School of Human and Community Development (ETDs)

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Browsing School of Human and Community Development (ETDs) by Author "Amod, Zaytoon"

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    COVID-19 and children who experience special educational needs: Caregivers’ experiences, coping strategies, and support needs.
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023-05) Fernandes, Jenna; Amod, Zaytoon
    Every aspect of parenting becomes magnified when caring for a child who experiences special educational needs, especially during a pandemic. Despite the wide recognition that the pandemic intensified existing stressors for caregivers of children who experience special educational needs as indicated by reports of significant declines in mental health, there is a scarcity of research exploring caregivers’ experiences during the pandemic, and especially within the South African context. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the experiences of South African caregivers, their available support structures, coping strategies, and support needs. An exploratory qualitative research design was employed, in which twelve caregivers of children who experience special educational needs participated in semi structured interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse the data, and subsequently, the researcher developed five intersecting themes and fourteen subthemes. Notably, the five themes were, “exhausted to the bone”, twice as isolated, finding the light in the dark, soldiering on and learning to cope, and a wish for change and advocacy. Critically, the results of the research study suggest that despite the difficulties experienced by caregivers, there were opportunities for growth and development. However, there is a deep desire for there to be more understanding and tolerance of differences.
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    Parental Experiences and Perceptions of their Child’s Remedial School’s Interventions and Collaborative Engagement
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023-03) Mawoyo, Chantelle Chioniso; Amod, Zaytoon
    The study aimed to explore the experiences and perceptions of parents in South Africa in relation to the interventions that their children receive within the remedial school setting to address their specialised learning needs. Further, this research investigated the parents’ collaborative engagement with teachers and professionals within these remedial schools and explored how their experiences can be improved. This qualitative exploratory study used semi-structured interviews to collect data. Eight parents of children currently placed in remedial schools in South Africa participated in this study. The findings of the study indicate that majority of the remedial parents’ experiences differed based on whether it was a private or public remedial school. Parents in private remedial schools reported receiving more support from the teachers and other professionals in the remedial schools as opposed to public remedial schools. Sufficient resources and consistent collaborative engagement were highlighted by the parents as necessities and significant factors that directly impacted their experiences of the remedial interventions put in place to address their children’s specialized learning needs. There was a gap in collaborative engagement where parents found themselves lacking effective communication from the remedial schools due to a lack of remedial resources. There were also gaps in collaborative engagement between parents and the schools as multidimensional factors relating to parental support we not successfully met by all teachers and professionals. Lastly, COVID-19 resulted in parents having an added load of doing more remedial work with their children at home. In addition, COVID-19 made some remedial interventions difficult to be successfully carried out.