Inclusion in Zimbabwean Rural Schools: Teachers’ Perceptions on Challenges and Mitigating Strategies

Abstract

Literature reveals that rural teachers’ perceptions are rarely considered in inclusion on educational discourses. The researcher submits that schools play a critical role in advancing the agenda of Inclusion in education in marginalized Zimbabwean rural secondary schools. It is against this background that this chapter unfolds through a socio-cultural theoretical lens which explores Zimbabwe rural teachers’ lived-experiences regarding the challenges including mitigating strategies towards inclusion in education in teaching and learning processes. A qualitative phenomenological design guided the data collection, presentation and analysis processes. In-depth phenomenological conversations were conducted with ten purposively selected participants from two rural secondary schools. All data was transcribed verbatim, and subsequently thematically analyzed. Participants answered two questions: What are the challenges affecting inclusion in education in rural secondary schools and how can they be mitigated? Findings revealed that some teachers have limited of the intricacies of inclusion in education. Therefore, it is recommendable to make Inclusion a compulsory module at teacher-training (university or college) level to strategically equip teachers for inclusive educational knowledge and skills.