The Department of Basic Education (DBE) believes that the Funza Lushaka Bursary is a critical component in producing teachers with specialised capabilities that enable inclusive education. This is because the bursary programme prioritises funding students who want to specialise in learning areas where there is a low number of teachers.
However, recent enrollment numbers in subjects for learners with special needs indicate that more work is required to ensure learners with special needs have teachers trained to give them the best education.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga was recently asked how the Funza Lushaka recipients were encouraged to take subjects on inclusive education in their initial training. The minister acknowledged that study programmes at different institutions vary, and intuitions understand the importance of preparing teachers to work in diverse classrooms.
All institutions know the importance of preparing future teachers to work in diverse classrooms and therefore include elements of inclusive education and training in the programme content.
Motshekga says institutions offer modules and courses that cover diverse learning needs, creating inclusive classrooms and implementing strategies to support students with varying abilities. These expose teachers-in-training to the basics of working with disabled children.
Modules or courses relating to special education introduce future teachers to the basics of working with students who have disabilities.
The Funza Lushaka Bursary
The DBE explained that Funza Lushaka bursary recipients are encouraged to take inclusive education subjects through the prioritisation of subjects such as Braille, SASL and other Neurodevelopmental Needs such as Autistic Disorder and severe and mild intellectual disorders.
To continue to encourage the students, through the Funza Lushaka Bursary, the DBE has reserved an amount of R100,000 per student to encourage students with disabilities to acquire assistive devices in accordance with their disabilities.
The DBE continues to work with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to encourage them to introduce inclusive education subjects, as most HEIs do not have them in their curricula, so when the DBE encourages the intake of those subjects, student teachers should find them in those institutions.
While the DBE says the Funza Lushaka bursary encourages students to enrol in inclusive education specialisation subjects like South African Sign Language, Braille and Neurodevelopment Needs, only a few learners end up taking these subjects.
The DBE said only 16 students registered for SASL. The other subjects had zero enrolments.
It must be noted that this refers to beneficiaries of the Funza Lushaka bursary enrolling in inclusive education specialisation subjects. Current data on the total number of students enrolled in these subjects who are not Funza Lushaka bursary receipts is unavailable.
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