Page 166 - Petelin, Ana, et al. 2019. Eds. Zdravje otrok in mladostnikov / Health of Children and Adolescents. Proceedings. Koper: University of Primorska Press
P. 166
avje otrok in mladostnikov | health of children and adolescents 164 indiscriminately of abilities. This goal requires close cooperation between dif-
ferent professionals and services, as well as collaboration with the children’s
families.
In the past few decades, legal efforts have been made to support inclu-
sive education in Slovenia. The White Paper on Education in the Republic of
Slovenia (1995) formed the foundation for the Elementary School Act, Organi-
zation and Financing of Education Act, and Act on the Guidance of Children
with Special Needs (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, number 58/11).
The new legislation aimed to establish a school system based on the principles
of humanism and inclusion that could offer all individuals equal opportunities
for education, personal development, and participation. However, there still
appears to be a big divide between formal policies and everyday school practic-
es (Mitchell, 2005; Kavkler 2008).
Many experts believe that for the inclusion model to be successfully im-
plemented, teachers, parents, children, and other professionals working with
children with special needs should feel included in the process. A child’s family
and the school are the primary settings for education and inclusion. Therefore,
their cooperation needs to be effective (Rodrigues et al., 2015). International
studies suggest that the involvement of parents can be an important indica-
tor of the child’s academic success (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005; Goldman &
Burke, 2017). Children whose parents are more involved also exhibit fewer be-
havioral issues (Syriopoulou-Delli et al., 2016). Parents are often motivated by a
sense of responsibility for the child and believe that their involvement can in-
crease the child’s success (Goldman & Burke, 2017).
Experts are still trying to develop better ways of collaborating with par-
ents of children with special needs and studies in this area are scarce (Hoo-
ver-Dempsey et al., 2005; Syriopoulou-Delli et al., 2016). The purpose of our
paper is to empirically investigate and critically evaluate the experiences of Slo-
venian teachers and occupational therapists with collaboration with parents of
children with special needs. To our knowledge, this is the first qualitative study
that attempts to explore this vital issue in the Slovenian context.
Methods
This was a qualitative study. The research questions we aimed to answer were:
RQ1: What are the experiences and opinions of Slovenian primary school
teachers regarding their collaboration with parents of children with
special needs who attend regular schools?
RQ2: What are the experiences and opinions of occupational therapists
who work with students with special needs regarding their collabo-
ration with schools, teachers, and the child’s family?
ferent professionals and services, as well as collaboration with the children’s
families.
In the past few decades, legal efforts have been made to support inclu-
sive education in Slovenia. The White Paper on Education in the Republic of
Slovenia (1995) formed the foundation for the Elementary School Act, Organi-
zation and Financing of Education Act, and Act on the Guidance of Children
with Special Needs (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, number 58/11).
The new legislation aimed to establish a school system based on the principles
of humanism and inclusion that could offer all individuals equal opportunities
for education, personal development, and participation. However, there still
appears to be a big divide between formal policies and everyday school practic-
es (Mitchell, 2005; Kavkler 2008).
Many experts believe that for the inclusion model to be successfully im-
plemented, teachers, parents, children, and other professionals working with
children with special needs should feel included in the process. A child’s family
and the school are the primary settings for education and inclusion. Therefore,
their cooperation needs to be effective (Rodrigues et al., 2015). International
studies suggest that the involvement of parents can be an important indica-
tor of the child’s academic success (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005; Goldman &
Burke, 2017). Children whose parents are more involved also exhibit fewer be-
havioral issues (Syriopoulou-Delli et al., 2016). Parents are often motivated by a
sense of responsibility for the child and believe that their involvement can in-
crease the child’s success (Goldman & Burke, 2017).
Experts are still trying to develop better ways of collaborating with par-
ents of children with special needs and studies in this area are scarce (Hoo-
ver-Dempsey et al., 2005; Syriopoulou-Delli et al., 2016). The purpose of our
paper is to empirically investigate and critically evaluate the experiences of Slo-
venian teachers and occupational therapists with collaboration with parents of
children with special needs. To our knowledge, this is the first qualitative study
that attempts to explore this vital issue in the Slovenian context.
Methods
This was a qualitative study. The research questions we aimed to answer were:
RQ1: What are the experiences and opinions of Slovenian primary school
teachers regarding their collaboration with parents of children with
special needs who attend regular schools?
RQ2: What are the experiences and opinions of occupational therapists
who work with students with special needs regarding their collabo-
ration with schools, teachers, and the child’s family?
