Status of career guidance services in selected special schools for the hearing impaired learners in Lusaka, Zambia

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of career guidance service provision in selected special schools for the hearing impaired learners in Lusaka, Zambia. The objectives of the study were to establish whether career guidance service were available to learners with hearing impairment; assess the type of career guidance services available for learners with hearing impairment; determine how beneficial the current career guidance services were to learners with hearing impairment; explore challenges, faced by guidance teachers in the provision of career guidance services to learners with hearing impairment in special schools. A case study was used to conduct the study. The sample size was 55 respondents. These were broken down as five head teachers, five heads of departments, five career guidance teachers and 40 learners with hearing impairment in selected special schools in Lusaka in Zambia. The study findings revealed that special education teachers in the selected schools of study provided career guidance services to learners with hearing impairment. Both girls and boys with hearing impairment benefited. Learners with hearing impairment were seen to own shops and sold goods in town which enabled them to earn a living. It was also evident from the findings that learners in Grade 12 more than other grades accessed career guidance services in the selected schools. Guidance teachers faced a lot of challenges in the provision of career guidance services to learners with hearing impairment in special schools which included communication difficulties, limited availability of materials such as teaching and learning aids, limited time allocation for career guidance, lack of trained guidance and counselling teachers in schools, lack of office accommodation; limited resources; lack of co-operation or support from other teachers and school administrators and indeed work over loads among guidance teachers in selected special schools. Arising from the study findings, the research has recommends that: the Ministry of General Education should employ trained full-time guidance and counselling teachers in schools, provide appropriate and adequate materials for career guidance purpose, put in place a deliberate policy on guidance and counselling in schools that allow provision of career guidance to learners with hearing impairment and conduct regular fresher courses or workshop on sign language in order to improve communication between guidance teachers and learners with hearing impairment.