Obstacles facing Implementation of Inclusion of SEN students in Mainstream Secondary Schools in Saudi Arabia

In the past children with SEN have been treated as non-equals to regular children. However, with the continued push for equality in many countries, educationalists have realized that there is a need to integrate students with SEN in mainstream schools. Research shows that educating students with SEN in mainstream schools has lots of positive implications in their social and academic development. As such it is important to evaluate the best strategies to employ to ensure that the inclusion of SEN ةیبرتلا ىف ىملعلا ثحبلا ةلجم ا ددعلا عساتل ةنسل رشع ٢٠١٨ ٦٦٧ students in mainstream schools becomes a success. However, numerous factors hinder the inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools. This project will show how teachers’ negative attitude towards the practice, teachers’ incompetence, lack of adequate physical and human support deter the inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools. It will also show how other factors such as parents’ attitudes, poor classroom, and school organization, lack of an inclusive curriculum, and assessment strategies, make it difficult to integrate SEN students in mainstream schools. Theoretical Framework In Saudi Arabia, most SEN students are educated in mainstream or special primary schools. It takes a process to determine whether or not a student has special education needs. At a young age, children are taken through physical tests and an analysis of their medical history (Alhammad, 2017). The purpose of the physical tests is to assess hearing, speech, mental and vision abilities of a child. Health examinations are used to establish whether a child’s body is performing as per its age. It is a requirement for every SEN student to have an accompanying letter from a health professional. At the primary school level, teachers are trained to attend to individual educational needs of students with SEN. According to Research, the term SEN was developed to ensure that children with disabilities have access to education curriculum that takes into consideration their needs. Many SEN students at the primary level in Saudi Arabia learn together with regular students, a factor that enables them to overcome social and educational difficulties linked with their disabilities (Alhammad, 2017). According to theory of inclusive education, integrating SEN students in mainstream schools enables them to grow with mixed experiences, a factor that enables that to have meaningful social interactions and succeed in life. It states that SEN students should not be separated with general students, but mainstream secondary schools in Saudi Arabia have failed to do so. The theory indicates that it is the right of SEN students to have access to general education as other able students. Failure to include SEN students in a mainstream secondary schools amounts to abuse of their civil, educational and social rights, which is what Saudi Arabia has continued to do. As such, the inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools in Saudi Arabia is necessary to advance the development process of SEN students after primary education. ةیبرتلا ىف ىملعلا ثحبلا ةلجم ا ددعلا عساتل ةنسل رشع ٢٠١٨ ٦٦٨ Background of the Problem Saudi Arabia has introduced educational policies that are meant to push for inclusion of students with SEN in mainstream schools. The main goal of these policies is to ensure that all children have equal educational rights. The policy for inclusion is presented in the Saudi Arabia education policy document, and it states that "education of people with special educational needs is an integral part of the general education system (AlMousa, 2003). " Human rights groups in Saudi Arabia have called for a change of voluntary SEN services to fundamental rights of the disabled to equality, dignity, and self-respect. There is a gap in research on issues that surround the implementation of inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools, a factor that makes it necessary to conduct this research. This paper will identify some of the actors that make it hard to implement the inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools in Saudi Arabia. Some researchers have in the past identified obstacles that hinder implementation of inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools. Pivik et al., (2002) conducted a study that aimed to investigate barriers facing the inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools in Canada. Some of the barriers he identified include negative attitudes, physical environment, lack of knowledge and awareness. Dyson (2010) in his investigation found out that teachers are opposed to inclusion because it compels them to change their teaching approaches. Similar findings were presented by Alnaser (2007), who investigated factors that hinder inclusion of SEN students in mainstream school in Saudi Arabia. Some of the factor identified by the researcher include negative attitude among parents toward inclusion, the negative attitude of people toward children with SEN, and lack of adequate preparations.