A STUDY TO ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SELF

INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE ON KNOWLEDGE AND

ATTITUDE OF PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

TOWARDS CHILDREN WITH LEARNING

DISABILITIES IN SELECTED

SCHOOLS AT TUMKUR

SYNOPSIS PROFORMA FOR REGISTRATION OF SUBJECT

FOR DISSERTATION

BIJI MATHEW
IST YEAR M.Sc. NURSING
PSYCHIATRIC NURSING.
YEAR 2011-2013.

ARUNA COLLEGE OF NURSING,

TUMKUR, KARNATAKA.

1
 RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH

SCIENCES, BANGALORE, KARNATAKA.

SYNOPSIS PROFORMA FOR REGISTRATION OF SUBJECT

FOR DISSERTATION

1 NAME OF THE BIJI MATHEW.

CANDIDATE AND IST YEAR M.Sc. NURSING,
ADDRESS ARUNA COLLEGE OF NURSING,
TUMKUR, KARNATAKA.
2 NAME OF THE ARUNA COLLEGE OF NURSING,
INSTITUTE TUMKUR, KARNATAKA.
3 COURSE OF THE STUDY IST YEAR M.Sc. NURSING,
AND SUBJECT PSYCHIATRIC NURSING.
4 DATE OF ADMISSION
TO THE COURSE

5 TITLE OF THE STUDY “A STUDY TO ASSESS THE

EFFECTIVENESS OF SELF
INSTRUCTIONAL MODULE ON
KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE OF
PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS
TOWARDS CHILDREN WITH
LEARNING DISABILITIES IN
SELECTED SCHOOLS IN TUMKUR”.

2
 6. BRIEF RESUME OF THE INTENDED WORK

INTRODUCTION

“The potential and possibilities of any child are the most intriguing and
stimulating in all creation.”

— Ray L. Wilbur

Today’s children are tomorrow’s responsible citizens of the world. There is a

great to emphasize on children these days because of the recognition that a very
substantial proportion of the world’s population, 35-45% constitutes young children.
The future of our country depends on educated citizens. But a good education is not
just useful for the progress of the country; the aspiration for advancement lies in the
nature of every human creature.

In the modern society mastery of basic academic skills-reading, writing and

arithmetic is a necessary pre-requisite for success in both school and employment
setting and in society at large. A large percentage of children suffer from learning
disabilities or learning difficulties and therefore do not master or partially master-
these required academic skills. Not surprisingly, each one learns differently. Most of
us have our own “learning difficulty”, to cope with. Some people don’t do well with
numbers, others have difficulty in writing. Some people feel they have to discuss a
new idea before they understand it; others need to mull it over in privacy.

Learning difficulties and learning problems are often the first descriptive terms
used when a child begins to have trouble in school. They are unable to make use of
the normal education facilities available in schools. People with learning difficulties
can have problems with many every day learning activities. Reading, spelling and
numeracy skills are basic to school achievement. Children with specific learning
difficulties may show problems in all three areas or only one or two

Since the 1980s the broad definition of LD formulated by the US National

Joint Committee on LD (NJCLD, 1981/1988) with representation from all concerned
disciplines has been widely used. It reads as follows: “Learning disability is a general

3
term that refers to a heterogeneous group of disorders manifested by significant
difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing,
reasoning or mathematical abilities”. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual,
presumed to be due to central nervous system dysfunction and may occur across the
life span. Problems in self-regulatory behaviours, social perception and social
interaction may exist with learning disabilities but do not by themselves constitute a
learning disability. 1

Historically, teachers have not been favourably disposed to the policy of

increased inclusion of children with special needs within the regular classroom . Their
concerns include the amount of individualised time children with special needs might
require, possibly to the detriment of other students; apprehension as to the quality of
work produced by children with special needs; lack of adequate support services; and
teachers’ concerns about deficiencies in their own training and preparation in the
skills required to support inclusive educational practice.

Teachers’ attitudes are additionally influenced by the level of disability they

are asked to accommodate within their classroom. Center and Ward (1987) found that
while the majority of teachers expressed a generalised agreement with the policy of
inclusion, when asked specifically about their own willingness to include students
with particular disabilities within their classrooms, they were only willing to accept
the inclusion of students with mild physical disabilities. They were reluctant to
include students with more severe physical disabilities, or students with intellectual
disabilities. Such results, indicating that teacher support for inclusion varied with the
severity of the disability, have been consistently reported in research studies in the
United States (Rainforth, 2000; Scruggs & Mastropieri, 1996), and have been
replicated by Forlin et al. (1996) with educators in Western Australia.

These attitudes to learning disabilities appear to have important correlates

with actual classroom practice, although the direction of causality is not clear.
Teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion are clearly influential in the effective
management of children with learning difficulties within the classroom. 2

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6.1. NEED FOR THE STUDY

It is generally noted that in developing countries more and more children are brought
into the school system; but at the same time every section of the school is likely to
have around 15-20% of students who are not able to maintain satisfactory collateral
progress which is often the result of some kind of maladjustment at school or home.

Schools play a crucial and formative role in the spheres of cognitive, language,
emotional, social and moral development of children. There is now a growing
recognition that schools have a significant role in promoting mental health. Teachers
are powerful groups who have in their process of education studied the nature of
individual growth. This has equipped them to be in a position to shape and reshape
behaviours that are warranted.

School teachers and children constitute the majority of literature population in

the developing countries like India and exert a tremendous influence on community
attitudes and behaviour patterns including health belief systems. On similar lines
teachers only when given proper training can identify children with handicap that are
physical in nature and mental handicaps.

At school, despite of adequate intelligence, they are near bottom of class and
often disrupt lessons, often being asked to leave, psychologically the young person
may feel worthless and lack any belief that they are capable of doing anything good.
They may be quick to blame themselves and the outside world. If nothing changes,
future prospect after school are poor.

Early detection of learning difficulty in children is of paramount importance.

Children are at school for a larger part of their vital time for the emotional and
physical development. School provides a setting for the development of friendship,
socialization and for the introduction and reinforcement of behaviour

General classroom teacher should have certain knowledge and understanding

about the needs of different learners, teaching techniques and curriculum strategies.
The task of initial teacher education is to prepare people to enter a profession which
accepts individual and collective responsibility for improving the learning and

5
participation of all children. They play an essential role in quality education and
quotes McKinsey and Company who say: ‘the quality of an education system cannot
exceed the quality of its teachers’. The quality of the teacher contributes more to
learner achievement than any other factor, including class size, class composition, or
background. The need for ‘high quality’ teachers equipped to meet the needs of all
learners becomes evident to provide not only equal opportunities for all, but also
education for an inclusive society. Reynolds (2009) says that it is the knowledge,
beliefs and values of the teacher that are brought to bear in creating an effective
learning environment for pupils, making the teacher a critical influence in education
for children with learning disability and the development of the inclusive school.3

Beliefs about disability, ethnicity, attitude and concerns of teachers can

influence the practice of inclusive education, the quality of educational materials
and instruction students receive. Many regular education teachers who feel
unprepared and fearful to work with learners with disabilities in regular
classes display frustration, anger and negative attitude toward inclusive education
because they believe it could lead to lower academic standards (Gary,
1997; Tiegerman-Farber & Radziewicz, 1998). Additionally, access to resources
and specialist support affects teacher confidence and attitudes toward inclusive
education.

It is argued that when teachers gain extensive professional knowledge

needed to implement inclusive programmes they may succumb to it. Similarly,
LeyRoy and Simpson (1996) reported that as teachers experience with students,
particularly those with special needs intensify, their confidence to teach them is
likely to grow which invariably alter their negative attitudes.

Teachers’ attitudes towards students with disabilities have a significant

impact on the educational experience While legal mandates declare that children
with disabilities may be included in the regular classroom, these mandates don’t
ensure that they will be accepted or treated fairly by their teachers or peers .
Disability Awareness Training and Education is required for all professionals.
Teachers need to have a full understanding of the implications of particular

6
impairments for teaching and learning if they are to inform other students or
supports students with impairments. The Task Force on Dyslexia (2001) observed
that teachers often failed either to identify or fully recognise a learner’s disability
or have an inadequate understanding of it.

Rao (2004) reviewed the literature with regards the attitudes of university
staff towards students with disabilities in higher education. Only two studies
investigated the relationship between attitudes of staff and willingness to provide
accommodations and the results of these studies did not show a clear relationship
between the two but this is an area that needs further exploration. Rao concludes
from the literature that faculty need to be better informed about students with
disabilities to improve their attitudes and that the attitudes of staff could be a vital
ingredient in the success or failure of students with disabilities.4

Amidst such scope in the fields of mental health nursing, nurses play a
vital role in imparting knowledge about behaviour problems of children to
teachers. There are very few studies conducted till date and handling any of these
conducted by nurses. The current study is an attempt to scientifically assess the
teacher’s attitude towards children with learning disability to increase awareness
of the depth of the problem and serve as a indication for further interventions.

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6.2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature is a broad, comprehensive, in-depth systematic and

critical review of scholarly publication, and published scholarly printed materials,

audio-visual materials and personal communication.

A study was conducted to investigate the developmental dynamics of maths-

related motivation and mathematical performance during children's transition to

primary school. The role of teachers' pedagogical goals and classroom characteristics

on this development was also investigated. A total of 196 Finnish children were

examined four times: (0) in October during their preschool year; (1) in October and

(2) April during their first grade of primary school; and (3) in October during their

second grade. Children’s mathematical performance was tested at each measurement

point. Task motivation was examined at measurement points 2, 3, and 4 using the

Task-value scale for children. First-grade teachers were interviewed in November

about their pedagogical goals and classroom characteristics. The results showed that

children's mathematical performance and related task motivation formed a cumulative

developmental cycle: a high level of maths performance at the beginning of the first

grade increased subsequent task motivation towards mathematics, which further

predicted a high level of maths performance at the beginning of the second grade. The

level of maths-related task motivation increased in those classrooms where the

teachers emphasized motivation or self-concept development as their most important

pedagogical goal.5

An investigation done on the effects of classroom separation on twins'

behaviour, progress at school, and reading abilities. This investigation was part of a

longitudinal study of a nationally-representative sample of twins (the E-risk Study)

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who were assessed at the start of school (age 5) and followed up (age 7). They

examined three groups of twins: pairs who were in the same class at both ages; pairs

who were in separate classes at both ages; and pairs who were in the same class at age

5, but separated by age 7. When compared to those not separated, those separated

early had significantly more teacher-rated internalizing problems and those separated

later showed more internalizing problems and lower reading scores. Monozygotic

(MZ) twins showed more problems as a result of separation than dizygotic (DZ)

twins. No group differences emerged for externalizing problems, ADHD or prosocial

behaviours. The implications of the findings for parents and teachers of twins, and for

school practices about separating twins, are discussed..6

A study conducted on psychosocial functioning of different groups of young children

with learning problems was investigated using a diverse set of psychosocial variables

(including behavior problems, academic motivation, social preference, and self-

concept). For this purpose, children with low academic achievement, with a specific

learning disability based on an IQ–achievement discrepancy, and with a specific

learning disability based on an achievement discrepancy, were selected out of 276

children of the first grade of regular primary schools. By means of multivariate

analyses, their psychosocial functioning was compared to the functioning of children

without learning problems. The total set of psychosocial variables was able to

discriminate between children with and without learning problems, with medium

effect size. Attention problems as reported by the teachers turned out to be the most

important single psychosocial predictor for group discrimination. However, results

varied according to the type of learning problem and the type of psychosocial

problem. Children with a specific reading/spelling disability and children with low

general academic achievement differed most from their peers without learning

9
problems with regard to their psychosocial functioning. Poor cognitive self-concept

was related primarily to low academic achievement, poor learning motivation might

be specific for math problems, and a low social preference score seemed most

characteristic of children with a specific learning disability. Studying several

psychosocial variables simultaneously in different groups of children with learning

problems leads to a further refinement of the current knowledge.7

Another study conducted on the attitudes of 183 urban

and rural teachers in Haïti toward inclusion. Reliability of the ORI for Haitian

teachers was 68 using a split-half procedure (as determined by the Spearman-Brown

reliability coefficient). Twelve items on the ORI had reverse wording and were

recorded so that higher scores represented more favourable attitudes toward

integration. In order to proceed with the scoring, each respondent’s responses were

summed, and a constant of 75 was added to the total to eliminate negative scores. As a

result, scores could range from 0 to 150. Teachers in rural Haïti (M = 80.19, SD =

16.69) on average had similar attitudes toward integration to teachers in urban Haiti

(M = 77.80, SD = 15.65), t (182) = 1.03, p = .31. Contrary to predictions, attitudes

were uncorrelated with years of teaching experience, r = .07, p = .33. Results

indicated that on average, teachers with Master’s degrees have more positive attitudes

toward integration (M = 86.43, SD = 15.37) than teachers with less than a Master’s

degree (M = 77.60, SD = 12.47), t (182) = 2.63, p = .009. Other findings indicated

that variables representing teachers’ cognitions and beliefs were more important in

predicting attitudes than variables related to the teachers’ actual experiences of

teaching. 8

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 A study was on examined perceptions of 135 teachers of students with

learning disabilities working in middle-junior high and high school programs

regarding the following: (1) the presence of specific attributes often associated with

successful programs, (2) their professional views on field-related issues, and (3)

suggestions for program improvement. Perceptions regarding the presence of selected

attributes and recommendations for program improvement provide an agenda for

professional dialogue.9

A study on examined teacher attitudes towards dyslexia and

the effects of these attitudes on teacher expectations and the academic achievement of

students with dyslexia compared to students without learning disabilities. When the

relations between the teacher attitudes toward dyslexia and the math achievement of

the students were examined, the interclass correlation was found to be 0.09. The

results did not show a statistically significant interaction for explicit teacher attitudes

and dyslexia on the math achievement of the students (b = -.07, z = -.16, p = .872).

The interaction of the implicit measure of teacher attitudes and dyslexia on the math

achievement of the students was also not statistically significant (b = -.12, z = -.61, p

= .271). In the next set of analyses, whether explicit teacher attitudes toward dyslexia

differentially affected the teacher expectations with regard to individual students was

considered. The interclass correlation of teacher expectations was .05. The interaction

of student dyslexia and the explicit measure of teacher attitudes on teacher

expectations was not statistically significant (b = .08, z = .22, p = .826). This finding

shows the effects of the teachers’ explicit attitudes toward dyslexia on their

expectations for individual students to be largely the same for the two groups of

students. Likewise, the interaction effect of student dyslexia and the implicit measure

11
of teacher attitudes on teacher expectations was not statistically significant (b = -.22, z

= -1.31, p = .190). That is, the effects

of the teachers’ implicit attitudes toward dyslexia on their expectations for individual

students were largely the same for those students with dyslexia and those students

from the reference group .Self-reported attitudes of the teachers toward dyslexia did

not relate to any of the outcome measures.10

Another conducted study to investigate various

educational specialists' attitudes toward speech and language programs in public

elementary schools. It was found that the overall

disposition of classroom teachers, learning disabilitiesspecialists, and school principals

toward such programs was moderately favorable. Although the overall attitudes of the

specialty groups were in a positive direction, an analysis of the individual

items indicated classroom teachers, learning disabilities specialists, and school

principals perceived that the size of the speech clinician's case load is too large to

provide satisfactory remedial help to each child and that the amount of time allotted

each case usually is not satisfactory for effecting the desired behavioral change. It was

also found that the classroom teachers of Grades 4–6 evidenced the least enthusiasm

for and support of elementary school speech and language services. 11

A study was conducted to assess the level of knowledge

about palliative care among nurses working in the oncology department using a self

administered structured questionnaire and also to assess the effectiveness of

information booklet designed on various aspects of palliative care on their

knowledge. Indo American Cancer Hospital, Hyderabad, AP, India. The design

12
adopted for this study was One Group pretest-post test, pre-experimental design. The

overall knowledge mean percentage in the pretest was 46.25% with standard deviation

of 3.19, and in the posttest 74.625% with standard deviation of 3.63. The overall

improvement mean percentage obtained for knowledge was 27.9 with ‘t’ value 14.68

which is highly significant at p<0.001 level which indicate that the developed

information booklet regarding palliative care was highly effective in enhancing the

knowledge levels of the nurses.

The information booklet was effective in enriching the knowledge of nurses on

palliative care. Enhancing the nurse's knowledge about palliative care will promote

their understanding of the needs of the advanced stage patients and will enable them

to provide quality care..12

A study Conducted on “Development and evaluation of self

instructional module for adult survivors (age range 14-32 years) of cancer in

childhood” on Fifty survivors of childhood cancer. After reading the book there was

an increased awareness of the risk from sunbathing (p<0.05) and greater appreciation

of the importance of follow up (p<0.05).The results suggest that written information

is likely to be an acceptable and effective supplement to discussions with medical

professionals and may readily be incorporated into long term follow up clinics.

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STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

“A study to assess the effectiveness of self instructional module on attitude of

primary school teachers towards children with learning disabilities in selected
schools at Tumkur”.

6.3. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 To assess the knowledge of primary school teachers regarding learning

disabilities.
 To assess the attitude of primary school teachers regarding learning
disabilities.
 To evaluate the effectiveness of self instructional module on knowledge
regarding learning disabilities.
 To compare mean scores of pre test and post test knowledge of primary school
teacher regarding learning disability.

6.5 OPERATIONAL DEFENITIONS USED IN THIS STUDY

1. Assess: It is the organized, systematic and continuous process of collecting

data from school teachers regarding learning disabilities
2. Effectiveness: Refers to the gain in knowledge as determined by significant
difference in pre test and post test knowledge scores.
3. Attitude: It refers to the way of school teachers behave or think towards
learning disabilities
4. Knowledge: Refers to the awareness of primary school teachers regarding
learning disabilities as assessed by the response to items of the knowledge
questionnaire.

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5. Learning disabilities: A heterogeneous group of disorders manifested by
significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking,
reading, writing, reasoning.
6. Primary school teachers: The professionals who are teaching the students
from 1 – 7th standard in government or private schools.

6.6 HYPOTHESIS

 H1. - There will be significant difference between pre test and post test
knowledge among primary school teachers regarding learning
disabilities, after implementation of self instructional module
 H2. - There will be significant association between knowledge and
selected demographic variables.
 H3. - There will be significant association between attitude and
selected demographic variables.

6.7 ASSUMPTION
The study will
 Create an innovative approach among the school teachers regarding
learning disabilities
 Throw light on the promotion of knowledge regarding learning
disabilities

6.8 DELIMITATIONS

 The study will be limited to learning disabilities.

 The study will be limited to selected primary school teachers at
Tumkur.

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 7. MATERIALS AND METHOD
The purpose of the study is to assess the effectiveness of self instructional
module on knowledge and attitude of primary school teachers towards
children with learning disabilities in selected school in Tumkur

7.1. SOURCES OF DATA

i. Research approach: Evaluative approach

ii. Research Design : Pre experimental one group pre test and
post test design
iii. Setting of the study: Selected schools at Tumkur
iv. Sample size :60 primary school teachers
v. Sampling technique: convenient sampling methods

SELECTED VARIABLES

 Independent variable – self instructional module.

 Dependent variable – knowledge and attitude of the primary school
teachers towards children with learning disabilities.
 Demographic variable - Age, Sex, Education, Teacher experience

SAMPLLING CRITERIA

Inclusion criteria

o Primary school teachers working in selected primary schools

o Primary school teachers who are willing to participate in the study
o Primary school teachers who are present during the data collection

Exclusion criteria

o Primary school teachers who are not willing to participate in the

study.
o Primary school teachers who are not present during the data
collection

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7.2. METHOD OF COLLECTION OF DATA

7.2.1 TOOL FOR DATA COLLECTION: Self administered structured questionnaire

Tool 1 Part A: Proforma for collecting demographic data

Part B: A structured multiple choice questionnaires to assess the

knowledge and attitude regarding learning disabilities

7.2.2 METHOD OF DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

The date will be analyzed by using descriptive, inferential statistics and

will be presented in the form of graphs and diagrams

7.2.3 Duration of the study

6 weeks

7.3. DOES THE STUDY REQUIRE ANY INVESTIGATIONS OR

INTERVENTIONS TO BE CONDUCTED ON PATIENTS OR OTHER
HUMAN OR ANIMAL?

No

7.4. HAS THE ETHICAL CLEARENCE BEEN OBTAINED FROM YOUR

INSTITUTION IN CASE OF 7.3?

Yes, ethical clearance has been obtained from institutions ethical committee

17
8. REFERENCE

1)Heena afreen m, Dilshad (2009), Prevalence of learning difficulties / disability

among primary school children. Available from : http://etd.uasd.edu/ft/th8654.pdf.

2) Jennifer Campbell, Linda Gilmore and Monica cuskelly. Changing student

teachers’ attitudes towards disability and inclusion , Journal of Intellectual &

Developmental Disability, December 2003 ; 28 (4) p. 369-379.

3) Verity Donnelly(2006), An International Literature Review, European Agency for

Development in Special Needs Education, Available from: http://www.european-

agency.org/agency-projects/teacher-education-for-inclusion/teacher-education-web-

files/TE4I-Literature-Review.pdf.

4) Rao S(2004), Faculty attitudes and students with disabilities in higher

education: A literature review College Students Journal, 38, 191-198.

5) Aunola K, Leskinen E, Nurmi JE. Developmental dynamics between mathematical

performance, task motivation, and teachers' goals during the transition to primary

school. Br J Educ Psychol. 2006 Mar; 76(1): 21-40.

6) Tully LA, Moffitt TE, Caspi A, Taylor A, Kiernan H, Andreou P(2004), What

effect does classroom separation have on twins' behaviour, progress at school, and

reading abilities; 7(2): 115-24.

7) Gadeyne E, Ghesquiere P, Onghena P(. 2004), Psychosocial functioning of young

children with learning problems; 30(4): 727-34.

8) Errol Dupoux, Helen Hammond, Lawrence Ingalls and Clara Wolman(2006 ),

Teachers' attitudes toward students with disabilities in haïti, international journal of

special education; 21(3)p. 1-2.

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9) Cherry K. Houck, Carol H. Geller, and Judy B(1990), Learning Disabilities

Teachers' Perceptions of Educational Programs for Adolescents with Learning

Disabilities, Journal of Learning disabilityies,p.320-324.

10) Lisette Hornstra ,Eddie Denessen, Joep Bakker, Linda van den Bergh and

Marinus Voeten(2010),Teacher Attitudes Toward Dyslexia: Effects on Teacher

Expectations and the Academic Achievement of Students With Dyslexia,Journal of

Learning Disability ; 44 (6): p. 34-44.

11) Richard A. Phelps, Roy A. Koenigsknecht(1977), Attitudes of Classroom

Teachers, Learning Disabilities Specialists, and School Principals toward Speech and

Language Programs in Public Elementary Schools, Language, Speech, and Hearing

Services in Schools , 8: 33-45.

12)Freeland, Kent, A Study of the Effects of Self-Instructional Modules on

Achievement in College Social Studies; 1983-00-00 Pages:13.

13) Anita David and Sonali Banerjee(2010), Effectiveness of palliative Care

Information Booklet in Enhancing Nurse’s Knowledge, Indian Journal of Palliative

Care Vol. 16, Available from : http://www.openj-gate.org/

14) A Blacklay, C Eiser and A Ellis(1998),Development and evaluation of an

information booklet for adult survivors of cancer in childhood, 7810(10):340-344.

19
9. SIGNATURE OF THE CANDIDATE :

10. REMARKS OF THE GUIDE :

11. NAME AND SIGNATURE OF THE

11.1. GUIDE :

11.2. SIGNATURE :

11.3. CO-GUIDE :

11.4. SIGNATURE :

11.5. HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT :

11.6. SIGNATURE :

12.1. REMARKS OF THE PRINCIPAL :

12.2. SIGNATURE :

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