The Predicament of Inclusive Education and the Realities of Practice in Tanzania after Two Decades of Education for A

Tanzania has been implementing several educational development plans and programmes at primary and secondary education levels. These plans and programmes aim at realizing the goal of education for all and therefore making primary education and ordinary secondary education universal. The implementation of these plans and programmes reflects a substantial need for educators and professionals in special education who can be able to handle pupils in inclusive and special classrooms and schools. The aim of the present study was to explore the participants’ motives for participating in a B.Ed. Special Education programme and the perceived outcomes of the programme in terms of professional development. The study focused on two core issues: motives and perceived outcomes. A case study approach was adopted. Questionnaires and interviews were administered in three phases between January 2007 and February 2009 to a group of 35 educators participating in a B.Ed. Special Education programme. Findings of the study revealed that participants expressed a number of motives and outcomes related to job, degree and career, student and community support, and personal growth. The findings further confirm that the participants’ motives and outcomes were closely related. The findings serve as a starting point for discussing the phenomenon of professional development in special education in Tanzania. Furthermore, the study findings underline that the motives for participating in the programme were complex, interactive and dynamic, thus emphasis on a singular explanation is naïve and insufficient. 

Tanzania has been implementing several educational development plans and programmes at primary and secondary education levels. These plans and programmes aim at realizing the goal of education for all and therefore making primary education and ordinary secondary education universal. The implementation of these plans and programmes reflects a substantial need for educators and professionals in special education who can be able to handle pupils in inclusive and special classrooms and schools. The aim of the present study was to explore the participants’ motives for participating in a B.Ed. Special Education programme and the perceived outcomes of the programme in terms of professional development. The study focused on two core issues: motives and perceived outcomes. A case study approach was adopted. Questionnaires and interviews were administered in three phases between January 2007 and February 2009 to a group of 35 educators participating in a B.Ed. Special Education programme. Findings of the study revealed that participants expressed a number of motives and outcomes related to job, degree and career, student and community support, and personal growth. The findings further confirm that the participants’ motives and outcomes were closely related. The findings serve as a starting point for discussing the phenomenon of professional development in special education in Tanzania. Furthermore, the study findings underline that the motives for participating in the programme were complex, interactive and dynamic, thus emphasis on a singular explanation is naïve and insufficient.