| Summary: | A dissertation submitted to the Faculty Of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Masters in Educational Psychology in the Department of Educational Psychology & Special Needs Education at the University Of Zululand, 2018 === The study sought to explore and examine experiences of parents with regard to the education of their autistic children in special schools. Previous studies in this area looked at the inclusion of autistic children and focused on educators’ attitudes or perceptions. Thus this study intended to get parents’ perspectives, their ideas and views about the education of their children with autism spectrum disorder in special schools. To find out if they are satisfied, and explore what seem to be the concerns and challenges, the study adopted a qualitative case study design. Data were generated from nine mothers who had children attending special schools. They were purposively sampled from three special schools for children with intellectual impairment. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with mothers regarding their views and concerns about the education of their autistic children. A thematic content analysis was used to extract common themes from the collected data. Major findings were that most parents were happy and satisfied with the education of their children, though some lacked understanding and thorough knowledge about autism and special education. Parents raised concerns about lack of therapists in special schools when their ASD children need the intervention of speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. It was also found that parents struggle to access preprimary education for their children. It is recommended that special schools create forums where parents have a platform to voice their opinions and concerns. In conclusion, the study was able to give insight into parents’ experiences, views and concerns with regard to the education of autistic children. Knowing parents’ concerns and opinions may help improve the provision of education for autistic children. With the recent release of the Draft on National Strategy for Autism (September, 2017), perhaps parents’ hope for improvement in provision of education for autistic children might be realized
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