From Policy to Practice: A South-African Perspective on Implementing Inclusive Education Policy.

Introduction The advent of a democracy in South Africa ushered in refreshing changes within the South African context. Given South Africa's dark apartheid history, every policy intervention had to ensure a human rights ethos prevails. Inclusive Education, through the publication of the policy document Education White Paper 6 on Special Needs Education: Building an Inclusive Education and Training System (2001) set out to create a single education system for all learners within a twenty-year period. The White Paper was launched in July 2001. Four years after the launch, policy developers and implementers have arrived at a realization that there are several challenges and possibilities associated with the implementation of Inclusive Education in South Africa. Whilst there is enough reason to be highly optimistic about the future of inclusive education in South Africa, the caveat is not to underestimate the challenges and complexities of developing a single education system for all learners. This paper will attempt to discuss the challenges by highlighting the following issues: (i) epistemology, (ii) entrenched special education theory and practices, (iii) curriculum 2005 and, (iv) ideological and political factors. CHALLENGES FOR INCLUSION Epistemology Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that studies knowledge. (Heylighen, 1993) Heyligen goes to say that the first theories of knowledge stressed its absolute, permanent character, whereas the later theories put the emphasis on its relativity or situation dependence, its continuous development or evolution, and its active interference with the world and its subjects and objects. The whole trend moves from a static, passive view of knowledge towards a more and more adaptive and active one (p.1). The South African apartheid education doctrine focused on control, absolute understanding of the world and a very authoritarian approach. Arguably this kind of approach impacted on thinking, teaching and practice in classrooms. For educationists at all levels to be more adaptive and active, understandings about epistemology or theories of knowledge must surface. One would assume given the revolutionary nature of the political change in South Africa with education policy emphasizing non-racism, equity, non-sexism, access for all and non-disabilism that the pedagogical content would be a radical departure from the past. The trend from static to adaptive and active is obviously guided by different knowledge background or different theoretical frameworks. Ten years after democracy the claim be made here is that South African policy relating to inclusion and access to a single Revised National Curriculum Statement stops short of a pedagogic revolution and is stuck at a political level since it ignored epistemological issues in the training of educationists. The following discussion attempts to explain this shortcoming. At an international level, this scenario seems to be problematic. David Mitchell (2005) citing Emanuelsson, Haug & Persson, argues that even in Sweden and Norway, which are often held up as the pioneers of inclusive education, while policies are based upon thinking with roots in the relational perspective, the traditions within the school systems are essentially categorical and assume a two-track organisation, with special education as one and regular education as the other track. Mitchell (2005) citing Slee in Australia (Queensland in particular), says that the tension between new inclusive education policies and the adherence to old special education perspectives. The latter is particularly evident among advocates for the large and resilient special school sector. Within the South African context it is common knowledge that bureaucrats and public service government officials pay scant respect to disciplines that examine knowledge itself, its origins and nature. However, it must be noted that the majority of personnel who join government departments are not employed to train. …