The provision in New Zealand of post-compulsory education for people with an intellectual disability
Abstract
This presentation will discuss the provision of post compulsory education for school leavers and young adults with an intellectual disability in New Zealand. This tertiary opportunity will be looked at, in particular, through a programme that is offered at Manukau Institute of Technology.
This programme will be outlined in relation to its structure, content and how it introduces students to work skills and opportunities for future employment and community living.
Also discussed will be the New Zealand Qualifications Framework and how it has been made accessible for all students to gain national recognition of their achievements.
Finally presented will be the positive outcomes of this tertiary experience from the perspective of both the students and their families.
New Zealand is a small country of 3.8 million people in the Pacific Ocean. It is a young nation with a young population, the median age in 1999 being 30 years. The main population groups are European, Maori, people from the Pacific Islands and Asian, with more recent immigrants arriving from Africa, Croatia, Albania and the Indian sub-continent.
The provision of post-compulsory education in New Zealand for people with an intellectual disability has grown rapidly since its inception in 1986 when there were approximately thirty part time programmes and one full time programme for students with special learning needs in the tertiary sector [Thorburn and Lavell 1988]. The growth of full-time programmes peaked to twenty-four in 1993 and has since dropped back to fifteen in 2000.
These full time programmes [that is, programmes that are a minimum of twenty hours a week for twelve weeks], offered throughout New Zealand have been developed independently of one another. However, they do largely have in common the aim of the development of work and life skills for future employment and community living for the students accepted on them.
The continuation of these programmes is not without difficulty, particularly in the area of resourcing and the rising cost of student fees. These issues can effectively create conditions for the exclusion of people with an intellectual disability from the tertiary scene and in some instances this has been the case.
However, it is important that a tertiary opportunity is available for all people and not just those who are able to access, for example, degree programmes. As stated by Ashman and Elkins [1994]
'Normalisation refers to the establishment of a lifestyle for people with a disability or impairment that resembles as closely as possible the life experiences of other people.'
Having the opportunity to come to Manukau Institute of Technology is being able to take part in at least one life experience that 'resembles as closely as possible the life experiences of other people.'
The Manukau Institute of Technology programmes for students with an intellectual disability
Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand, has three Technical Institutes located in the central, west and south of the city. Manukau Institute of Technology is situated just fifteen kilometres south of the heart of Auckland with the main campus covering over twelve hectares of land. The campus is truly multicultural having a mix of European, Maori, Pacific Island and Asian staff and students.
There are over 22,000 full time and part time students taking over 2,500 full and part time programmes. These programmes include degree, diploma, certificate and short courses. Two of these full time programmes cater for students who have special learning needs as a consequence of intellectual disability.
These students attend the Institute for two years beginning with New Horizons at level 1 which is the first year of the programme. They then move on to Choices in their second year. At the end of the second year the students go on to PolyEmp, a supported employment agency that works with the students from these programmes that are run by the three Institutes in Auckland.
Both New Horizons and Choices take up to fifteen students and have a full time tutor and a full time tutor assistant with each class.
The students who apply for New Horizons have a range of learning needs. These may include visual, hearing and physical needs as well as some degree of intellectual disability. Their abilities can also vary greatly especially in the level of independence, literacy, speech and language, and social skills.
It is important that, as for everyone else, the opportunity for learning does not stop at the end of the compulsory education school years but continues into adult life. Consequently, the students who apply for New Horizons come through a variety of pathways to the Institute. They can come from special schools, attached units or regular classes in secondary schools, community placements, sheltered workshops, or have been at home.
As with all classes at tertiary level, New Horizons is made up of students from a wide age range, experience and background. The class itself is in an inclusive setting being situated in a building alongside other students who are also taking specialist courses, for example, early childhood education, teacher education, counselling, social work and sport and recreation. Along with other students, the New Horizons students access all the facilities at the Institute such as the cafeteria, health centre, counselling services, learning centre and library.
Outline of the New Horizons programme
New Horizons is a tertiary programme for students with special learning needs who:
The programme aims to:
The New Horizons programme runs for thirty four weeks with the students in class at the Institute for three and a half days a week and on a work experience placement for the other day.
The students apply for the programme in the same way as other students apply to attend the Institute. They have an interview which they attend with their key support person. Each student is required to have a key support person who can be a parent, relative, caregiver or community worker.
The role of the key support person is to:
Content of the programme
The content of the New Horizons programme consists of five integrated areas of learning. These are:
These five areas of learning form the programme content which is overlapped with the students working on the personal goals that they set at an Individual Education Plan [IEP] meeting and with unit standards from the New Zealand Qualifications Framework. Within each area of learning are a number of modules.
Interpersonal and Social Skills
Academic Skills for Work
Numeracy
Literacy
Computing
Community Skills
Independent Living Skills
Vocational and Employment Skills
Specialist tutors take the class for specific subjects, for example, computing, first aid and cultural awareness.
Prior to beginning in February each student who has been accepted on the course attends an Individual Education Plan meeting [IEP] with their key support person. This is a chance for the student to set personal goals that can be focused on throughout the year. In this way the programme can incorporate individual learning needs that are specific to each learner. These personal goals are reviewed mid-year in July.
As previously mentioned, work experience is an important part of the New Horizons programme. Some students begin the programme having had some work experience while others have had none. For one day a week the students are on a work experience placement that is supported by the tutors. The students set personal work goals each week which are evaluated by their work supervisor. This feedback is most important in developing appropriate work production skills and social skills for the workplace. The tutors provide support each week by visiting the workplace and liaising with the student and their employer.
Currently we have students working in a cafeteria, supermarkets, retail stores, library, bakery, garden centre, childcare centre, resthome and service station. It is without doubt that as the students successfully develop their work skills huge gains are made, especially in their confidence and self-esteem.
The New Zealand Qualifications Framework and students with special learning needs
The New Zealand Qualifications Framework [NZQF] was established by the 1990 Education Amendment Act to develop a national qualifications framework that would provide a co-ordinated approach to education and training throughout the country.
The Framework is designed to give New Zealanders the chance to receive national recognition for their skills and knowledge. Its purpose is also to dramatically increase the learner's opportunities to acquire new skills and knowledge.
The Framework consists of eight levels ranging from level one, entry level education and training, to level eight, which is at postgraduate level. The system works with providers developing programmes that integrate unit standards into the content.
Unit standards, which are assigned to each level on the Framework provide the key points in a teaching programme at which the students are assessed. They provide the standard for assessment. Thousands of unit standards have been developed to cover the skills and knowledge needed for employment and living in today's fast changing world, for example, core skills, computing, maths, manufacturing, tourism etc. Registered unit standards spell out what learners need to know and be able to do. Learners who are assessed against these, and are competent, gain credit that is recorded on their official Record of Learning.
Traditionally, students with special learning needs have been denied national recognition of their achievements, as the first rung of the qualification ladder is School Certificate, a public exam sat in Year 11. Success in this exam is unachievable for a large number of students who leave school with no qualifications.
However, the New Zealand Qualifications Framework assumes the inclusion of all learners and has provided the opportunity for students with special learning needs to gain recognition for their achievements like everyone else.
In 1996 an Advisory Group of representatives from the Special Education sector was formed who worked together to -
'expand the Framework by developing unit standards which promote access to, and national recognition of, knowledge and skills for all learners'.
The Advisory Group consisted of representatives from:
The task of this group was to produce a matrix of unit standard titles and purpose statements, which reflected the competencies required by learners with special learning needs that were not already covered by other unit standards on the Framework.
In total ninety-two unit standards were written and listed on the Framework under the title of 'Supported Learning'. These are specifically for students
'who require some form of support with their learning; either through additional resources, specialised equipment or adapted teaching programmes.'
The unit standards under the Supported Learning title are grouped into four domains:
The Qualifications Framework does not prescribe the way in which unit standards are to be assessed, which leaves providers with more flexibility to create programmes for groups of students who have specific interests and abilities. The provider integrates the unit standards into their programmes with the elements and performance criteria being the assessment points. This standards based assessment recognises what the students know, understand and can do.
To ensure that there is fair, valid and consistent assessment among all providers each provider must be accredited by NZQA to offer unit standards and must be in a moderation system. Moderation is to check that all assessors are using comparable assessment methods and are making similar and consistent judgments.
The Supported Learning unit standards that are integrated into the New Horizons programme result in the students not only graduating with the Manukau Institute of Technology New Horizons Certificate but also with a nationally recognised Record of Learning. The Record of Learning is an official record of the unit standards the student has achieved.
The unit standards that are assessed in the New Horizons programme include:
Positive outcomes of this tertiary experience for students and their families
At the end of each year an evaluation form is sent to each student's key support person asking for feedback on how the year has been for that student. Some of the positive outcomes for the parent/caregivers are seen in their comments -
The students also regularly give feedback on how the course is going for them. Their comments include the following:
Positive outcomes can also be viewed from the perspective of the programme and the tutors who work on it. From this perspective the positive outcomes for the students also include the:
In conclusion, it can be seen that through this opportunity offered by Manukau Institute of Technology to students with an intellectual disability that an example is provided of a programme that offers a continuation of education, and recognition of achievement at a national level, for its students. However, it is also about being included, and the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. As Ryba [1995] states:
'The power of inclusion becomes apparent when students with disabilities and their non-disabled peers have opportunities to form friendships and to interact naturally with one another'. 'The power of inclusion becomes apparent when students with disabilities and their non-disabled peers have opportunities to form friendships and to interact naturally with one another'.
The Institute is responsive to the diversity of learners in its community and is providing the opportunity for all of its students to put into practice what it means to be inclusive. But also, for the students with an intellectual disability, being in tertiary education is about being in an adult environment, about being involved, about being adult and about having a tertiary experience like everyone else.The Institute is responsive to the diversity of learners in its community and is providing the opportunity for all of its students to put into practice what it means to be inclusive. But also, for the students with an intellectual disability, being in tertiary education is about being in an adult environment, about being involved, about being adult and about having a tertiary experience like everyone else.
REFERENCES
Allen, S., Hagan, W., [1996]. Polytechnic Lifeskills Programmes for Students with Special Learning Needs in New Zealand. Australia: Presented at Pathways 111 Conference, Adelaide.
Ashman, A. & Elkins, J. [Eds]. [1994]. Educating Children with Special Needs. Australia: Prentice Hall, Australia Pty Ltd.
Manukau Institute of Technology. [1999]. Standout! Prospectus 2000. Auckland, New Zealand: Manukau Institute of Technology, Private Bag 94006, Manukau City.v
New Zealand Qualifications Authority. [1990]. The National Qualifications Framework. Wellington, New Zealand.
New Zealand Qualifications Authority. [1996]. Learning and Assessment. Wellington, New Zealand.
O'Connor, G. & Gibbs, A. [1994]. Open Employment and Social Skills for Students with Disabilities: The Importance of Inclusion, Early Planning and Supported Employment. Auckland, New Zealand: Specialist Education Service, Manukau North.
Parmenter, T.R. & Riches, V.C. [1990]. Establishing Individual Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities within the NSW Department of School Education. Australia: Unit for Rehabilitation Studies, Macquarie University.
Ryba, K. [1995]. Response to Luanna Meyer Keynote - Inclusion: What Will Become of Us? Presented at the Conference: 'From Awareness to Action'. New Zealand: Massey University, Albany.
Thorburn, R. & Lavell, K. [1988]. A Survey of Opportunities for Handicapped Students in Polytechnics. Wellington, New Zealand: Department of Education, Continuing Education Division.
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