A case study of the secondary school experience of a student with down syndrome

Abstract

This dissertation focusses primarily on discussing the educational experience of a student with Down syndrome in a secondary church school. The research was based on interviews with teachers, LSA and parents of a student with Down syndrome, as well as with the student herself. A great part of the data was collected through observations of lessons and sessions with the LSA. The dissertation discusses the effects of inclusion on the student with Down syndrome as well as on the class as a whole; it also focuses on the impact that the role of the LSA has on the student and what benefit, if any, she is gaining from being taken out of class for one-to-one sessions. This dissertation will also discuss what kind of curriculum is being offered to the student and in what ways it is different from that followed by the rest of the class, as well as how the different abilities of the student are addressed through the syllabus she is being offered.