Integrated school
In the integrated school setting, disabled youths are in contact or interact with other normal students while in the course of their studies. This type of setting has a number of advantages. First of all the disabled students are likely to benefit from others when in times of need. For instance, if a student has a physical disability and cannot handle well-learning resources such as books and pencils, the other students can come to his aid and thus help to reduce the level of the challenge to the student posed by his/her disability.
Secondly, students with disabilities tend to have low self-esteem, and this can affect their learning. Being with the other normal students will tend to boost their morale towards learning. They, therefore, will be more motivated to participate in the learning activities. For instance, if the teaching instruction involves the manipulation of things, then the students will come into the aid of those who are disabled, and their positive reinforcement is quite significant in the development of psychomotor skills. ( Allport, 54, 1954).
In an integrated school setting, students with disabilities do not feel neglected or separated from the rest because of their condition. This helps them to feel psychologically part of the wider society and hence contributes to their well-being. ( Betts, 123 2006).
Integration is also significant in reducing the achievement gap, which tends to be wider in a segregated setting. For children who are disabled, when they are together with the rest, the disparities in terms of performance will not be very pronounced as in the case of a segregated system which brings to the broad light the big difference that can exist between the disabled and the normal students. This is true because let’s take the example of a mean score calculated in an integrated system and compare it with another one calculated in a segregated school system. You will realize that with a segregated setting, the mean score will comprise the disabled only, and this will highlight their weakness as a group, but this is not what we expect to happen because it can affect their morale towards studies. It can also be illustrated that within an integrated system, behavior motivation is very easy because the teacher can easily identify that from the rest of the other normal students. By easy identification of the disabled students, the teacher can plan on how well he/she can help the individual students and help him/her achieve even better results.
In an integrated setting, it is also notable that students from poor families will not be exposed to suffering as in the case of a segregated setting. There is the aspect of equality in an integrated system which is very crucial in protecting the interest of the poor in the schools. Therefore their poverty status is not a big issue in the integrated system and hence cannot be a hindrance to their effective learning. (Burris & Welner, 208, 2007).
Disabled children have been observed to be wanting to be seen just to be the same as the rest. An integrated setting provides the best solution to this. For instance, in a school with both the disabled and the normal students, the disabled would be found participating in learning activities more than even the normal students. When they are seen and even cheered by the rest, this becomes a very important reinforcement to them to give in their contribution and exploit the talents they have. An integrated setting provides a far, much better avenue for articulating the plight of the disabled. This makes them struggle for the best so as to complete the rest or be at the same level playing field. However, the integrated system also has its demerits.
Disadvantages of the integrated school setting
Integrated school settings pose a number of challenges to students having various forms of disabilities. This is because of the fact that in the integrated system, the principle of equality for all will apply while not keeping in mind that we have children who, because of some factors beyond their control, are not the same as the majority.
First of all, the disabled in an integrated school present themselves as a minority group amongst the majority. This in itself is a disadvantage to the youths with disabilities. There are some cases that in an integrated setting, the interests of the disabled students are likely to be left out by the teachers. Teachers who are not very sensitive will tend to ignore the disabled. This can greatly interfere with the performance of disabled students. Then there is also an issue concerning overdependence of the disabled on the normal students. For instance, disabled students will tend to over-rely on normal students, and this is not a good thing because, to some extent, it can lead to the inability to perform some psychomotor skills. This will affect learning and can contribute by widening the achievement gap in the performance of the students. (Orfield, 657, 1995).
Integrated schools have the problem of emotional discomfort for those students with disabilities. These students may suffer discrimination in some aspects of learning. This consequently would affect them psychologically and hence their performance. Making a disabled student fully adapted to life in an integrated setting will take more time as compared to the segregated ones. Therefore the fact that it would take a disabled student more time to get adapted to an integrated system is itself a disadvantage to these students.
The integrated school setting also has the problem of facilities and resources. It is vital to note that students with special needs and requirements and most integrated schools will not have this provision. When disabled students are in dire need of some of the resources, it becomes even difficult for the teachers to come up with alternatives to assist them. There is also the problem of sharing resources within the school. The youths with disabilities tend to have problems sharing learning materials with the rest. This can negatively impact their learning of some important skills. There is also a challenge of teachers in the integrated schools whereby most of the teachers are not specially trained for those schools. The teachers cannot, therefore, understand well the individual differences, especially for the disabled children. Their needs, therefore, can go unaddressed, and this consequently interferes with their learning in such an integrated school setting.
The integrated schools face the challenge of developing talents for the youths with disabilities. This is because competition is so high in these schools, and the disabled cannot be at par with the other normal students. Most of the time, they are left behind in co-curricular activities, and this affects their well-being. The discipline of the youths with a disability is also a concern in the integrated school setting. The teachers cannot instill discipline as required to the disabled students. Mostly when the disabled students are involved in discipline cases, the teacher in charge might fail to act and ignore the undesirable behavior. Consequently, this would affect the learning since the teacher avoided punishment because of the situation of the concerned student.
According to one of the students I sought an opinion from, it came out that in an integrated system, disabled students are not free to participate in classroom activities. It was noted that the students fear answering questions in class, and this can result from low self-esteem that is there because of their state of life. If such students do not receive the necessary attention, they stand to lose a lot while in the course of their studies. Therefore failing to adequately address the needs of the students with disabilities is a major challenge in an integrated school setting. This, therefore, makes them not very suitable for youths who are in any form of disability.
Segregated schools
The advantages of a segregated school setting to disabled students
Segregated schools are designed to serve the interests of only one group.
They can beset be used to preserve the interests of religion or ethnic groups. Just like these groups, the segregated school setting can be very useful in articulating the interests of students with any form of disability. Performance within such a setting can be greatly enhanced because the students are in their own league. This competition is very much effective. The issues concerning the performance gap cannot arise in such schools because all the students are the same and are treated equally by the school administration and the teachers. Therefore issues like class management are well taken care of, plus the individual needs of the disabled students. This can go a long way in improving the performance of this group of students and make them feel that they are just as productive as the rest of society. Also of importance to mention is that in a segregated school setting, there is no issue of one group being minority over the other group, which is considered to be the majority. Therefore once there is a level playing field, then articulating the concerns for this group becomes a very simple affair. (Clotfelter, 23, 1998) If it is talents and co-curricular activities, these students tend to do best in such a setting, and this goes far in helping them maximize their potential in various fields.
Emotional problems do not arise in such schools since all the students with disabilities are in similar situations. They, therefore, do not sufferer from any form of discrimination from the other students.
It is also vital to mention that segregated schools are better managed by the administrators and teachers because they have a better understanding of the type of group they are dealing with. Thus understanding their needs is enhanced because of the right personnel. For instance, such schools would tend to have teachers who have undergone special education training programs from various accredited institutions.
With this kind of personnel, the students with disabilities are well catered for, and the students are better placed to better their talents and achieve a lot in academics.
Another merit of segregated schools that cannot be overlooked concerns the availability of adequate resources within the segregated school setting. This is because whatever is allocated for the schools is strictly meant for the students with disabilities; hence their needs are well addressed, unlike in a situation whereby they have to compete for the same limited resources with the other normal students, yet they are supposed to be treated as exceptional cases. In special segregation cases, students with disabilities are not at risk, as is the case in the integrated school setting. The risk of maladjusted students causing havoc with their not understanding nature could pose a danger to the students with disabilities in integrated school settings. This comes up as a result of a normal student who has deviant behavior, which can end up getting into the good students with disabilities. Classroom management in a segregated school system is quite easy as the teacher is well trained in the area and is familiar with the challenges he/she is likely to encounter. Within the class environment, students with disabilities can enjoy good relations because they have similar situations and circumstances. This can greatly promote the spirit of teamwork within the group and hence promote effective learning. According to one parent, an advocate of a segregated school setting, such an environment provides a better opportunity for disabled children to fully exploit their potential to the fullest because people with similar abilities and interests are put together. This is important in boosting their self-esteem. This is vital for the development of important skills in life that students with disabilities require. Skills that require the active involvement of body parts require group participation with the same interests for better development. This is well catered for in a segregated school system, according to the opinion of one of the teachers I sought an opinion from. (Godwin, 2006)
Disadvantages of segregated Schools
Even though the segregation schools have many positive implications, there are a number of shortcomings associated with this system of schooling, and to be particular to the students with one or more disability problems. From the segregated school settings, it has emerged that the product of these set-ups also ends up being segregated in the future. Youths with a disability graduating from segregated schools end up becoming adults who are segregated in society. This tampers with society’s moral standards, which call for unity and integration for the good of all the members. Segregation affects the performance and achievement of students with disabilities. It has contributed significantly to the achievement gap in education. This is because, for instance, if the youths with disabilities are segregated, their performance will differ to a greater extent from that of the other normal group. This does not create a good impression, and it kills the morale of those who are struggling to reduce this ever-widening gap. Therefore one can point out that segregation is a major contributor to inequality in education. This inequality is evident in the enrollment and performance of students. (Frankenberg, 2005).
One parent who is a critic of this setting argues that segregation is a separatist system and is used to detach a particular group from the majority. This is not a good system because once the group is separated, then such a group can no longer enjoy support from the rest or majority. This keeps the students or youths with disabilities alone, and their plight can no longer be the concern of the entire community. It is also important to note that segregation is a hindrance for disabled children to freely interact with other members or children in society. This denies them even more opportunities to develop their potential. Some activities cannot be done within the segregation. For instance, if they are all in one religion, then a second religion cannot work for those who do not belong to the faith. It looked at from a different perspective, segregation can be viewed as an obstacle towards the full development of talents and other capabilities, especially when students are restricted from participating in any activity with other members of the society of other institutions which have the same interest but are under restrictions. (Mickelson, 1553,2003) All in all, it remains the responsibility of the parent to choose on whether to take the child to an integrated or to a segregated school based on what he or she perceived to be the best choice the can help the disabled child adapt to life a become a leaned and better person in future. This is because as much as people criticize the segregation of schools to others calls for such a system because of the type of disability their children have and which cannot be overlooked.
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