Pre-1994, South Africa was a country riddled with inequality and discrimination stemming from the policy of ‘apartheid’. Since 1994, there have been considerable efforts made to enable the country to move toward becoming non-racial and democratic, with a culture of human rights and social justice. One of the primary tasks of the new democratically elected government was a reform of the education system. Specialized Education was initially neglected, but then in 1996 a National Commission was appointed to investigate Special Needs in Education and Education Support Services, of which the author was one of the co-ordinators. The timeline for the full implementation of the resulting White Paper 6 on Inclusive Education is 20 years. Inclusive Education in South Africa aims to meet the needs of all learners by addressing barriers to learning, welcoming diversity and fostering maximum participation by all in the culture of the school. This article, based on the author’s experience, will discuss the challenges for implementation of the policy in one of the South African districts which field-tested the recommendations in White Paper 6, a district with diverse contexts, the emerging promising practice, and the implications for specialized support professionals, in particular the role of school psychologists.
Teachers' perceptions of education support structures in the implementation of inclusive education in South Africa
