (difficulty in naming). Simultaneously dysphasia (expressive language difficulty) was also being noted together with receptive language difficulties. Today all these are included under the umbrella of Specific Learning Disability (SLD). Hence using the word dyslexia

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interchangeably with LD is technically incorrect. It is important to remember that a Specific Learning Disability, as the name suggests, includes difficulties in specific processing areas as opposed to global difficulties in children with compromised intelligence (Karanth, 2002). FEDERAL DEFINITION OF LD The following Federal definition by the U.S. Government in Public Law 94-142 of Learning Disabilities has been adopted in India. “Specific Learning Disabilities means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, speak, read, spell or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia and developmental aphasia. The term does not include children who have learning problems which are primarily the result of visual, hearing or motor handicaps, or mental retardation, emotional disturbance or environmental, cultural or economic disadvantages.” (Federal Register, 1977, p. 65083). The LD movement in India is of more recent origin and comparable today with that of the western LD movement of nearly half a century ago. In the eastern world, LD was earlier considered a problem of English speaking countries. The apparent lower incidence of these types of difficulties resulted in a relative lack of concern about LD in Asian countries such as India and China. Reports of lower incidences of LD in the eastern world were attributed by Western scholars to the general lack of awareness and sensitivity among educationists. The specific difficulties faced by children learning to read were attributed to the overcrowded classrooms. At the same time, reports of the high incidence of problems associated with the acquisition of reading in Western countries was attributed by easterners to the vagaries and complex nature of alphabetic writing systems such as English. During the last decade or two, however, there has been an increasing awareness and identification of children with LD in India. Despite this growing interest, we still have no clear idea about the incidence and prevalence of LD in India. Epidemiological studies of LD are fraught with difficulties ranging from the very definition of LD, identification and assessment, to socio-cultural factors unique to India. The Federal definition implies key factors: adequate intelligence, appropriate instruction and socio-cultural factors. The implications of these terms for identification of children with LD in a pluralistic society such as ours are immense and cannot be easily handled. The inherent complexities of the notion of LD are further complicated

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by an acute lack of teacher awareness, of clear cut assessment procedures or indigenous tools for assessment of processing deficits, intelligence testing and testing for proficiency in reading and writing (Karanth, 2002). LEARNING DISABILITY The term ‘Learning Disabilities (LD)’ is a relatively new one. It was first used by Dr. Samuel Kirk of Chicago, USA in 1963. The Children with Specific Learning Disabilities Act (USA) was passed in 1969. However, it was not until 1990s that the biological basis for LDs found support. Specific learning disability which includes dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia is commonly referred to as ‘Learning Disability’ or ‘LD’ in India. Now special educators for remediation are available in India. A learning disability is found across all ages and socio-economic classes. It is not a type of mental retardation as sometimes mistakenly thought, in fact, IQ scores could fall in the very high range. LD is a hidden handicap that affects academic achievement, vocational career and social life. Every child born in this world gets the care and comfort from the family in which he or she is born. But the children with disability cannot enjoy and get such care and comfort from the family. If a child grows, he develops into a worthy citizen. These children are able to quantify well and prove their worth. Similarly the society expects the same from the disabled students also, here the children failed. Specific learning disabilities have been recognized in some countries for much of the 20th century, in other countries only in the latter half of the century, and yet not at all in other places. These may be detected only after a child begins school and faces difficulties in acquiring basic academic skills. Learning disability is a general term that describes specific kinds of learning problems. It is a neurological disorder that affects a child's brain and impairs his ability to carry out one or many specific tasks. The LD affected children are neither slow nor mentally retarded (Julie M. et al.). They have either normal or above average intelligence. A child with a learning disability is often wrongly labeled as being smart but lazy. A learning disability can cause a child to have trouble learning and using certain skills. The skills most often affected are reading, writing, listening, speaking, reasoning and doing math. There is no cure for learning disabilities. There are also certain clues, most relate to elementary school tasks, because learning disabilities tend to be identified in elementary school, which may mean a child has a learning disability. A child probably won't show all of these signs, or even most of them. They are lifelong. However,

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children with LD can be high achievers. They can be taught ways to get around the learning disability. With the right help, children with LD can and do learn successfully Learning disability is a disorder in which a child has difficulty in learning in a typical manner, usually caused by an unknown factor or factors. The unknown factor is the disorder that affects the brain's ability to receive and process information. This disorder can make it problematic for a child to learn as quickly or in the same way as some child who isn't affected by a learning disability. Learning disability is not indicative of intelligence level. Rather, children with a learning disability have trouble performing specific types of skills or completing tasks if left to figure things out by themselves or if taught in conventional ways. A learning disability cannot be cured or fixed. There are also certain clues, most relate to elementary school tasks, because learning disabilities tend to be identified in elementary school, which may mean a child has a learning disability. A child probably won't show all of these signs, or even most of them. Even where they have been recognized, the amount of help available varies from no services to their universal provision. This unevenness in intervention services is tragic since most children with learning disabilities who receive sufficient, knowledgeable remediation can proceed through the school system and attain jobs that range from professor to laborer. Conversely, if they are not helped, the possibility of adjustment of problems arising is considerable. As our world becomes more complex, the knowledge base increases and the concepts more abstract, an increasing number of children will experience difficulty and be assumed to have learning to our collective lives is not forfeited. Learning disabilities are formally defined in many ways in many countries. However, they usually contain three essential elements: a discrepancy clause, an exclusion clause and an etiologic clause. The discrepancy clause states there is a significant disparity between aspects of specific functioning and general ability; the exclusion clause states the disparity is not primarily due to intellectual, physical, emotional, or environmental problems; and the etiologic clause speaks to causation involving genetic, biochemical, or neurological factors . As many as 1 out of every 10 children in the United States has a learning disability. Almost 3 million children (ages 6 through 21) have some form of a learning disability and receive special education in school. In fact, over half of all children who receive special education have a learning disability. A learning disability often displays a cluster of characteristics over time, in various intensities, which interfere with his/her overall development and achievement. LD affected children can face unique challenges that are often spreading throughout their lifespan. Depending

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on the type and severity of the disability, interventions may be used to help the individual learn strategies that will foster future success. Some interventions can be quite simplistic, while others are intricate and complex. Teachers as well as parents will be a part of the interventions. They can give aid to the children successfully in completing different tasks. School psychologists quite often help to design the intervention and coordinate the execution of the intervention with teachers and parents. With the right support and intervention, LD affected children can succeed in school and go on to be successful later in life. Social support is also a crucial component for these type children in the school system and should not be overlooked in the intervention plan. Parents of LD affected children often find themselves attempting to cope with a bewildering array of problems. Their children appear to be intelligent but they encounter all kinds of obstacles in school. In India the term disability is used synonymously as impairment, and handicap or disability. These terms are different. The impairment means, the loss of physical or sense organs. The child has not able to see, it is disability. Handicap is the result of impairment and disability. Learning disability is a broad term that covers a wide range of problems, including dyslexia and behavioral problems and the full range of ability. If a child having learning disability, that child requires special education needs. Learning disabilities vary from child to child. One child with LD may not have the same kind of learning problems as another child with LD. This lifelong disability can interfere with the students’ acquisition of academic and other basic skills necessary for survival as an independent adult. Some of the common signs of learning disabilities and learning disorders in children will be able to catch the problem early and take steps to get help to child. It is very important in paying attention to normal developmental milestones for toddlers and preschoolers. As early detection of developmental differences is an early signal of a learning disability and thus the problems that are spotted early can be easier to correct. LD is real and a stumbling block for a nation’s development process.The problems of children with specific learning disabilities have been a cause of concern to parents and teachers for some time. When a LD is suspected based on parent and/or teacher observations, a formal evaluation of the child is necessary. A parent can request this evaluation, or the school might advise it. Parental consent is needed before a child can be tested. Many types of assessment tests are available. Child's age and the type of problem determines the tests that child needs. A complete evaluation often begins with a physical examination and testing to rule out any visual

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or hearing impairment (Julie M. et al.). Pediatricians are often called on to diagnose specific learning disabilities in school- age children. Many other professionals can be involved in the testing process. The purpose of any evaluation for LDs is to determine child's strengths and weaknesses and to understand how he or she best learns and where they have difficulty. The information gained from an evaluation is crucial for finding out how the parents and the school authorities can provide the best possible learning environment for the child. Depending on the type and severity of the disability, interventions may be used to help the individual learn strategies that will foster future success. Some interventions can be quite simplistic, while others are intricate and complex. Teachers and parents will be a part of the intervention in terms of how they aid the individual in successfully completing different tasks. School psychologists quite often help to design the intervention and coordinate the execution of the intervention with teachers and parents. Social support can be a crucial component for students with learning disabilities in the school system and should not be overlooked in the intervention plan. With the right support and intervention, children with learning disabilities can become great success in school as well as later in the society.

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CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE Humphrey (2014) conducted a study - Challenges faced by teachers when teaching learners with developmental disability in Tanzania. This study addressed the issue of children with developmental disability by examining the challenges faced by teachers who teach children with developmental disability and how they try to overcome these challenges. Local teachers in most of the primary schools in Tanzania lack training in special needs education for children with developmental disability and the general purpose of this study is to find out what challenges teachers face when teaching children with developmental disability. Mumpuniarti (2017) the study explored pedagogical strategies carried out by teachers to support special need children in improving their level of literacy and numeracy. The current study utilized qualitative research design this research was carried out in one of the elementary schools in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Data collected was analyzed manually by focusing on the main aspects. Results demonstrated that 27 activities were frequently used by teachers in teaching language and mathematics. Those activities are the common teaching practice for slow learners. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of those practices, a focus group discussion with a group of students was carried out. Results revealed that most students have problems in literacy (spelling, reading complex words, and write long words) and numeracy (counting, subtraction, multiplication and divide). As the common teaching practice was found to have minimal effect on children’s literacy and numeracy, the current study suggests rethinking of a new pedagogical approach for improving literacy and numeracy for slow learners. Isave (2017) this study was trying to identify challenges faced by teachers while implementing inclusive education in schools and their role in the teaching and learning process. It discusses about the additional efforts taken by the regular school teacher to include students with special needs in their classes and the key challenge to implement inclusive education in schools. April H. Conti (2000) conducted a study - Motivation among students with learning disabilities was to examine whether intrinsic motivation is a major factor in explaining academic performance deficits in children with learning disabilities. Harter's Scale of Intrinsic Versus

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Extrinsic Orientation in the Classroom was given to 34 students with learning disabilities and 36 students without learning disabilities from Grades 4 to 6 from a suburban, middle-class school district located in Southeastern New Jersey. It was proposed that students with learning disabilities were less intrinsically motivated than students without identified learning disabilities. However, the general pattern of results derived from a T-Test for Independent Samples did not show a significant correlation between motivation orientations. Although students with learning disabilities proved to be less intrinsically motivated on the criteria subscale, they scored similarly to their non-handicapped peers on the challenge, curiosity, mastery, and judgment subscales. These findings may be attributed to the minimal number of participants and that they were not representative of the entire population. Nombuso Gama et al (2016) conducted a study - Swazi Teachers’ Challenges in Including Learners with Dyslexia was to explore the challenges faced by teachers when teaching learners with dyslexia. The problem was that teachers seemed to struggle to understand learners who failed to reach language proficiency. The study used qualitative research methods; where a phenomenological design was used to conceptualize the essence of the teachers‟ challenges. Participants were 12 (n = 12) purposively sampled English language teachers of dyslexic learners who met a pre-determined criteria. Data on the teachers‟ challenges were collected by individual interviews. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze the data. The data were thematically presented. The findings suggest that teachers experience a lot of challenges emanating from the lack of inclusive education training, knowledge and monetary support from the Swazi Government. Borah (2013) conducted a study - Slow learners: Role of teachers and Guardians in knowing their hidden skills identified the major characteristics of slow learners. In the discussion with the interventions for slow learners, it discusses certain specific strategies like reducing environmental distractions, shorter assignments, alternative forms of assessment like orals etc. Bar Nava (2015) Difficulties Experienced by Special Education Novice Teachers in Their Induction Year, At the Various Special Education Frameworks in Israel: Outline of a Research Study is focuses on the stage of the entry into teaching of the beginning teacher is a distinct stage in the circle of the professional development of teachers and is accompanied by many challenges and difficulties. The classic model of Fuller (1969) and its extension into the model of Fuller and

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Brown (1975) that addresses the beginning teacher’s concerns, presents three stages in the beginning teacher’s professional development: the stage of survival concerns about the self, the stage of mastery concerns about tasks/situations, and the stage of impact concerns about the impact on students. This article seeks to present a research outline that addresses a population on which the research has not focused extensively, the novice teachers in special education, who work in the different frameworks of special education that present the novice teachers with challenges and difficulties. The research will examine what are the difficulties of the novice teachers in special education, in the different frameworks of special education, during the year of their entry into teaching. In addition, the research will examine whether there is a distinction between the different frameworks in the aspect of the difficulties with which the novice teachers cope, as well as in the solutions provided to them in coping with their difficulties. The importance of this research study is by extension the theoretical academic knowledge about the entry into teaching and the difficulties of beginning teachers in special education, and the possibility to use this knowledge to improve the mechanisms of absorption of the special education novice teachers in the educational field. Rema (2016) conducted a study- challenge of teaching in a mixed ability classroom. This study focuses on the challenges of a teacher who teaches in a mixed ability classroom and different ways by which a teacher can deal with the learning disability, high achievers, slow learners and the other. And the challenges faced by teacher while teaching these type of learners. Kuldeep Singh Katoch, et al (2016) had done a study on the Problems Faced by Teachers in Special Schools of Himachal Pradesh. The investigation was undertaken to study the problems faced by teachers of special schools for speech and hearing impaired children in Himachal Pradesh. For conducting this investigation, survey method was employed and all the teachers serving in special school Dhalli (Shimla) and Sundernagar (Mandi) were included in the sample. The data was gathered with the help of a self-developed interview schedule for teachers which contained both close-ended and open-ended items. The data were analyzed by employing frequency count and percentage analysis. It was pointed out by teachers of special school Dhalli and Sundernagar that these schools are lacking in proper infrastructural facilities, subject-wise teaching staff and they are facing many other difficulties which has been explained in detail in this paper.

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NEED FOR STUDY The special education teachers those who are dealing children with learning disabilities are facing various challenges and difficulties. Majority of the institutions are following similar conventional curriculum and the students find it difficult to cope up with this traditional learning method so teachers spend a large amount of time on preparing the teaching materials for such learners. And they try different strategies to help them learn literacy and numeracy. So it is evident that there are challenges faced by special educators. This study aims to identify the challenges faced by such teachers. By doing so, the school administration can understand the challenges faced by special need teachers and address them, thereby increasing their satisfaction in the work place.

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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY Aim: To explore the challenges faced by teachers while teaching children with learning disability.

Research questions: 1) What is the teacher’s understanding of learning disability? 2) What challenges do remedial teachers face while teaching children with learning disability and how do they overcome them? 3) What are the teaching approaches and methodology used to teach children with learning disability? Objectives: 1. To study what challenge do teachers face while teaching children with learning disability. 2. To study how they overcome the challenges while teaching children with learning disability. Operational Definitions: Learning disability: Neurodevelopment Disorder3 that impedes the ability to learn or use specific academic skills (e.g., reading, writing, or arithmetic), which are the foundation for other academic learning. The learning difficulties are ‘unexpected’ in that other aspects of development seem to be fine. Early signs of learning difficulties may appear in the preschool years (e.g., difficulty learning names of letters or counting objects), but they can only be diagnosed reliably after starting formal education. SLD is understood to be a cross-cultural and chronic condition that typically persists into adulthood, albeit with cultural differences and developmental changes in the way the learning difficulties manifest (DSM 5).

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Special educator: educators those who teaches learners with developmental disability by using specific teaching approach and techniques. Challenges: challenges that faced by remedial teachers while teaching learners with learning disability. While teaching the learners remedial teachers face various challenges while motivating the learners as compared to normal learners as their self-esteem is lesser in comparison as well as they sometimes do not stay positive so encouraging the learners is also a challenge. While implementing various strategies for reinforcing the learner, the remedial teachers face challenges while choosing appropriate strategies. There are also challenges faced by the remedial teachers while interacting with the learners. The remedial teachers must be aware of what materials will be appropriate while teaching. Research Design: Qualitative research (Descriptive research study). The research study used descriptive research , it is primarily concerned with finding out what is in the field, it used this study as a suitable way to gather vital information regarding the current status of the problem which was the challenges faced by teachers when teaching learners with learning disability and how they try to overcome these challenges. This design greatly helped me to increase the knowledge about the challenges faced by teachers. Sample: The sample consist of primary school special needs teachers or remedial teachers in Bangalore city, Karnataka, India. The samples of 10 teachers were collected. Sampling Method: The researcher used purposive sampling technique. Inclusion criteria: The study will include teachers those who are in to remedial teaching. The study will include those who are special needs school teachers.

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Exclusion criteria: The study will exclude the regular school teachers. The study will exclude those who have less than two year experience in the field. Tools: Semi-Structured Interview The interview questions would be formulated on the basis of main research question. What is the teacher ‘s understands of learning disability, What challenges do remedial teachers face while teaching children with learning disability, how do they overcome them and What are the teaching approaches and methodology used to teach children with learning disability These are the types of questions asked in interview. Procedure: The participants who met the inclusion criteria were selected for the study. At the start of the session each participants was briefed about the study. Informed consent was taken by the participants. Informed consent is a mechanism for ensuring that people understand what it means to participate in a particular research study so they can decide in a conscious, deliberate way whether they want to participate. Socio demographic sheet were given to the subject. A variety of open-ended questions are chosen to elicit the most information possible in the time available. Data were collected through semi- structural individual interviews. Semi- structural individual interviews are optimal for collecting data on individuals’ perspectives, and experiences are being explored. The information was collected through verbal interchange or conversation. Non-verbal behaviors and the interview context were also noted and it becomes the part of the data. Analysis: When the process of data collection is over, the raw data will be transcribed. Afterwards, thematic analysis will be used to organize the transcribed data.

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Ethical consideration The participants will sign an informed consent form which provides the basic details of the study before taking part. The confidentiality of the participants in the study will be maintained. No personal details will be disclosed. The overall results of the study will be open to those interested; however, the individual results will remain confidential. The participants are free to drop out of the study if they are uncomfortable in being a part of it.

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CHAPTER IV RESULTS Table 4.1 Challenges faced by teachers in preparing teaching materials

Themes Teaching material and Curriculum structure.

Sub themes Worksheet Preparation

Statements We do have different children with different difficulties so to teach with one approach or a material which benefit everybody is a challenge, then you need to be on your feet always(T6) Sometimes I find difficult, working with these children doesn’t go with one way we have to work with lot of other things also so keep working and thinking lot out of the box and we should make worksheet for them(T3) Material preparation is a challenge because I have to prepare specific materials (T8)

Table 4.2 Challenges faced by teachers due to children’s behavioural issue

Theme Behavioural issues.

Sub themes

Statements

Class room behaviour

Sometimes the children won’t sit properly in class, they will be always restless and inattentive .(T5)

Social interaction

Children have little bit of behavioural issues ,I think it’s because they are aware about their short comings and their difficulties so they shows some social issues(T4)

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Table 4.3 Challenges faced by teachers due to lack of time

Theme Lack of time

Sub theme Lack of time for preparing worksheet and teaching

Statements You have goal set that you want to reach and you never reach at in time because there is always a lag that is the biggest challenge. (T7) While dealing with these children, it doesn’t go with one way; we have to work with lot of other things also so there is always a time issue. (T2 and T3) The challenge is time, required time is not there so what we want to deliver that can’t be delivered sometimes.(T8)

Lack of time for focus on child

Sometime I feel like that I couldn’t able to spare enough time to focus each child. (T10) Time is a limit, I couldn’t able to look at children one on one .sometime child gets emotion so along with the class I need to take care about all these .(T4)

Table 4.4 Challenges faced by teachers because of parental expectation and issues Theme

Sub theme

Statements

Parental expectations and Parental issues

Over expectation

If a parent has accepted that their child has a learning deficit then it is much easier, but most of the time parents come and say I want my child to be doctor or

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engineer, the typical sort of mentality that’s the challenge.(T7)

No acceptance

Sometime we see that parents are not accepting the child’s difficulty, there is denial then we feels some restriction, there is closing of communication they don’t want to listen to our side or what we face and we do need the parents helps to work with the child without that what we do is not enough so sometimes that help doesn’t come through.(T5) Sometimes one parents is accepting, one parent is not so we try to work with the parent who accepts and try to get them to help the child at home (T8) It’s very difficult because parents are not open-minded towards the child’s issue and they are not accepting the fact then it becomes very hard (T6)

Table 4.5 Challenges faced by teachers in motivating the children Themes

Sub themes

Statements

Motivation

Motivating the children

Motivating the children seems to be very difficult.(T1 to T10)

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Table 4.6 Challenges faced by teachers in building self-esteem in children Theme Self-esteem

Sub theme Building self esteem in children

Statements level of self-esteem is low in children and because of that it’s difficult to motivate the child.(T1 to T10)

Table 4.7 Challenges faced by teachers due to children’s emotional issues Theme Emotional issues

Sub theme Children’s emotional issues

Statements We feel hard when the children have emotional issues and this affects their performance. (T1 to T10) Sometimes suddenly they will have mood swings and I couldn’t understand what to do.(T3)

Table 4.8 Teaching approaches and methods used by teachers Theme Approaches and methods

Sub theme Teaching methods

Statements I personally use alpha to amega methodology which is a phonetic way of teaching english (T7) I use regular conservative teaching methods along with that I try to give them hand on experiences and I show videos before every topic (T2) and (T6) For me it’s like trial and error method I use if it work outs with child I will follow with that, if it doesn’t work out then I will find out other way. ( T3) We use all kind of teaching methods like visual, auditory and kinesthetic (VARK). (T1), (T4)and (T9)

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Depending on the child we use different teaching methods and multisensory methods are also used.(T5) and (T8) I use adapted lessons, the difficult lessons I adapt it and make worksheet simpler.(T10)

Table 4.9 Methods used to overcome the challenges by teachers

Sl No

Challenges

Methods used to overcome Selecting appropriate teaching methods and

1

Teaching

material

structure.

and

Curriculum styles. Preparing teaching materials according to each learner. Some basic trainings are provided to the

2

Lack of time.

parents of the learners so they can take care of the academics from home. The moment the child answers is satisfying and we forget about time issues.

Assign responsibilities to the learners who 3

Behavioral issues.

have behavioral issues.

Provide various kinds of works and activities to make them engage.

Convince the parents that their child have a 4

Parental expectations

difficulty in learning.

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Explaining about the child’s limitations and difficulty and make them understand the of their child issues.

Parental counselling.

Parent support group (PGS). By providing constant encouragement to the 5

Motivating the students

children.

Appreciating the children for each and small things.

Giving positive reinforcement for working on a task.

Rewards such as verbal praise, earning points are given to children to make them motivate.

Give students incremental challenges. Facilitating a supportive and judgment-free 6

Building self-esteem.

space in which to share their feelings.

Telling them examples of other people who have struggled with and overcome similar life challenges. Delve deeper into their interests and look for hidden talents and giving them plenty of opportunities to develop these further.

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Teaching various coping strategies that help them to succeed in tasks.

By Creating trust on teachers and provide an 7

Emotional issues of the children.

open space to talk about their problems.

Make them believe that they can share everything to teachers and they won’t judge them.

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CHAPTER V DISSCUSION

TEACHERS KNOWLEDGE ABOUT LEARNING DISABILITY

Teacher 1 When responding to this interview question teacher 1 answered by saying that:

There is a faulty wiring which is happening in the brain, so the input which is coming into the brain might not necessarily you see as the output. Even through the children are very intelligent probably have high IQ; they have some difficulty due to the faulty processing of the brain. According to her, children with learning disability are those children who have a faulty wiring happening in the brain due to that reason the children has problems in information encoding and retrieval. She said that many children are very intelligent but they are facing difficulty because of the faulty processing in the brain so special educators are proving remedial for them to cope up.

Teacher 2 When asked this question, teacher 2 had the following explanation.

Children who find difficult to learn thing in a normal way that a typical children learn but they can learn the things by being taught in a different way, in the way they can understand. According to her explanation, she understood children with learning disability as having limitations in learning ability compared to ordinary children those who able to learn in the conventional learning method.

Teacher 3 Regarding this question, teacher 3 elaborated that learning disability is a challenge, and it’s a fear. And she understands that it is not a disability it’s a fear that which has to pull out from the children and we have to show the children a confident way to move forward.

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Teacher 4 Learning disability according to her academically they are not able to read or write. But not only about the academic issues it’s a combination of behavioral problems and learning issues. Children with learning disability have difficulty in cognitive development. She saying that the cognitive development is slow compared to an ordinary child.


Learning disability has nothing to do with the intelligence of the child. Child can be intelligent and still have learning disability. According to her explanation, she understood that learning disability has nothing to do with the intelligence of the children with learning disability. And she says that even through the child has high intelligence, there are chance to have learning disability.

Teacher 6 When asked this question, teacher 6 had the following explanation. It’s got nothing to do with any kind of physical difficulty, which is visual impairment, hearing impairment, not being able to speak but it’s got something to do with their difficulty with reading, writing, math’s and oral language. According to her explanation, she understood children with learning disability as having difficulty with reading, writing, math’s and oral language. And there is nothing to with any kind of physical difficulty.

Teacher 7 Learning disability according to her means anything that where there is a deficit between what they read or hear and what they comprehend from it. According to her explanation, she understood learning disabilities are the issues of a child in reading, writing and comprehension.

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Teacher 8 Developmental disability according to her means delays in child cognitive development due to several reasons; neurological factors, and problem during pregnancy and birth and Heredity. According to her explanation, she understood children with learning disability are having difficulty in cognitive development.


Children who find it difficult to process certain kind of information or children who find it difficult to spell or write an expression. According to her explanation, she understood children with learning disability as having limitations or difficult to process information or children having difficulty in reading and writing.

Teacher 10 Learning disability according to her means anything that there is misconnection in the brain wiring so they have a problems in read, hear and comprehension. According to her explanation, she understood learning disabilities are the issues of a child in reading, writing and comprehension.

Challenges faced by the teachers & methods to overcome them a) Teaching material and Curriculum structure According to teacher 3 “Sometimes I find difficult, working with these children doesn’t go with one way we have to work with lot of other things also so keep working and thinking lot out of the box and we should make worksheet for them” According to teacher 6 “We do have different children with different difficulties so to teach with one approach or a material which benefit everybody is a challenge, then you need to be on your feet always”

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According to all the teachers, “I modify the curriculum according to the weakness of the child in the subject area” According to all the teachers “we make worksheet and teaching materials and discuss among ourselves so it takes less effort than work alone”

The teachers are having problems while they prepare the teaching materials and the curriculum. They have to prepare the materials in manner which each student should able to understand and the each student comprehension ability is also varying one to another. So the teachers should be creative and find their own methods to help the students in the class with teaching materials. Sometimes when the teaching method or materials are not working hence they need to find or create new strategies to get better results. Most of the teachers have experienced creating teaching materials and curriculum has a challenge.

b) Lack of time According to all the teachers “Modification of the curriculum and making the worksheet for each child is time consuming “ According to teacher 7 “You have goal set that you want to reach and you never reach at in time because there is always a lag that is the biggest challenge”

According to teacher 2 and 3 “While dealing with these children, it doesn’t go with one way we have to work with lot of other things also so there is always a time issue” According to teacher 8 “The challenge is time, required time is not there so what we want to deliver that can’t be delivered sometimes” According to teacher 10 “Sometime I feel like that I couldn’t able to spare enough time to focus each child” According to teacher 4 “Time is a limit, I couldn’t able to look at children one on one. Sometime child gets emotion so along with the class I need to take care about all these”

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According to teacher 1and 6“The moment the child answers is satisfying and we forget about all the problems” According to teacher4and 6 “The smile on the child’s face when they understand gives energy” According to all the teachers “The imitative the children take to answer makes me happy” The teachers are having problems with the time which they get and they are not able finish their works within the time period. For preparing the worksheet and teaching materials it takes a lot of time and along with that they need to spend time with the children a part from the usual class session. And sometimes they face trouble in delivering what they really want to do because of the lack of time. But they find ways to overcome all these issues in a positive manner by considering children’s responses for their effort.

c) Expectations from parents According to teacher 7 “If a parent has accepted that their child has a learning deficit then it is much easier, but most of the time parents come and say I want my child to be doctor or engineer, the typical sort of mentality that’s the challenge” According to teacher 5”Sometime we see that parents are not accepting the child’s difficulty, there is denial then we feels some restriction, there is closing of communication they don’t want to listen to our side or what we face and we do need the parents helps to work with the child without that what we do is not enough so sometimes that help doesn’t come through” According to teacher 6 “It’s very difficult because parents are not open-minded towards the child’s issue and they are not accepting the fact then it becomes very hard” According to teacher 8 “Sometimes one parents is accepting, one parent is not so we try to work with the parent who accepts and try to get them to help the child at home “

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According to teacher 10 “We always try and encourage the other parent who is not accepting and who is not coming to school regarding their child’s issues and make them accept and come to school” The teachers are facing problems while they deal with parents, some of the parents are not ready to accept that their child has difficulty and they need to give more attention and care. In some case acceptance from the parent is not seen and that itself become a challenge for teachers to co ordinate. Parents over expectation are becoming a problem

for the child and teacher. But the

teachers are trying their best to convince and encourage the parents to a get involve in child’s issues.

d) Behavioral issues According to all the teachers “It’s difficult to handle the child with behavioral problems in the class room" According to teacher 5” Sometimes the children won’t sit properly in class, they will be Always hyperactive and inattentive” According to teacher 4 “Children have little bit of behavioural issues, I think it’ because

they

are aware about their short comings and their difficulties so they shows some social issues” According to teacher 1 and 6 “We assign responsibilities to the child’s like discipline leader, class leader e.t.c” According to teacher 4, 7 and 9 “I give various kinds of works and activities to make them engage” The teachers are facing problems to handle the children in the class room those who have behavioural issues. Over the years, parents, educators, and other professionals have identified a wide variety of characteristics associated with learning disabilities like Hyperactivity, Impulsivity e.t.c are evident in the children(Gargiulo, 2004).Along with this difficulty in social interaction is also noticed in these children.

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e) Motivating the students According to all the teachers “Motivating the children seems to be very difficult” According to teacher1 and 8 “We work on the strength; each small step of achievement is uploaded and encouraged so it helps the child to build up confidence and we try to create competence in children” According to teacher 4and 2 “I talk to them about the people who overcome the similar problems in their life and recommend them to keep role models” Motivating the children with learning disability is complex task where the teachers try to create competence in task completion and academics. As competence in a subject or task improves, however, motivation typically increases, generating a cycle of engagement, motivation, and competence that supports better academic achievement for students with varying abilities (Irvin, Meltzer, & Dukes, 2007). Because motivation leads to engagement, motivation is where parents and teachers need to begin, especially for students that are experiencing learning disabilities (LD) in reading, writing, spelling, and mathematic problem solving.

f) Building self-esteem According to all the teachers “level of self-esteem is low in children and because of that it’s difficult to motivate the child” According to teacher 2 and 7 “we facilitate a supportive and judgment free space where the child can perform without any hesitation and we praise them and gives them various extrinsic rewards to for their performance” According to teacher 4 and 8 “We delve deeper into their interests and look for hidden talents and giving them plenty of opportunities to develop these further” According to teacher 1, 2 and 3 “we teach them various coping strategies that help them to succeed in tasks”

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According to teacher 3“Telling them that you can do it and just work hard ,come forward and keep doing it you will learn it up”

Self-esteem of the child with LD will naturally low due to various reasons so teachers are giving them a supportive space to bring them out of boundaries and explore their abilities. To build selfesteem in children with learning disabilities teachers are using extrinsic rewards, found that a teacher’s use of praise and extrinsic reward often led to increases in students’ intrinsic motivation. Likewise, messages teachers and parents communicate to students with LD, whether intentionally or unintentionally, can affect students’ motivation, learning goals, and academic outcomes (Hattie & Timperley, 2007; Klassen & Lynch, 2007).

b) Emotional issues of the children According to the all teachers “We feel hard when the children have emotional issues and this affects their performance” According to teacher 3 “Sometimes suddenly they will have mood swings and I couldn’t understand what to do” According to teacher 4 and 9 “By building trust on us and we make sure that a open space is given to them to talk about their feelings and problems” According to teacher 6, 7 and 10 “we try to make them believe that they can share everything to us and we won’t judge them” Emotional problems among children with learning problems are quit commonly seen and the teachers are feeling hard to deal with those problems. Children who have LD will have emotional problems like less of activity, lack of interaction, lack of a sense of self-confidence; reduce the value of self, sadness, emotion confusion, and emotional distractions (Hassan. 2015).

Teaching approaches and methods used by teachers According to teacher 7 “I personally use alpha to amega methodology which is a phonetic way of teaching English” According to teacher 2 and 6 “ I use regular conservative teaching methods along with that I try to give them hand on experiences and I show videos before every topic”

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According to teacher 3 “For me it’s like trial and error method I use if it work outs with child I will follow with that, if it doesn’t work out then I will find out other way” According to teacher 1, 4 and 9 “We use all kind of teaching methods like visual, auditory and kinesthetic (VARK)” According to teacher 5and 8 “Depending on the child we use different teaching methods and multisensory methods are also used” According to teacher 10 “I use adapted lessons, the difficult lessons I adapt it and make worksheet simpler” Teachers use various kinds of methods to teach children with learning disability. They select teaching method by looking at the child’s weakness and the area of deficit. Alpha to amega, multisensory, trial and error, adaptive and VARK methods are the commonly used teaching methods. These strategies can be used to modify instruction in most subject areas to improve students' comprehension of tasks and the quality of their work. These approaches. Scaffolding is also a effective method that makes a real difference in learning disabled children. Success for the student with learning disabilities requires a focus on individual achievement, individual progress, and individual learning. This requires specific, directed, individualized, intensive remedial instruction for students who are struggling with difficulties. Learning in a special class setting with individual monitoring will also help the children to improve their learning (LDA)

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CHAPTER VI SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

This research was done to understand what are the challenges faced by teachers while teaching children with learning disability and how do they overcome these challenges. This study also provides the explanation (as given by the respondents) in the various areas of challenges that teachers face while teaching. The following are some of the major challenges that have been derived from analysis:  Challenges faced by teachers.

1. Teaching material and curriculum structure. 2. Lack of time. 3. Expectations from parents. 4. Behavioral issues. 5. Motivating the students. 6. Building self-esteem. 7. Emotional issues of the children. These seven challenges are commonly faced by the teachers and they have their own methods to overcome all these challenges.  Teaching approaches and methodology. 1. Alpha to amega 2. Multisensory 3. Trial and error 4. Adaptive 5. VARK These are the different kind of teaching strategies and methodology used by the teachers who dealing with learners with learning disability. And there is no specific method, the nature or kind of method will vary according to the child’s weakness or area of disability.

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LIMITATIONS

Limitations of the present work serve as an opportunity for the future researchers. However, there are certain limitations that should be addressed.

 Data was collected only from one school.  The socioeconomic, cultural and religious backgrounds of the participants were not accounted for in the study.  The sample size was small as well.  Time constraint for the respondents, & because of it, the quality of the research work was affected.

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IMPLICATIONS

This study describes about the challenges faced by teachers while teaching learners with learning disability and the methods used to overcome these challenges. By describing the various challenges we can address all these challenge and make the school administration understand the challenges faced by special need teachers and address them, thereby increasing their satisfaction in the work place.

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