Article abstract

Journal of Educational Research and Reviews
Research Article | Published June 2019 | Volume 7, Issue 6, pp. 137-148.
doi: https://doi.org/10.33495/jerr_v7i6.19.117

 

A case study of the integrated programme for children with disabilities in mainstream child care centres in Hong Kong: Exploring the instructional strategies

 

 

 

Yuk Ching LAI


Email Author


 

  Department of Early Childhood Education, The Education University of Hong Kong.

 

 

 

……..…....….....…………............……………..........…..……….........................……………………...............……………………………….....………………...
Citation: LAI YC (2019). A case study of the integrated programme for children with disabilities in mainstream child care centres in Hong Kong: Exploring the instructional strategies. J. Edu. Res. Rev. 7(6): 137-148.
……..…....….....…………............……………..........…..……….........................……………………...............……………………………….....………………...

 

 

 

 Abstract 

 

The operation of the integrated programme for children with disabilities in mainstream early childhood settings has become a primary service option in many countries around the world, and as such the programme provides a huge benefit for the development and learning of these children. The integrated programme in Hong Kong mainstream child care centres (CCCs) has been implemented since the late 1970s with the goal of facilitating the return of children with disabilities to mainstream education and to the mainstream society. As instructional strategies (i.e. relate to aspects of the teaching strategies and curriculum) play a significant role in influencing the effectiveness of the integrated programme for children with disabilities, investigating how these aspects have been implemented in integrated classrooms is important. Two case studies consisting of interviews (semi-structured and informal interviews), observations and documentations were gathered from various stakeholders (i.e. six school stakeholders, two parents of children with disabilities and two children with disabilities). The findings indicate that the instructional strategies adopted in integrated classrooms were inappropriate and ineffective. Implications for instructional changes are discussed.

 

Keywords  Integrated programme   children with disabilities   mainstream child care centres   instructional strategies   

 

 

Copyright © 2019 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. .

This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0



 References

Alston J, Kilam C (2004). “Adaptive education for students with special needs in the inclusive classroom”. Austr. J. Early Childhood 29(3):24-33.

Babic DP, Simic N, Friedman E (2018). “School-level facilitators of inclusive education”. Eur. J. Special Needs Educ. 33(4):449-465.

Barnett JH (2018). “Three evidence-based strategies that support social skills and play among young children with autism spectrum disorders”. Early Childhood Educ. J. 46(6):665-672.

Cheuk J (2007). “Teachers’ perceptions of integrated kindergarten programs in Hong Kong”. Early Child Dev. Care 177(4):417-432.

Coelho V, Cadima J, Pinto AI (2019). “Child engagement in inclusive preschools: Contributions of classroom quality and activity setting”. Early Educ. Dev. doi: 10.1080/10409289.2019.1591046.

Cohen L, Manion L, Morrison K (2018). Research methods in education (8th ed.). New York: Routledge.

Cook RE, Klein MD, Chen D (2012). Adapting Early Childhood Curricula for Children with Special Needs (8th ed.). Boston MA: Pearson.

Goldstein J (2012). “Play in children’s development, health and well-being”. http://www.ornes.nl/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Play-in-children-s-development-health-and-well-being-feb-2012.pdf. Accessed April 21, 2019.

Hall GE, Quinn LF, Gollnick DM (2014). Introduction to teaching: Making a difference in student learning. Canada: Sage Publications.

Kirk SA, Gallagher JJ, Anastasiow NJ, Coleman MR (2006). Educating exceptional children (11th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Kricke M, Neubert S (2017). “Inclusive Education as a Democratic Challenge - Ambivalences of Communities in Contexts of Power”. Educ. Sci. doi: 10.3390/educsci7010012.

Lai YC (2018). “Invisible fathers’ voices about the integrated programme implemented in mainstream child care centers in Hong Kong: Implications for educational change”. Educ. Rev. doi: 10.1080/00131911.2018.1481017.

Lai YC, Gill J (2014). “Multiple Perspectives on Integrated Education for Children with Disabilities in the Context of Early Childhood Centres in Hong Kong”. Educ. Rev. 66(3):345-361.

Lai YC, Gill J (2017). “The Benefits and Challenges of the Integrated Programme for Children with Disabilities in Mainstream Kindergarten-Cum-Child Care Centres in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region: Implications for Social Change”. Early Years: An Int. Res. J. doi:10.1080/09575146.2017.1369937.

Lee LMF, Yeung AS, Tracey, D, Barker K (2015). “Inclusion of children with special needs in early childhood education: What teacher characteristics matter?” Topics in Early Childhood Special Educ. 35(2):79-88.

Lee WO, Manzon M (2014). “The Issue of Equity and Quality of Education in Hong Kong”. The Asia-Pacific Educ. Researcher 23(4):823-833.

Lewis RB, Wheeler JJ, Carter SL (2017). Teaching students with special needs in general education classrooms (9th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Richards L (2015). Handling qualitative data: A practical guide (3rd ed.). London: Sage Publications.

Social Welfare Department (2001). An operational guide to child care centres operating an integrated programme for disabled children (in Chinese). Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government: Printing Department.

Social Welfare Department (2019). Integrated programmes in Kg-Cum-Child Care Centres. https://www.swd.gov.hk/storage/asset/section/376/tc/IP_112017.pdf. Accessed May 11, 2019.

Spiker D, Hebbeler, KM, Barton LR (2011). Measuring quality of ECE programs for children with disabilities. In M. Zaslow, I. Martinez-Beck, K. Tout, & T. Halle (Eds.), Quality measurement in early childhood settings Baltimore, MD: Brookes. pp. 229-256.

Stake RE (2005). Qualitative case studies. In N. K. Denzin, & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), The SAGE handbook of qualitative research (3rd ed.) Thousand Oaks, Cailf: SAGE Publications. pp. 443-466.

Sussman KS (2012). “The importance of play in the preschool classroom”. Texas Child Care Quarterly, 36(3). https://www.ucy.ac.cy/nursery/documents/ThemaVdomadas/the_importance_of_play.pdf, accessed May 11, 2019.

Tjernberg C, Mattson EH (2014). “Inclusion in practice: A matter of school culture”. Eur. J. Special Needs Educ. 29(2):247-256.

Thomas G (2017). “Progress in social and educational inquiry through case study: Generalization or explanation?”. Clin. Soc. Work J. 45(3):253-260.

Tsao L (2008). “Social, language, and play behaviors of children with autism”. Behavioral Dev. Bulletin, 14:40-51.

Yin RK (2014). Case study research: Design and methods (5th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE Publications.