CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DIFFICULTIES

What are the advantages and disadvantages of including children with learning difficulties in mainstream school in the UK?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of including children with learning difficulties in mainstream school in the UK?

This essay is concerned with education for children with learning difficulties. The opening paragraphs look at the responsibilities of current education services and their role in educating children with difficulties in learning. Thereafter the essay will focus upon research carried out by the education Support Service on parental view of children with disabilities. Finally a conclusion will be provided so that the reader can analyse the strengths and limitations of the research.

The word disability is a broad term, which represents a complex system of social restrictions imposed on people with impairments by a highly discriminatory society. The term encapsulates all individuals who may suffer from physical, mental, visual or other forms of impairments. However there are disabilities that we cannot see, nor we can realize that they are disabled like a learning disability.

Over the recent years many organisations have been set up to provide provision for these kinds of disabled children who are facing difficulties in their educational life and school careers. This essay will suggest how such individuals can receive support and what is the role of support services to provide them provision? Furthermore the essay will also outline the services by the local education Authority (LEA) that help disabled children through the schools and what is the role of parents to educate their children.

Generous advisory and support services are a necessary aspect of LEA policy towards children with disabilities and special needs. Head teachers and governors cannot take the needs of these children seriously if the L.E.A. divides their time between ordinary schools and special schools. The special schools should receive advisory support. Yet, more than 90% of children with special needs and learning difficulties remain in ordinary schools. They merit provision and support. The success of advisory service is useful only if accepted and the services are depending on the individual advisory or psycho logic establishing a co-operative relationship with teachers. It follows that their work must be as much with teachers as with children. (D. Galloway 1985).

Now the essay will focus on a team based research that was carried out by Kathleen Murphy and his team (Vulliamy G. and Webb R. 1990). During the project, each member was expected to pursue his or her individual piece of research, linked to a common theme. Each member worked in different areas and the task of Kathleen Murphy was to look at the perception of parents. The aim of this research was to address the issue of how the Educational Support Service (ESS; an organisation founded to support children with special educational needs and learning difficulties into ordinary schools. One of the main tasks of the service is to work closely with parents and other professionals. Part of the support work involves liaising with parents of those children who were about to begin ...