The Importance of Teachers’ Universal Design for Transition Principles Knowledge in Preparing Students Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing for the Life after School in Saudi Arabia

Marzouq Ali Alzahrani

doi:10.4236/ce.2018.93036

Abstract

This research sought to establish the importance of teachers’ UDT knowledge in preparing students who are deaf and hard of hearing (DH/H). The study targeted DH/H in general schools in KSA. The main objective of the study was to examine whether the concepts of UDT are understood and successfully incorporated into the activities of teachers, who teach Deaf and Hard of Hearing students in general education schools of Saudi Arabian educational system. The paper relied on both secondary and primary data. It sampled some teachers in general schools who teach both normal and Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. The research used interviews as the main tool for collecting primary data while secondary data were achieved from previous works by scholars. The paper targeted schools in Riyadh City in Saudi Arabia. The findings of this research will aid educational policymakers in striking a balance in the education system between normal students and those living with disabilities. The findings of this research indicate the teachers are not well equipped with skills in UDT principles hence the need to prepare seminars and in-service training programs to train the teachers and at the same time incorporate UDT programs in teachers’ training courses.

Highlights

The purpose of this study is to examine whether the concepts of Universal Design for Transition (UDT) are understood and successfully incorporated into the activities of teachers, who teach Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DH/H) students in general and special education
The purpose of this study is to examine whether the concepts of UDT are understood and successfully incorporated into the activities of teachers, who teach Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DH/H) students in general education schools of Saudi Arabian educational system
The following questions were based on the relationship between teachers’ understanding of the seven principles of UDT and the barriers that might occur when UDT as an instructional design framework is implemented in the schools of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA): 1) Teachers don’t know about UDT: the participants did not know much about the UDT principles, it seems that they are aware of the importance of the existence of a conscious team aware of its functions is very important

Summary

Introduction

Programs of special education have been evolved in Saudi Arabia for years, to increase, refine, and support the educational attainment for students with disabilities (Aldabas, 2015). Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework has been used as a global vision for the integration of students with disabilities. It had been included instruction curriculum designs, academic transition planning, and student assessments to fill the gaps in general school, to achieve successful transitions of students to inclusive educational programs (Mapolisa & Tshabalala, 2013), but students with disabilities often got straight less results than their peers, according to results obtained with Kim & Lee (2016). Systems like “UDL” and “UDT” models have been adopted for several years in western countries such as the United States, while, it is considered new features in KSA

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