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Exploring the experiences of students with visual impairments at the University of Botswana

OATS, Reginald
DISELE, Chawapiwa
2019

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Purpose: This paper sought to document the responsiveness of the University of Botswana towards the academic needs of students with visual impairments. The study examined the academic experiences of students with visual impairments enrolled at the University and explored their information-seeking needs. The study was informed by the theory of social justice.

Method: This was a qualitative study. Data was collected from students with visual impairments and academic staff from different faculties at the University of Botswana, through document analysis, interviews and observation techniques.

Results: The findings revealed that students with visual impairments experience extra challenges compared to students without disabilities. This is mainly because they do not get full support to enable them to excel academically. Furthermore, lecturers use teaching methodologies that do not accommodate these students, and learning materials are not adapted to formats suitable for them. Access to information is another major concern that hinders the participation of students with visual impairments in tertiary institutions.

Conclusion: The study recommends that lecturers need to be trained on suitable methods to teach students with visual impairments and how best to deliver academic content to them.

 

Disability, CBR and Inclusive Development, Vol 30, No 1 (2019)

The complexity of rural contexts experienced by community disability workers in three southern African countries

BOOYENS, Margaret
VAN PLETZEN, Ermien
LORENZO, Theresa
2015

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An understanding of rural communities is fundamental to effective community-based rehabilitation work with persons with disabilities. By removing barriers to community participation, persons with disabilities are enabled to satisfy their fundamental human needs. However, insufficient attention has been paid to the challenges that rural community disability workers (CDWs) face in trying to realise these objectives. This qualitative interpretive study, involving in-depth interviews with 16 community disability workers in Botswana, Malawi and South Africa, revealed the complex ways in which poverty, inappropriately used power and negative attitudes of service providers and communities combine to create formidable barriers to the inclusion of persons with disabilities in families and rural communities. The paper highlights the importance of understanding and working with the concept of ‘disability’ from a social justice and development perspective. It stresses that by targeting attitudes, actions and relationships, community disability workers can bring about social change in the lives of persons with disabilities and the communities in which they live.

Disability in national strategic plans on HIV and AIDS : a review on the national response to the interrelations of disability and HIV in eastern and southern Africa|Final report

GRANT, Kitty
STRODE, Ann
HANNASS-HANCOCK, Jill
December 2009

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This report examines national AIDS and HIV strategic plans (NSPs) in eastern and southern Africa and includes findings, discussions and best practice examples on the integration of disability throughout the countries. "Generally, the findings of the report show that less than 50% of the countries in Eastern and Southern Africa recognise disability as an issue of concern, or specifically recognise the vulnerability of people with disabilities to HIV and AIDS within their NSPs. Furthermore, it found that even where countries have recognised disability as an issue, there is limited specific guidance within the NSP on HIV-related service provision to meet the needs of people with disabilities. Only one country, South Africa, showed extensive integration of disability into the various focus areas of its NSP." The report concludes with recommendations and provides detailed appendices of national reports for each country surveyed

Integrating multiple gender strategies to improve HIV and AIDS interventions : a compendium of programs in Africa

INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR RESEARCH ON WOMEN
May 2009

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This report looks at how four specific gender strategies are being used in HIV and AIDS intervention programmes, how they are working, and how people are learning from and sharing their experiences toward strengthening programmes and expanding successes. A number of programmes in 11 African countries, as well as multi-country programmes are examined. The four gender strategies are: - Reducing gender-based violence; - Increasing women‘s legal protection; - Addressing male norms and behaviours, and - Strategies to increase women‘s income and productive resources.

Practice and preferences of sign languages in the instructions of deaf students: some reflections on the mainstream secondary school of Botswana

LEKOKO, Rebecca N
MUKHOPADHYAY, S
2008

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The use of language for every day communication has been and continues to be an essential element of any teaching and learning environment. In this paper, the focus is on the teaching -learning communication in the education of the learners with deafness. While experiences indicate that some people in Botswana are showing more and more interest in Sign Language as a mode of instruction in the classroom, it is also true that many are far from understanding the "Deaf Culture" and to use sign language in the teaching and learning of deaf students. To a great extent, deaf people in Botswana are still disadvantaged and discriminated against, by their condition. A survey carried out in 2004 (1) revealed that some current practices in the mainstream secondary school of Botswana make it difficult for deaf students to progress. While, for example, participants preferred Total Communication; in practise, Signed English is used. Thus, this paper takes a stance that if practices conflict with preference, low performance should be expected. This is currently the situation at the mainstream secondary schools in Botswana, deaf students' inability to hear has become their inability to learn and progress in education. This could be avoided. In this 21st century, being unable to hear is not a barrier to learning, as we are aware that Sign Languages are there as full languages, for the education of deaf.

 

Asia Pacific Disability Rehabilitation Journal, Vol 19, No 1

What African children and youth think and feel : an opinion poll of children and youth in eastern and southern Africa

AFRICAN CHILD POLICY FORUM
UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN'S FUND EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA REGIONAL OFFICE (UNICEF-ESARO)
2006

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This is a summary of the findings of polls carried out in 8 countries in eastern and southern Africa on the opinions of children and youth as to their well-being, emotions and environment; their relationships with family and friends; their relationship with their communities, their countries and their leaders; and about their perceptions of the issues concerning them. The polls involved over 4,000 young people aged between 9 and 17

Mainstreaming HIV/AIDS : a conceptual framework and implementing principles

JOINT UNITED NATIONS PROGRAMME ON HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GTZ)
et al
June 2002

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This document explores the current understanding of mainstreaming, and examples of relevant experience. It provides a set of basic principles designed to enable those working at the different levels and aspects of HIV/AIDS policy and practice to begin using mainstreaming processes to expand and accelerate responses to HIV/AIDS

Psychosocial support portal

REGIONAL PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT INITIATIVE (REPSSI)

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The Psychosocial support portal contains links to documents rpoduced by and with REPSSI. These include reports of programme acitivites; manuals, guides and toolkits; country responses to children and HIV/AIDS; training manuals; research papers; and information about training and education

AFRO barometer : a comparative series of national public attitude surveys on democracy, markets and civil society in Africa

Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA)
Center for Democracy and Development, (CDD-Ghana)
Michigan State University (MSU)

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Afrobarometer is a state-of-the-art research survey that measures the social, political and economic atmosphere in Africa. Afrobarometer surveys are conducted in more than a dozen countries. Because there are a standard set of questions, countries can be systematically compared and, ultimately, trends in public attitudes can be tracked over time. Each survey collects data about individual attitudes and behavior. Surveys have been done on democracy, governance, livelihoods, macro-economics and markets, social capital, crime, participation and national identity

The Africa campaign on disability and HIV & AIDS

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The Africa Campaign is a unifying umbrella under which disabled people's organisations, organisations of people living with HIV & AIDS, non-governmental organisations, AIDS services organisations, researchers, activists, and other citizens work collectively to achieve two main objectives: a coordinated response involving persons with disabilities in African countries to achieve inclusive national HIV & AIDS policies and programmes; and equal access for persons with disabilities in Africa to information and services on HIV & AIDS. This website contains information about the campaign and key documents

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