Coping with Challenges in Teaching Foreign Languages to Children with Mild Intellectual Disabilities: Stakeholders’ Perspectives
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Pérez Valverde, María Cristina; Ruiz Cecilia, Raúl; Medina Sánchez, Leopoldo; Guijarro Ojeda, Juan RamónEditorial
MDPI
Materia
Foreign language learning Mild intellectual disability Basic language skills Special education Inclusive education Special Educational Needs
Date
2021Referencia bibliográfica
Pérez-Valverde, C.; Ruiz-Cecilia, R.; Medina-Sánchez, L.; Guijarro-Ojeda, J.R. Coping with Challenges in Teaching Foreign Languages to Children with Mild Intellectual Disabilities: Stakeholders’ Perspectives. Mathematics 2021, 9, 906. https://doi.org/10.3390/ math9080906
Abstract
In this qualitative study, we aim to gain insight into the stakeholders’ perspectives around
the inclusion of a mild intellectual disability (MID) student of perinatal origin in the foreign language
(FL) classroom, and their perspectives on the student’s working conditions, and the support needed to
effectively develop this student’s basic FL skills. The research hypothesis holds that the stakeholders
face numerous technical, contextual, and formative challenges which hinder the MID student’s
learning conditions in the FL classroom. The study was carried out in a state secondary school of
the metropolitan area of Granada (Spain). Different stakeholders participated in this study. As an
instrument of research, we designed an in-depth interview with open questions. The data were
perused, sifted, and interpreted by means of a content analysis methodology. The main results
confirm the research hypothesis since stakeholders’ perspectives are positive towards the theoretical
bases of inclusive education. Conversely, we observe that these perspectives are negative when it
comes to the real and effective practice of inclusive education in the FL classroom, which would
allow them to tailor their teaching methodology to the real needs of the MID student and the rest of
students with special educational needs (SEN).