Understanding and Accommodating Learners with Anxiety disorders in our Classrooms and South African inclusive Schools: a case of learners with Special Education Needs under spotlight

Abstract

Background: This article reports on the aspect of children with anxiety disorders in South African classes and inclusive schools and facilitates the implementation of an education support plan, to enable learners with anxiety disorders to fully and effectivly participate in learning activities, and provide guidelines on the effective teaching and learning strategies for learners with anxiety disorders. As many as 8 to 11% of children and adolescents suffer from an anxiety disorder which can develop into specific phobias, social phobias, generalised anxiety disorders and obsessive behaviour. Childhood and adolescents are identified as the main risk developmental phases for the beginning of anxiety disorders and abnormal anxiety levels have negative effects on cognitive functioning, school performance and outcomes.
Objectives: The objectives for this study were: To facilitate the implementation of an action plan for school personnel to follow when a learner experiencing anxiety disorder required intervention and support to provide guidelines on effective teaching and learning strategies for these learners. Further, to highlight anxiety problems encountered and displayed by children in classes and schools so that educators would be able to better understand and accommodate these learners.
Method: The researchers followed a mixed-method research design, where both qualitative and quantitative research methods were utilised. Hence, researchers generated in-depth information by using this methods of research via different data collection tools as well as through different data analysis techniques. By employing both quantitative and qualitative methods simultaneously, that provides a better understanding of the research problem and question unlike each method being employed in itself which is why the researchers chose this method approach. The researchers believed that one method alone would not have been enough to address the research problem at hand. The researchers employed purposive sampling composed of teachers, parents and learners experiencing anxiety disorders from Learners with Special Education Needs school (LSEN).
Results: Through a mixed methods approach, relevant in-depth information was generated and by choosing to conduct a case study, an in-depth analysis of anxiety disorders in learners and adolescents in their natural school setting was possible. The quantitative data came from questionnaires while the qualitative data came from interviews and observation checklist. The analysis was comprised of three steps, namely, organisation of the data, summarising the data and then interpreting the data to search for the patterns.
Conclusion: The findings suggested that lack of expertise results in teachers incorrectly labelling learners according to the behaviours that they see and not according to the underlying causes of these behaviours. Further, the study found that learners and adolescents with anxiety experience increased interpersonal and peer difficulties compared with their non-anxious peers. As a result, researchers of this study are of the view that the systems of support needed to address academic, behavioural, and emotional needs of learners should include both prevention and intervention efforts with learners.