Assessment of the education of deaf students in the integrated primary schools of Amhara national regional state : practices, opportunities and challenges
The purpose of this study was to assess the educational practices, opportunities and challenges
of deaf learners in Amhara National Regional State Integrated Primary Schools. Both
qualitative and quantitative research approaches and descriptive research design have been
used to accomplish this purpose. The samples of this study were deaf learners, teachers of deaf
learners, and principals from ten (10) Integrated Primary Schools in the research area. From
343 deaf learners in Grades 5–8, only 170 (50%) of them were selected through simple
random sampling technique. Of the 110 teachers of deaf learners, 55 (50%) of them were
selected using probability sampling method of simple random sampling technique and from the
10 Integrated Primary Schools, 10 principals were selected using the non-probability sampling
technique of the purposeful sampling method. The data was gathered by means of observation,
interview and questionnaire. Deaf learners, their teachers in the classroom and the school
compound of the Integrated Primary Schools were observed. Deaf learners, teachers of deaf
learners and school principals were interviewed, and questionnaire was also administered to
deaf learners and their teachers. The result indicated that the overall school environments of
the Integrated Primary Schools are not conducive for deaf learners. In the classrooms, oral
communication is used as a means of instruction and to exchange ideas among deaf learners,
teachers and learners without hearing impairment that did not help deaf learners to be socially
integrated. In the teaching-learning process, deaf learners’ classroom participation was poor,
and their overall achievement is found to be less than learners without hearing impairment.
Besides, in the Integrated Primary Schools, teacher’s inability of sign-language, shortage of
teaching materials and resources, absence of different types of teaching and assessment
methodologies were the major challenges faced by deaf learners. The opportunities that deaf
learners receiving were monthly pocket money and school uniform from the Integrated Primary Schools. The Integrated Primary Schools need to design policies, strategies and
mechanisms that solve and/or minimize the educational challenges of deaf learners and on how
to maximize the integration of learners with and without hearing disabilities, teachers and the
school community in general to achieve better in the education system.Inclusive EducationPh. D. (Inclusive Education
