Six year-6 students participated in the focus group interview..
This interview explored students’ perceptions of their school, their teachers, what school was like for them, what
happened to kids who were disabled or different, and their views and attitudes towards disability and inclusive education.
Initially, students were asked to talk about what it was like at their school. Generally students all agreed that playtime and lunchtime was the best thing about the school because they could be with their friends. One student thought the ‘fun stuff’ they got to do, for example art and knitting, was the best thing about the school. One student thought getting rewarded was the best thing and another said the people and the teachers.
The best thing about this school is at playtime and lunchtime. It’s like up to us if we want to be good or not and we can hang out with our friends and we don’t get forced.
You get to play with people and you get to get PE gear out. (Student focus group)
One student summed up what it was like for her at the school.
With our school it’s like a really nice environment because people just get along. If somebody is new here and they are like ashamed or scared or something, other people will just go up and say “are you bored or something, do you want to come and play with me?” and that is how they make new friends. (Student focus group)
When asked about the worst thing about the school, two students thought that it was when people are naughty and the teacher growls or shouts at them. One added that the worst thing was when everyone in the class had to pay the consequences for those students who get into trouble. One student thought the work was the worst thing, and another student thought the bullies were the worst thing about the school. One student said other kids annoying her and breaking up her games.
Like when some people get growled at and we have some people be naughty and the good people have to pay the consequences. (Student focus group)
The thing that I hate about this school is that there are bullies and all that and they get us into trouble when they are lying. (Student focus group)
In relation to the best and worst things about the school, no students raised any issues associated with disabled students or the special education unit.
When asked to talk about bullying, all the students spoke of some aspect of bullying that concerned them. These were all were associated with peer bullying. No students
spoke of teacher bullying. They reported that students got bullied if they were very good, if they were the teachers’ pet, if they did something wrong in a game in the playground, or if they showed off. While most thought that teachers did not know about all of the bullying, there was general agreement that their school was safe for them. Most of the students in the focus group talked about the peer mediators25
in their school: It’s kind of safe because when you’ve got friends, because there are two mediators walking around most of the time but if you are getting bullied you can or if you are hurt like you fall off the playground equipment they can help you. (Student focus group)
One student thought that if they had more male teachers, there would be less fights: I think they need more boy teachers to stop most of the fights. Because we had the same amount of boy teachers and the girl teachers at my old school. (Student focus group)
The students were asked to talk about students with special needs.26
When asked if they had any students with special needs in their classes, none said that they did. One student replied:
No, there is the special needs class over there. Sometimes they come into different classrooms. (Student focus group)
When asked if the students from the special needs unit ever come into their classes, the students explained that they came into mainstream classes for certain times of the day.
Yeah. There is this boy and he goes into that class for a couple of hours and just works with them. One of the teachers in the special needs class goes with him. (Student focus group)
When asked if they knew the names of the students in the unit, many of the students in the focus group could name them. When asked if the students in the special needs unit were part of the school, they agreed that these students were part of the school. An example was given by one student that they came to assembly, walked around at lunch time and their teacher aide took them around the school when everyone is doing work. When asked if the students from the special needs unit were treated well, all thought that they were, although one student said that while other students were nice to their
25 Peers who are trained to help students resolve disputes between each other.
26 The term ‘special needs’ was used in the focus group as this was the term that the students were
face, they were mean to them behind their backs. No students mentioned disabled students being treated badly by teachers.
When asked how things could be better for the students in the special needs unit, two students thought there should be more communication and liaison between the mainstream school and the special needs unit.
Sometimes the teachers could set up, with [name of special needs unit teacher] a day with them or a couple of hours. And then two kids or someone could go over there for two hours and spend some time with them. (Student focus group)
One student suggested that the school needed to be one whole school and a community. They thought that this could happen by getting to know the students from the unit better and going over to the unit more often. One student thought that the students in the special needs unit should go to mainstream classes to really get to know each other. This way they would not be left out of the school.
If they go to other classes to get really known to each other. So they know that they are not left out of the school. (Student focus group)
Another student suggested that things could be better for the students from the special needs unit if they had their own playground.
Students were asked if they thought it was best to have students in a special needs unit or in mainstream classes. Four of the six students thought that they should be in a special needs unit because they get more care; it is more fun for them; they feel comfortable there because they know the teachers; because people in the mainstream won’t know what to do with them; and because there were more people to look after them in the unit. Two students thought they should be in both the unit and the mainstream classroom. One gave the reason that they could learn to do ‘normal stuff’ in the mainstream classroom, then take that back to the unit.
I reckon it’s good if they be in their room and it’s good if they come into the normal classroom sometimes to learn about what the normal kids are doing and then when they go back they can start doing that in their room. (Student focus group)
The students had mixed ideas about the concept of special needs. There was general agreement that this concept was only associated with significant impairment, particularly in relation to brain function. Students agreed if a person had difficulty
learning or reading, or had difficulty with hearing or vision, this was not ‘special needs’ as it was still ‘normal’. As a follow up to a student who talked about students with special needs as not being normal, the interviewer asked:
So would you call someone who had trouble learning, or had trouble reading, would you call them normal?[interviewer]
Yeah but they just couldn’t learn properly. They are still normal. (Student focus group)
One student pointed out that the principal had bad eyesight, but he was still normal.
There was agreement amongst the group that special needs equated to abnormal, and abnormal was associated with impairments in brain function.
It depends. If it with your eyesight or you ears you can still do all the other stuff but not…
But with your brain it’s a bit different? [interviewer]
Yeah because you brain controls your whole body. And if you get brain damage like your brain blanks out and you don’t know what to do because its like, that controls the whole body. (Student focus group)
In terms of how people come to have special needs, one student thought it depended on how parents treated the child.
The parents. Depending on how you grow up and what happens to you because depending on the parents if they are going to treat you well. (Student focus group)
One student thought that people were born that way, and one student explained that it happened if your brain becomes damaged for example, in a car accident.
5.8.1 Phase Three: Student Focus Group Summary
Students who participated in the focus group generally spoke positively about their school. The best things about the school for them were associated with socialising times, such as playtime and lunchtime. Also, they liked being involved in fun activities such as art. The worst thing for the students was growling teachers, bullying and the work they were required to do.
In terms of bullying, all students had reported that bullying did occur at their school but that they generally felt safe there. The students did not believe that disabled students
were bullied, although one student did point out that sometimes people were unkind about them behind their backs. No students mentioned teacher bullying.
Students gave the general impression that the students in the special education unit, while part of the school theoretically, were in fact separate from the mainstream. They indicated this by comments associated with what improvements they thought needed to happen for these students. For example, better mixing of students from the unit with the mainstream students; that it was better for the disabled students themselves to have their own unit and teachers; and that mainstream teachers would not know what to do.
Students in the focus group had definite ideas of what special needs meant. Special needs equated to ‘not normal’ and it was students with intellectual impairments who were thought to have special needs. Those students with sensory impairments and learning difficulties were thought to be ‘normal’ and not have special needs.