A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY: PERCEIVED EFFECTIVENESS OF RESOURCES AVAILABLE IN INTEGRATING CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS (ASD) INTO MAINSTREAM PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Abstract

In line with the government’s commitment and aspirations to cultivate a “caring nation, inclusive society”, the Compulsory Education Act will be extended to include children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) with effect from 2019. Therefore, this phenomenological study aims to provide insights into the current state of integration of children with SEN in mainstream primary schools in order to offer suggestions on ways to improve the state of readiness of schools in accepting children with SEN in years to come. While there are many different types of special educational needs, the specific developmental disability explored in this study is autism due to its high prevalence rates in Singapore. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, this research aims to uncover the needs and challenges faced by children with autism in mainstream primary schools, resources available in facilitating the integration process as well as factors which influence the effectiveness of these resources. Subsequently, Allport’s contact hypothesis will be employed to determine the level of integration of children with autism in mainstream primary schools in Singapore. A purposive sampling approach was adopted in this study where seven professionals, either teachers trained in special needs, allied educators or educational psychologists, were engaged in semi-structured, qualitative interviews. Findings revealed that there are a total of eight needs and challenges faced in integrating children with autism into mainstream primary schools which are namely diagnosis, environment, levels of schooling, interaction with peers, classroom behaviours, advocacy, teaching and learning as well as emotional regulations. At the same time, the resources available in schools to facilitate the integration process include the teachers, allied educators, friends or classmates, as well as other non-teaching staff. Resource partners not based in the school context but play an equally pivotal role in the integration process include the parents and educational psychologists. Ranging from manpower constraints to the mindset of parents, there is a multitude of factors that influence the effectiveness of these resources. This study concluded that Singapore has yet to reach a stage of full integration of children with autism and that further actions could be taken at the governmental, organizational and individual levels.