Minimising the Effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disorders on Affected Learners’ Academic Achievement in Inclusive Primary School Settings in Warren Park-Mabelreign District Harare

Abstract

This study sought to investigate strategies that can be used to minimise the effects of Emotional and Behavioural Disorders (EBDs) on the academic achievement of affected learners in inclusive primary schools in Warren-Park Mabelreign District, Harare. The study was necessitated by continued efforts to improve the inclusion of learners with EBDs enrolled in mainstream schools in the district. The interpretivist paradigm guided the study and a qualitative approach was used, with the case study as the adopted design. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with the school head, deputy head and five selected teachers, as well as focus group discussions with 10 prefects. These participants were purposively selected because of their direct involvement in managing student behaviour and academic progress. Thematic analysis was used to make sense of the generated data . The study reveals that learners with EBDs encounter numerous negative effects that hinder their academic achievement. These effects include academic underperformance, inability to concentrate, disruption of the learning environment, attention seeking behaviour, communication challenges, peer rejection, unstable behaviour and absenteeism and dropping out of school. It also shows that school heads, teachers and school prefects use strategies which include close monitoring, differentiated instruction, workload adjustment, individual attention, positive reinforcement, punishment, peer support, guidance and counselling and promoting empathy and social tolerance to mitigate the effects of EBDs on the affected learners’ academic achievement. In spite of the use of these methods, the inclusion of learners with EBDs remains a struggle since school heads, teachers and school prefects resort mostly to punitive measures. This further complicates the inclusion of learners with EBDs as they end up absenting themselves from school or dropping out completely. The study recommends teacher training, increased access to specialised support services, strengthened parental involvement and the implementation of inclusive, school-wide strategies to effectively support learners with EBDs in mainstream classrooms.