The classes ranged from primary 1 to primary 6. The grid below shows the percentages of teachers that partook in the survey and the classes they teach.
Table 6
Percentages of teachers that participated in survey and classes they teach
Primary 1 8% (10) Primary 2 14% (17) Primary 3 16% (19) Primary 4 20% (25) Primary 5 17% (21) Primary 6 25% (30)
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Q 3. According to the ‗Nigerians with Disability Decree 1993‘ ‗"disabled
person" means a person who has received premilminary (sic) or permanent certificate of disability to have a condition which is expected to continue permanently or for a considerable length of time which can reasonably be expected to limit the person's functional ability substantially, but not limited to seeing, hearing, thinking, ambulating, climbing, descending, lifting, grasping, rising, any related function or any limitation due to weakness or significantly decreased endurance so that he cannot perform his everyday routine, living and working without significantly increased hardship and vulnerability to everyday
obstacles and hazards.‘
Using the definition of disability given above coupled with your own understanding, please tick the boxes that apply to learning difficulty and disability.
The table below shows the responses the question above.
Table 7
Indication of responses showing awareness of learning disability/difficulty
Dyslexia 3% (4)
Dyspraxia 2% (3)
Autism 3% (4)
Asperger‘s syndrome 2% (3)
Down‘s syndrome 22% (27) Attention deficit disorder 51% (62) Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder 34% (41)
Tourette syndrome 2% (3)
Serious behavioural problems 52% (63)
Hearing impairments 63% (77) Deafness 47% (57) Visual impairments 61% (75) Wheelchair user 34% (41) Mental health 50% (61) HIV/AIDS 16% (20) Physical disability 72% (88) Mobility difficulty 39% (35)
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Discussion
The overall response shows that there is limited awareness of behavioural, developmental and neurological disabilities and disorders. The response shows there is very little awareness of specific learning difficulties. However the response indicates there is slightly more awareness of behavioural difficulties although still not to a very large extent. Perhaps the increased awareness in this area is so because exhibitions of behavioural difficulties are quite an exploited area in teaching and are also quite common, especially in large classrooms where there are many distractions caused by noise, lack of teacher attention of individual pupils, overpopulated classroom sizes etc. Hayes (1997) identifies some of the key problems of teaching large classes as discomfort, control, attention,
evaluation and learning effectiveness. This is a typical scenario where a teacher‘s
classroom management skills come into play. As highlighted in this research, this is an issue that many teachers in Owerri West are confronted with and have to contend with on a daily bases. Onwu (1998) argues that the social demand for formal education has led to an upsurge in school enrolment with a dramatic increase in class size thereby resulting into high teacher – pupil rates. Overpopulated classrooms are considered to be uncondusive for both teachers and students in terms of continuous assesssment marking and the ability to give individualized attention to students needing extra help (Federal Ministry of Education [FEM] 2005).
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Figure 5: Distribution of awareness of developmental, neurological and learning disabilities
Respondents showed significant awareness of Down‘s syndrome, a developmental
difficulty, in comparison to dyslexia and dyspraxia which are hidden disabilities. This could be partly due to the visible nature of the disability and the more
obvious effects Down‘s syndrome has on learning. When disabilities are obvious
it is quite difficult to ignore them. Acknowledegment of a disability attracts inclusive processes and sets them in motion. Although the extent to which these manifest in support provision is still subject to a number of factors all centered round culture, understanding, policy and funding.
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Figure 6: Pie chart showing comparison of extent of awareness of neurological, developmental and learning disabilities
The chart below shows the distribution of respondents‘ awareness of impairments and disabilities. Again the most obvious impairments and disabilities ranked higher than the more subtle disabilities shown in figure 5.
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16% of the respondents identified HIV/AIDS as a disability. It is of interest to note here that HIV/AIDS is not always considered in legislation as a disability as it is subject to different countries‘ perceptions of what disability is and who qualifies under legislation. While some argue that people with HIV/AIDS have disabilities caused by the illness that make them vulnerable in society and should therefore be considered in disability policy, others are of the view that the illness is disenabling and as such it should be classified as a disability. There is the difference here between HIV/AIDS making those affected vulnerable, hence the humanitarian consideration of the illness being included under protection laws, and the straight off classification of HIV/AIDS as a disability.
The statement made by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke outlined below presents a very interesting take on HIV/AIDS as a disability.
AIDS is primarily an immune system disorder caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), but it can also affect the nervous system. HIV does not appear to directly invade nerve cells but it jeopardizes their health and function, causing symptoms such as confusion, forgetfulness, behavioural changes, headaches, progressive weakness and loss of sensation in the arms and legs, cognitive motor impairment, or damage to the peripheral nerves. Other complications that can occur as a result of HIV infection or the drugs used to treat it include pain, seizures, shingles, spinal cord problems, lack of coordination, difficult or painful swallowing, anxiety disorder, depression, fever, vision loss, gait disorders, destruction of brain tissue, and coma. (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2010)
This could be contrasted with the status given to HIV/AIDS at the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (United Nations, 2006) where it was reported that:
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―Persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical,
mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in
society on an equal basis with others‖ (Article 1)
The Convention does not explicitly refer to HIV or AIDS in the definition of disability. However, States are required to recognize that where persons living with HIV (asymptomatic or symptomatic) have impairments which, in interaction with the environment, results in stigma, discrimination or other barriers to their participation, they can fall under the protection of the Convention.
States parties to the Convention are required to ensure that national legislation complies with this understanding of disability. Some countries have accorded protection to people living with HIV under national disability legislation. Other countries have adopted antidiscrimination laws that either explicitly include discrimination on the basis of HIV status or can be interpreted to do so. Such laws offer a means of redress against HIV-related discrimination in a number of areas, such as employment or education. (UNAIDS, WHO and OHCHR [Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights] Policy Brief April 2009)
Again this could be compared with the Nigeria‘s National Policy on HIV/AIDS (2003) where the overall goal of the Nigeria‘s National Policy on HIV/AIDS is to:
Control the spread of HIV in Nigeria, to provide equitable care and support for those infected by HIV and to mitigate its impact to the point where it is no longer of public health, social and economic concern, such that all Nigerians will be able to achieve socially and economically productive lives free of the disease and its effects.
On ethics and human rights Nigeria‘s National Policy on HIV/AIDS affirms that:
Persons living with or affected by HIV shall not be discriminated against on the basis of their health status with respect to education, training, employment, housing, travel, access to health care and other social amenities and citizenship rights.
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It is based on the general understanding of HIV/AIDs as a global phenomenon that HIV/AIDS was included as an item in number 3 of the questionnaire. This was also done in order to ascertain the extent to which respondents identified HIV/AIDS as a disability. Interestingly only 16% of respondents identified HIV/AIDS as a disability. The significance of this though not investigated in depth in this study is of interest and begs the question whether the lack of identification of HIV/AIDS as a disability is due to societal understanding of HIV/AIDS or the extent to which the National Policy on HIV/AIDS sheds light on it or both. Also to what extent has HIV/AIDS been presented in Nigeria as disenabling for it to assume disability status? Such issues are subject to a society‘s values, the understanding and interpretation of concepts, and the way these concepts are interwoven in the everyday lives of the people living in the society.
103 Table 8 Str ong ly A gre e A gre e N eut ra l D isagr ee Str ong ly D isagr ee
Q 4 Do policy definitions play an important role in determining