In Slovenia, including children with special needs in regular primary schools is becoming more and more frequent. Nonetheless, not all children attend regular primary schools; they attend schools with an adapted education programme where upbringing and education are carried out in a way where they provide support to pupils. When a child is diagnosed, they are often sent to a primary school with an adapted education programme. Once the child attends such a school, the cooperation between the school and the parents or the entire family begins. In the course of schooling, children with special needs face different challenges. Parents are strongly involved in the process as well, as they want what is best for their children. The parents meet diverse professional workers from different occupational profiles and the cooperation of both sides is very important. Regular primary schools as well as schools with an adapted education programme provide counselling services, carried out by social workers. The counselling workers have the skills that can contribute to a more successful cooperation between the school and the parents, thus creating circumstances in which parents are more satisfied and the children are provided with more appropriate help and support. The aim of the study, presented in the empirical part, is to investigate the cooperation of the parents with schools with an adapted education programme and their inclusion in these institutions. I studied the parents' first impressions regarding the cooperation with the counselling services, the way and the process of cooperating, the effectiveness and the efficiency of the cooperation and the changes required for a more successful cooperation. I determined that parents are relatively satisfied about the cooperation with the school with an adapted education programme and the counselling services. They evaluate it as successful, but they remain critical. They seek to obtain more specific information, have a more respectful relationship with the institution and be paid more attention regarding their problems and distress. The parents want to cooperate, but they are often not taken into account, which is why they prefer to rely on their family and other important sources when a problem occurs. The social workers have skills that are significant to perform counselling work; it is essential they continue to do their work in the educational sector.
|
