US-China Education Review 6B

Transkript

US-China
Education Review
B
Volume 3, Number 6, June 2013 (Serial Number 25)
David Publishing
David Publishing Company
www.davidpublishing.com
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D
DAVID PUBLISHING
www.davidpublishing.com
US-China
Education Review
B
Volume 3, Number 6, June 2013 (Serial Number 25)
Contents
Educational Sociology
The Role of Religious Communities in the Integration and Wellbeing of Immigrants
423
Maria Helena G. Pratas
Narratives and Experiences: The Social Memory of the Heitor Carrilho Hospital
in the Context of Deinstitutionalization
429
Lobelia da Silva Faceira, Francisco Ramos de Farias
An Islamic Perspective on the Role of Education in Responding to Social Issues
Among Students in Malaysia
Nik Rosila Nik Yaacob
439
Higher Educational Management
The Development of Basic Competencies for Sustainability in Higher Education:
An Educational Model
447
Luis Amador Hidalgo, Juan Manuel Arjona Fuentes
Lifelong Learning
Resource Integration Strategies for Elder Education Organizations: A Case Study
in Taichung, Taiwan
459
Chi Hu Tien, Wen Chi Tsai
Educational Psychology
Teacher Candidates’ Attitudes Towards Inclusion Education and Comparison
of Self-compassion Levels
470
Aydan Aydin, Seher Kuzu
Special Education
Collaboration in Special Education: Its History, Evolution, and Critical Factors
Necessary for Successful Implementation
Stephen J. Hernandez
480
D
US-China Education Review B, ISSN 2161-6248
June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 423-428
DAVID
PUBLISHING
The Role of Religious Communities in the Integration and
Wellbeing of Immigrants
Maria Helena G. Pratas
CEIA, Center for Studies and Applied Research; ISEC
(Instituto Superior de Educação e Ciências), Lisbon, Portugal

The author intends to present the role of religious communities in the integration and wellbeing of immigrants in
Portugal. The Portuguese constitution clearly defines the fundamental right of freedom of conscience, religion, and
worship for all religions (art.13º, 41º). Religious communities are separated from the state and are free in their
organization and cults. The most represented religion is Roman Catholicism and other religious communities are
formed almost entirely by immigrants and their descendants. As in many other parts of the world, migrants turn to
religious organizations in search of support. This happens in Portugal with religious organizations who welcome
migrants, irrespective of their cultural or religious affiliation (Vilaça, 2008). Religious communities in Portugal—as
in other countries—have been playing a key role in integrating new immigrants: They help to resolve emotional and
other problems, such as unemployment, housing, language courses, education, advocacy, social services, as well as
to establish contacts with other persons and institutions and contribute to their social integration (Pires, 2003). This
is not a process of cultural assimilation, but of reciprocal exchanges (Portes, 1998; Putnam, 2007). Religious
communities work as agents to be able to build bridges with dimensions that are beyond the range of action of any
political force (Vilaça, 2008).
Keywords: religious communities, immigrants, cultural diversity, integration, wellbeing
How to Manage Cultural Diversity? The Portuguese Approach
From having been a country with a large-scale emigration, Portugal, since the last decades has also
become a hosting country for immigrants. Since the late 1990s, the geography of immigration to Portugal has
undergone profound changes. Today, different communities now make up 4.5% of the population resident in
Portugal (more than 500,000 legal immigrants) and about 9% of the active population come from diverse
nationalities and diverse cultural backgrounds. Massive increase of immigration from Eastern Europe to
Portugal has prompted a great debate about immigration policy. Immigration increased 400% in 15 years
(ACIDI (the High Commission for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue, I.P.), 2010). Recently, the
economic crisis has led to stabilization in migrant flows.
In the last decades, different national laws have been created or developed in order to accommodate
immigrants. National Plans for the Hosting and Integration of Immigrants have been launched, considering
sector-based areas, such as employment, health, housing, solidarity and social security, education, and
Maria Helena G. Pratas, Ph.D., principal investigator, CEIA, Center for Studies and Applied Research; senior lecturer, ISEC
(Instituto Superior de Educação e Ciências).
424
ROLE OF RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES, INTEGRATION AND WELLBEING OF IMMIGRANTS
crosscutting themes, e.g., welcoming immigrants and their descendents, family reunification, racism, and
discrimination. This National Plans adopted a holistic approach to integration. The current Plan for Immigrant
Integration (2010-2013) was approved by Decree-Law 74/2010, in September 2010, comprising 90 measures
across various policy areas. The key objective continued to be the full integration of immigrants in culture,
language, employment, professional training, and housing. It highlighted the promotion of diversity and
intercultural dialogue, and elderly immigrants. It also promotes cultural and religious diversity, especially
through the media (measure 76).
ACIDI—the High Commission for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue, I.P.—is a public institute
launched in 2006. Its fundamental attribute is the promotion of the welcoming and integration of immigrants
and ethnic minorities in Portugal. It is endowed with a board of personnel specialized in all the dimensions
involving hosting, reception, support, and integration of immigrants and works in partnership with the
immigrant associations. Its policy of welcoming and integrating immigrants in Portugal is based around seven
key principles: equality, dialogue, citizenship, hospitality, interculturalism, proximity, and initiative. It
considers that it is essential to reinforce the alliance with bodies from civil society through empowering their
flexible and, normally, more efficient intervention (ACIDI, 2010).
The context of economic crisis and worries about security arising from international terrorism have made
this task even more urgent, using the media and interpersonal contact, in a spirit of co-responsibility with the
NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and immigrant associations, which protect the specific rights and
interests of immigrants and of their descendants resident in Portugal, to enjoy dignity and equal opportunities
(ACIDI, 2010). In 2007, ACIDI and the IEFP (Institute for Employment and Professional Training) established
a network of 25 job centers specifically for immigrants, formed through partnerships with local
organisations—principally immigrant associations. There is also an immigration observatory, in order to
deepen knowledge about the reality of immigration in Portugal and to specify, carry out, and evaluate
efficacious policies regarding the integration of immigrants. It acts in a network, through cooperation with
universities, research centres, and other institutions, in order to generate sustainability (ACIDI, 2010).
The United Nations Human Development Report of 2009 placed Portugal at the top of the ranking in
immigrant integration policy. This report acknowledges the initiatives taken by Portugal in this area to be at the
cutting edge of immigrant policy, with Portugal given the top ranking in the attribution of rights and services to
foreigners residing in the country.
Wellbeing, Happiness, and the Search for Meaning
The so-called “happiness hypothesis” is being explored across a range of disciplines from the 1990s
onwards (Atherton, 2008; Layard, 2003; Graham, 2009). They confirmed that increasing economic prosperity
in western economies is not matched by greater levels of recorded happiness. Among other authors, the work of
the economist Layard has attracted much public debate over recent years. He considered that despite rising
levels of material prosperity in the west, incidence of recorded happiness and greater quality of life has not
increased accordingly: “There is a paradox at the heart of our lives. Most people want more income and strive
for it. Yet as western societies have got richer, their people have become no happier” (Layard, 2005, p. 3).
Recent research and combinations of qualitative and quantitative data from economists, psychologists, and
social statisticians have been consolidated into seven key indicators of wellbeing: firstly, secure family
relationships which point to the centrality of people’s need for love, affirmation, and mutuality in their lives;
425
secondly, income; thirdly, work, not just as provider of financial security, but as source of relationships,
meaning, and self-worth; fourthly, networks of community and friends as important sources of good social
capital; fifthly, health; and the sixth indicator is personal freedom, in terms of opportunities to participate in
decision-making and take part in community activities and the seventh indicator is personal values and
philosophy of life (Layard, 2003; Graham, 2009). The economist and researcher Richard Lanyard referred that
the clearest statement he knew is in Victor Frankl’s book Man’s Search for Meaning when he wrote about his
experiences in Auschwitz and concluded that, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing, the last of
human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances” (Frankl, 1985, p. 89). In
considering the major contributory factors to happiness and wellbeing, Layard said that one of the most robust
findings of happiness research is that “people who believe in God are happier” (Layard, 2003, p. 12). “Layard
is not alone in identifying the significance of religious values and participation in religion for positive and
enduring levels of happiness” (Graham, 2009, p. 5). In terms of explaining the correlation between religion and
wellbeing, however, the consensus seems to be that there is powerful “added value” in religion for engendering
forms of social capital (Graham, 2009).
The theory of “social capital” tries to understand the sources of social solidarity and what motivates people
to participate actively in social and political networks, locally, nationally, and globally. The political scientist
Robert Putnam (2000) is credited for generating much of the current interest in the term following the
publication of his book Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. Definitions of
social capital vary, but it can be summarized in a simple phrase: relationships matter (Field, 2001). He stated:
By making connections with one another, and keeping them going over time, people are able to work together to
achieve things that they either could not achieve by themselves, or could only achieve with great difficulty. People connect
through a series of networks and they tend to share common values (…). To the extent that these networks constitute a
resource, they can be seen as forming a kind of capital. (Field, 2001, p. 1)
The World Bank described social capital as “the institutions, relationships and norms that shape the quality
and quantity of a society’s social interactions” (1999).
Putnam has probably led the way in charting how religious values and organizations serve as rich sources
of social capital, which foster networks and relationships that seem to contribute most decisively to healthy
social networks and thus to quality of life. Research from the WTF (William temple foundation) in Manchester
distinguishes between two dimensions of religion as social capital. Religious capital is what religion contributes,
in terms of tangible outcomes and social goods; “spiritual capital” is, by contrast, the reason why of the
religious contribution: “The motivating basis of faith, belief and values (…) that shapes the actions of faith
communities” (Baker & Skinner, 2006, p. 9). This research identifies seven dimensions of spiritual capital:
emphasis on transformation, personal and corporate engagement; valuing personal experience and narrative;
belief that God is at work in social change; acknowledging affective dimensions of political activism; values of
vulnerability, forgiveness, risk, learning, and transformation; unconditional acceptance of everyone; and
cultivating people’s inner resources. It considers religion as one of the most potent sources of values and
principles and a powerful synthesis of belief and action (Baker & Skinner, 2006).
The re-emergence of religion globally, including into public life, is being more recently matched by the
growing interest, in the religious contribution to social capital, or the capacity to build social networks within
and across various parts of civil society. Graham (2009) focused on the so-called happiness hypothesis and the
426
consideration of the potential role and contribution of religious values and organizations: “If the question of
happiness and wellbeing is multi-disciplinary and multi-dimensional, then the question of religion emerges as
one, not insignificant, element of that” (Graham, 2009, p. 6).
Some authors thought that religious affiliation might contribute to greater mental and emotional wellbeing;
provision of resources, such as social support and networks; promotion of positive self-esteem; acquisition of
specific life-skills and coping resources, such as a framework of understanding illness, stress or loss; generation
of positive emotions, cultivation of disposition towards forgiveness, hope, and transformation (Swinton, 2007).
And Eckersley stated: “All in all, wellbeing comes from being connected and engaged, from being suspended
in a web of relationships and interests. This gives meaning to people’s lives” (Eckersley, 2007, p. 54).
What About Religious Communities in a Global World?
Religious freedom is acknowledged and enshrined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. Openness to the transcendent belongs to the fundamental dignity of every human person. It is
acknowledged that there are many religious freedom violations all over the world: 32% of the countries on the
Earth, comprising 70% of the world’s population, have high or very high restrictions on religious freedom (Pew
Forum on Religion and Public Life, 2009).
As even a cursory survey of the contemporary landscape reveals, the religious liberty of individuals, families,
associations, and institutions is under growing threat from many different directions. Flagrant violations abound. Tensions
are mounting between the claim of universality and the diversity of practices and interpretations. Religious freedom is
often attacked in the name of other rights and values. There is increasing conflict and confusion about the relations among
the various bodies responsible for implementing human rights at local, national, and supranational levels. The problem of
fostering habits of respect and tolerance for the religions of others remains acute. And religion continues to be used by
some as a pretext for violence. (Glendon & Zacher, 2012, p. 20)
At the global level, no religion has a majority position (Cole Durham, 2012). Even in countries that at one
point had relative religious homogeneity, the percentage of adherents to the dominant religion is declining
(Glendon & Zacher, 2012).
The Council of Europe White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue recognizes that religious practice is part of
contemporary human life, and it, therefore, cannot and should not be outside the sphere of interest of public
authorities (Council of Europe, 2008). It considers that:
Part of the world’s rich cultural heritage is a range of religious conceptions of the purpose of life. Christianity,
Judaism and Islam, with their inner range of interpretations, have deeply influenced our continent… Freedom of thought,
conscience and religion is one of the foundations of democratic society and protected by Article 9 of the European
Convention on Human Rights. (Council of Europe, 2008, pp. 22-24)
Research shows that religious minorities are proliferating around the world, due to many factors, such as
labor force movement, refugee flight, trade, education, etc.. It also shows that religious freedom promotes
peace by reducing inter-religious conflict (Farr, 2008).
The Role of Religious Communities in the Integration of Immigrants: A Case Study
Interaction and exchange among people of different religious traditions can be a mutual enrichment.
Inter-religious dialogue means to go beyond distrust or suspicion to respectful acceptance, hospitality, and
collaboration at all possible levels.
427
The Portuguese constitution clearly defines the fundamental right of freedom of conscience, religion, and
worship for all religions (art.13º, 41º). In relation to the state and political power, the religious communities are
autonomous and free in their organization and cults. Freedom is given to teach any religion and to use the
media for the appropriate activities.
The great majority of Portuguese people are Roman Catholic (84%), although only 10.3% practice their
religion (according to a census in 2001). Other religious communities are: Orthodox, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist,
Islamic, Evangelical, etc., formed almost entirely by immigrants and their families.
As in many other parts of the world, migrants turn to religious organizations in search of support. This
happens in Portugal with catholic organizations who welcome migrants, independently from their cultural or
religious affiliation, as states a recent study about 17 orthodox religious communities all over the country
(Vilaça, 2008).
Research and questionnaires applied in Portugal to immigrants from various eastern countries (Ukrainians,
Moldovans, Romanians, and Russians) point in the direction that religious communities, even culturally diverse,
represent a common space of identity. Religious practice improves in the situation of Diasporas, contributing to
the consolidation of high levels of religiosity within the orthodoxy of their churches. Religion is, for many of
those questioned (90%), more intense in exile and an essential dimension in their lives (Vilaça, 2008).
There is an intense relation between their communities and the Catholic Church—through the work of
Catholic migrations and their secretariats all over the country, especially with recent new comers from Eastern
Europe. Migrants are grateful to religious communities—also to the Catholic Church, by the support received,
at many levels (Vilaça, 2008, pp. 56-57). The degree of confidence in their own Churches and also in the
Catholic Church score prominently in relation to other institutions. They have also expressed significant
confidence (above 50%) in state institutions and public administration, especially those focusing on
immigration.
Religious communities in Portugal have been playing a key role in integrating new immigrants; they help
to resolve emotional and other problems, such as unemployment, housing, language courses, education,
advocacy, social services, as well as to establish contacts with other persons and institutions (Vilaça, 2008) and
they contribute to their social integration. This is not a process of cultural assimilation, but of reciprocal
exchanges (Portes, 1998; Putnam, 2007).
Conclusions
Immigrants are now major parts of the social Portuguese system. They contribute to the renewal of the
population, to the economic development, and to revitalizing of cultural and social behaviours. National laws
have been created or developed in order to accommodate them. But still, there is a journey to do (Antunes,
2009). Religious communities work as agents to be able to build bridges with dimensions that are beyond the
range of action of any political force (Vilaça, 2008).
References
ACIDI (Alto Comissariado para a Imigração e Diálogo Intercultural, I.P.). (2010). Retrieved November 19, 2010, from
http://www.acidi.gov.pt
Antunes, A. B. (2009). Female immigrant workers in Portugal. Lisbon: GEP.
Ariarajah, S. W. (2006). Wider ecumenism: A threat or a promise? The Ecumenical Review, 50, 30-55.
Atherton, J. R. (2008). Transcending capitalism: An enquiry into religion and global change. London: SCM Press.
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Baker, C. R., & Skinner, H. (2006). Faith in action: The dynamic connection between spiritual and religious capital. Manchester:
William Temple Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.wtf.org.uk/documents/faith-in-action.pdf
Cole Durham, W. Jr. (2012). Religious freedom in a worldwide setting: Comparative reflections in universal rights in a world of
diversity. In M. A., Glendon, & H. F., Zacher (Eds.), Universal rights in a world of diversity—The case of religious freedom
(pp. 350-377). Vatican City: PASS.
Council of Europe. (2008). White paper on intercultural dialogue: Living together as equals in dignity. Strasbourg: Council of
Europe.
Eckersley, R. M. (2007). Culture, spirituality, religion and health: Looking at the big picture. Medical Journal of Australia,
186(10), S54-S56.
Farr, T. (2008). World of faith and freedom. New York: Oxford University Press.
Field, J. (2001). Social capital. London: Routledge.
Frankl, V. (1985). Man’s search for meaning. New York: Basic Books.
Glendon, M. A., & Zacher, H. F. (Eds.). (2012). Universal rights in a world of diversity—The case of religious freedom. Vatican
City: PASS.
Graham, E. (2009). Health, wealth or wisdom? Religion and the paradox of prosperity. International Journal of Public Theology,
3, 5-23.
Layard, R. (2003). What would make a happier society? In Lionel Robbins Memorial Lectures 2002/3 delivered on March 3-5,
2003 at the London School of Economics. Retrieved November 14, 2011, from http://cep.lse.ac.uk/events/lectures/layard/
RL050303.pdf
Layard, R. (2005). Happiness: Lessons from a new science. London: Allen Lane.
Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. (2009). Global restrictions on religion. Retrieved from http://www.pewforum.org
/uploadedFiles/Topics/Issues/Government/restrictions-fullreport.pdf
Pires, R. P. (2003). Migrações e integração: Teoria e aplicações à sociedade portuguesa. Oeiras: Celta Editora.
Portes, A. (1998). Social capital: Its origins and applications in modern sociology. Annual Review of Sociology, 24, 1-24
Presidency of the Council of Ministers and ACIDI. (2007). Plan for immigrant integration. Retrieved from http://www.acidi.gov.
pt/docs/pdf
Putnam, R. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Putnam, R. (2007). E-pluribus Unum: Diversity and community in the twenty-first century: The 2006 Johan Skytte Prize Lecture.
Scandinavian Political Studies, 30(2), 137-174.
Swinton, J. (2007). Researching spirituality and mental health. In M. E. Coyte, P. Gilbert, & V. Nicholls (Eds.), Spirituality,
values and mental health (pp. 292-305). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
The World Bank. (1999). What is social capital? PovertyNet. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://www.worldbank.org/
poverty/scapital/ whatsc.htm
Vilaça, H. (2008). Immigration, ethnicities and religion: The role of religious communities in the integration of Eastern European
immigrants. Lisbon: ACIDI.
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June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 429-438
DAVID
PUBLISHING
Narratives and Experiences: The Social Memory of the Heitor
Carrilho Hospital in the Context of Deinstitutionalization
Lobelia da Silva Faceira
Francisco Ramos de Farias
Federal University of the State
PPGMS (Post-Graduate Program in Social Memory);
of Rio de Janeiro—UNIRIO,
Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro—UNIRIO,
Francisco, USA
Francisco, USA

This paper is part of an interdisciplinary project held at the post-graduation programme on social memory at the
Federal UNIRIO (University of the State of Rio de Janeiro). It aims at investigating and constructing the memory of
the Heitor Carrilho Hospital a detention institution which admits criminals who have been diagnosed with morbid
mental disorders, this being the justification for their crimes and for the consequences in terms of treatment. Firstly,
we will examine the archives of Heitor Carrilho Custody and Treatment Hospital (Rio de Janeiro), the first
institution of such type in Brazil, focusing on documents ranging from its foundation documentation to current
legal policies on public health, which suggests a trend towards de-institutionalization in accordance with Act
10.216/2002. Next, we will focus on the narratives arising from the perceptions of the management team on the
dynamics of the institution and on the inmates, and from the perceptions of the inmates—referred to as mentally ill
criminals—on the crime they have committed, the consequences of the act, the institutional confinement, and the
public mental health policies. The investigation will involve three interdependent methodological stages: a
documentary survey, an ethnographical survey, and interviews. Our reflection on the reports will also consist of
three stages: (1) Firstly, we will focus on the elements present in each of those reports that could constitute a
memory segment; (2) Secondly, we will study the narrative with the purpose of constructing an understanding of
the institution’s memory and the way both the inmates and the management team perceive the institution and its
functioning; and (3) Finally, we will highlight, among the fundamental distinctions obtained from the accounts, the
significant points that will lead to the construction of the institution’s memory as well as possible ruptures that may
isolate elements and links that connect the meanings guiding the institutional dynamics.
Keywords: crime, madness, custody, treatment, social memory
Introduction: Memories of Madness in an HPTC (Hospital for
Psychiatric Treatment and Custody)
The institutions of imprisonment have undergone major transformations without losing the purpose of
segregation of man’s social life. Regarding the arrest records the change in condition of detention space, where
the imprisoned was waiting for the punishment to place punitive incarceration. In the 20th century comes a
Lobelia da Silva Faceira, Ph.D., School of Social Service, Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro—UNIRIO.
Francisco Ramos de Farias, Ph.D., PPGMS (Post-Graduate Program in Social Memory); Federal University of the State of Rio
de Janeiro—UNIRIO. 430
NARRATIVES AND EXPERIENCES, SOCIAL MEMORY, HEITOR CARRILHO HOSPITAL
prison space to house, not exactly criminals but “insanecriminals”, well considered from the endorsement of
medical knowledge testify in a state of mental insanity. Such space that slides often in their practices, from a
prison to a mental hospital, is currently subject to questioning because its inhabitants suffer from mental
disorders which contradict the determinations of the policy of internment of these individuals. Given this
circumstance, it is intended to analyze how the madness makes its appearance in the context of legal practice,
used as an argument to explain the motivation for the crime. Locate the advent of hybrid institutions that house
insanecriminals for treatment under the regime of monitoring and control is also considering the possibilities of
these spaces are also punitive. In the case of the criminal, for whom the medical knowledge goes back one by
one, the filigree of memory condition of insanity, has been the withdrawal of the right of respond by the act
committed, considered incapable, and therefore, not convicted, leaving the burden of the state to be treated. But,
this individual who should be treated committed a crime that does not fade with the declaration of his state of
insanity, reason why should target the incidence of medical practice, but under constant custody of the security
and legal apparatus. In this respect, one should be considered as a particularity: The prisons, as ideals of
rational ordering of the democratic system to protect society from those who endanger life and property, have
proven ineffective, since its inception, as well as institutions for madmen, radically transformed with the policy
of deinstitutionalization that greatly reduced the population segregated in these spaces. However, in psychiatric
hospitals of custody in treatment this reformation is still suggested so that conditions of separation and control
are maintained due to the identification of the danger of its admitted. In these institutions, the offense is
registered in the meshes of insanity, giving the criminal a statute which circulates in different dimensions of
arrested and crazy at the same time.
Given the ambiguity present in the practices that focus on the insanecriminal, we ask what direction
should be taken when medical knowledge legitimates, in the criminal, a state of insanity to justify the
commission of a crime. Treatment, monitoring, and imposition of disciplinary order are the first images
produced by the apparatus in charge of recovering the individual from the determinations of the normative
system of society. This is not about to punish and isolate the malignant element, to avoid contagion of evil, nor
to correct the guilty to reinstate him to the society, but to end the dangerousness upon a treatment of mental
illness in remarkable isolation in which lies the weight of two stigmas: crime and insanity. We do not aim at the
discipline of rebel bodies into docile ones anymore, but the temporary reclusion necessary to recrudescence of
psychic insanity. The institutionalization under these conditions does not always produce the expected results
that often, for being long, crystallize, irreversibly, the state of insanity.
It should be noted that there is a kind of blind violence when a crime is committed by a person who is in a
state of psychic disturbance. This strand is understood as the expression of the slope of the evil that compels the
individual to act crazy without the social fabric had any relationship with it. We know that there is a political
strategy to create an enemy, as well as a special kind of power to be, in him, incarnated and the insanecriminal,
as other figures produced in human history, can serve to continue the list. Hence then, the actions of combat
and defense, sometimes legitimizing forms of violence justified in the name of treatment but that represent
methods of segregation and control (Carrara, 1998). Not that we are denying the existence of the criminal or
crazy as categories produced historically from the advent of the modern era, but pointing out that there are
strategies sponsors of violence and that there are forms of violence that remain covert as happens when
madness becomes part of the prison’s scenario. Thus, there rises a question: Is it an “existential suffering that
some subjects would be tempted to assimilate a given disease or mental suffering would be linked to social
431
context” (Kamerer, 1997, p. 56)? Anyway, we know the direction shown by the medical expertise: The state of
madness motivated and justified the crime. But, it should be considered as a crime of violence with the set of
associated factors without which the end of the process of the subject is reduced to a mere diagnosis. Often, the
closure of the subject in a line diagnostic results in the application of measures that act as restriction of rights
and significant losses within psychic due to segregation relative to life in prison, even if the place is called
psychiatric hospital of custody and treatment.
In the chase of the insanecriminal to regain lost mental health and legitimized the crime, the consequences
are costly subjectively, inferred that, to adapt to the new environment, which requires a psychic transformation,
since “no prison reform, but manufactures delinquency and delinquents” (Foucault, 1979, p. 136). This same
reasoning can be thought of in relation to forensic hospitals, as many internees segregated living much of their
lives, sometimes, a temporality that far exceeds the maximum time of sentencing law. The justification is
submitted on behalf of dangerousness that never ceases as with Febrônio Indio do Brazil, hospitalized in Heitor
Carrilho Hospital, which was received at the hospital in 1927, remaining until 1984, the year of his death, held
in custody, since their psychiatric symptoms did not stop, and according to expert reports, he was a dangerous
man to society. This internee portrays, in an exemplary manner, the conjunction of violence and the power of
medical and judiciary apparatus that, with powerful gears, isolated from the context of social relations for more
than half a century a state of insanity understood as an evil germ that should be controlled under constant
vigilance (Fry, 1982). Of this Web, the insanecriminals can hardly escape. The crime and incarceration, as well
as insanity and confinement for treatment affect the living conditions of the insanecriminal, once we see the
reproduction of violence in the social Web and the feared and ferocious enemy is controlled. So, the
insanecriminal is conceived as a sort of toxic rest, to be disposed of social relations in “obscene rituals that
occur under the ghostly plan of power” (Zizek, 1998, p. 89). Therefore, coercive measures were justified.
In our daily life, the figure who occupies the place of the enemy, incarnating the figure of evil, is the
loucocriminoso which often has no definite place in the knowledge that determines their condition. They are
either treated as mental patients when medical knowledge comes into play or considered bandits before the eyes
of the security apparatus. They are still considered unable to answer for themselves by legal knowledge. These
fields of social practice work, effectively, to maintain the supposed enemy, considered as the maximum
concentration of evil, increasingly distant from the context of social relations, with minimal chances of return.
Then to distribute, it remains the major task of separating the criminals, mad, and loucoscriminosos of citizens,
because they are considered violent and cruel that spread horror. This kind of separation unwavering hides two
important aspects. Firstly, it creates the illusion that the loucocriminoso is the one that focuses evil, motives
chosen to ensure the supposed goodness of a citizen who believes himself as suitable, even when is agent of
certain transgressions that considers natural; and secondly, polarizes evil in maximum intensity in
loucocriminoso means to the social Web, sustains a posture of removal, without any worries to understand the
various nuances of the psychic condition of the one who engaged in the fateful ritual of crime and also in
planning to provide programs to restructure loucocriminoso against disruptions resulting from the crime and
then segregation determined by the security measure. We need to think the determination of crime, but also the
conditions of possibility for the lives of those who are considered untouchable, beyond the administration of
large doses of psychotropic drugs for immobilization and control of hospitalized. Here is destiny for insanity
when associated with crime in custodial and treatment institutions.
Regarding the crime motivated by a state of insanity, we face a paradox what is stated in the contradiction
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inherent in the system where the subject is engaged, because as stated by Carrara (1998, p. 69), the
loucocriminoso is “perceived as attack on society and rupture of the social contract that constitutes”. So then,
there are functional apparatuses that must manage it on behalf of the defense of society. But we need to make a
cut in this complex issue and ask, and this contradiction is not the mirror and the motor of cruelty, when
grouped into the same category of acts of such diverse natures and purposes: crime and insanity. Thus, our goal
is to pursue understanding of a nuance of this theme, tracking the untouchable subject, conditions referred to
want to speak about their subjective determination, that is, understanding what the motion that leads an
individual to perform a crime and follow the developments arising this act: incarceration, subjective experience
of loss, and attempt to restore the condition of citizenship. It is crucial at this point of reflection, inquiring what
the benefits of hospitalization for loucocriminoso and society are. If we focus on the gaze documentary
collections of the institutions designed for the treating of this category of excluded, we note the ineffectiveness
of institutional practices in enabling conditions so that the subject can manage his life within society. This
suggests that the fate of loucocriminoso is to stay glued to the institution, either the stigma arising from the
grim conditions impacting upon, crime and insanity, either the gradual transformation that happens in
subjective arrangements due to insertion into the culture of the institution which represents irrecoverable losses.
But what is the action of the state to the hospitalized? That is: Which possibility does the hospitalized find
that will forever be marked by this identity, to restore his subjective condition lost by crime and also the
condition of incarceration? For the hospitalized, insanity and crime break the tenuous link that served as
support to the possibility of circularity in the context of symbolic exchanges. For one who committed a crime,
motivated by a state of insanity, as pointed by Guiraud (1994), there must be another way out: to restore what is
broken within subjectivity. Behold the desired forwarding on this research that attempts to silence the insanity
in a prison space. Thus, the reflections produced anchor in academic dialogues based on the following
assumptions: (1) questioning of interconnections between various research strategies that can generate different
types of corpora; (2) depth investigation of concepts of social memory (Gondar, 2005; Jelin, 2002) and
institutional relations in the specific context of research on the overlap between legal and clinical knowledge; (3)
the way that the overlapping records of the loucocriminosos occur during the investigation and legal psychiatric
treatment; (4) the use of discourse analysis in social interactionist perspective (Goffman, 2002; Tannen &
Wallat, 2002) as a methodological tool adequate to evoke experiences/narratives that emerge from different
socio-political contexts of the institutional world and the world of the narrative (Linde, 1993; Mishler, 2002);
and (5) the discussion of the involvement of the researcher and the relationship between the narrator and the
narrated story (Pinto & Nascimento, 2012) based on the paradigm of studies of narrative adopted in the
research. Equally important is the transdisciplinary look to address emerging issues in the interface between
criminology and psychology clinic. Thus, we pause to investigate the institutional practices of the Heitor
Carrilho Hospital in the context of deinstitutionalization, from the analysis of a case study, noting the settings
designed and constructed discursively.
A Memory of Heitor Carrilho Hospital
The dynamics of an asylum institution has its own nuances, considering the field of social memory, to the
extent that embraces two aspects of exclusion: mental illness and crime (Pinto, Farias &, Gondar, 2012). In this
sense, building memory, basing themselves in routine practices of an institution of custody and treatment in the
context of deinstitutionalization, involves following specific paths to consider: (1) the time before the entry of
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the subject in the institution, i.e., crime; (2) the fact that the subjects share the institutional space with the police,
correctional officers and mental health professionals; and (3) the relationship with other individuals in similar
conditions (all others admitted to the institution are deprived of their freedom), and insanity, theoretically, an
important factor to justify the crime. The Heitor Carrilho Hospital sheltered and shelters internees called
loucoscriminosos: Individuals who, due to a “mental disorder”, commit a crime and are considered exempt
from punishment by the judiciary from the consideration of a medical report. After observation, the subject is
designated as a safety measure, a hospital-prison of the penal system. Regarding these institutions, Carrara
(2010, p. 17) noted that:
In Brazil, as the so-called “criminally insane”, the Criminal Code of 1890 said they were just criminally irresponsible
and should be handed over to their families or interned in public asylums, if they so “requiring” public safety. The choice
in each case was an assignment of the judge. In 1903, a special law for the organization of legal medical assist for alienated
in the Federal District, a model for the organization of these services in the various states of the Union (Dec.1132 of
22/12/1903), established that each state should pool resources to the construction of judicial asylums, and as such
institutions do not exist, should be built special attachments to public asylums for their collection. From the law of 1903, in
the wake of the reforms introduced in the National Insane Asylum, located in Rio de Janeiro, it creates a special section to
house the “criminally insane”.
The Judicial Asylum in Rio de Janeiro had as its first director the psychiatrist Heitor Pereira Carrilho. In
the 1950s, in honor of this director, the institution was called Heitor Carrilho Judicial Asylum. Later, in 1986, it
came to be designated as Heitor Carrilho Custody and Psychiatric Care Hospital. It is located in the
neighborhood of Estacio, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, next to the land that was occupied until its implosion in
March 2010 at the Frei Caneca Penitentiary.
Judicial asylums institutions are as hybrid complex and contradictory since embrace a dual function: guard
and treat. Goffman (2002) showed that a single structure of social relations—total institutions—can be found
both in prisons and in mental hospitals, both institutions are pervaded by the power relations, discipline, and the
presence of physical barriers. A total institution is a place where a person in a similar situation, separated from
society for a considerable period of time, leads a life closed and formally administered. Such sites, according to
Foucault (2002), configure institutional sequestration network that imprisons the existence of individuals,
taking charge of the control of their time. Under the legislation, the insane criminal is subject to punitive legal
intervention models and psychiatric therapy. In this sense, the operation of the Heitor Carrilho Hospital is
permeated by criminal enforcement of public policies, social care, and mental health. Since 2010, based on
mental health policy, which calls for deinstitutionalization of psychiatric patients and a policy enforcement that
prioritizes criminal internalization of the sentence, the Heitor Carrilho Hospital goes through a period of intense
transformation. Currently, the institution receives no more patient-prisoner who entered the penal system,
passing a function as output port. Receives also chemically depend on women.
The Law 10216 of April 6, 2001, the so-called psychiatric reform law, together with resolutions No. 5 of
2004 and No. 4 of 2010 of the National Council on Criminal and Penitentiary Policy were determinant in
changing the scenario of HPTCs in Rio January. The law proposes the end of compulsory psychiatric
hospitalizations and termination of asylum-profile institutions and establishes a policy to assist the mentally ill
based on the notion of citizenship. This law advocates, in its Article 5, that patients with a high degree of
dependence of the institution should be targets of public policies so that they can be reintegrated into society.
The resolutions cited above extend this standard to judicial asylums. Reflections policy guidelines in mental
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health institutions on the order of confinement of the mentally ill are clear. The policy of deinstitutionalization
of the mentally ill has produced many changes in the Heitor Carrilho Hospital. In the period from 2010 to 2012,
81 admitted they received guidance for discharge and left the institution. It is worth noting that, from a joint
action of the prosecutor and public defender of the State of Rio de Janeiro and coordination of mental health at
the municipal and state levels and the performance of multidisciplinary teams, the number of cases of discharge
and the subsequent establishment of projects to therapeutic psychosocial reintegration of the ex-admitted
increased substantially.
A Research in an HPTC: The Heitor Carrilho Hospital
Because of its existence resulting from the need for a place to house people who were unable to evaluate
the psychological consequences of their actions when they committed a crime, professionals working in this
hospital are both in the health area (doctors, psychologists, nurses, and social workers) as in the area of public
safety (prison safety inspectors). From this that the institution itself is presented as a challenge to anyone who
wants to build his memory: How to compose the memory of an institution that emerges as marked by the
imposition of an identity and that feeds the confirmation of this identity? How can we think about the
composition of a memory that aligns a non-technique vision, if when entering the institution, we already know
that its existence is due to a need of transformation of those who are hospitalized, so that they only exist as
subsistence? From these questions, we analyze the case of Maria dos Anjos, not seeking to answer them just for
that specific case, but to reflect on the social memory of the Heitor Carrilho Hospital.
Given the impasses of deinstitutionalization of hospitalized is focused on the situation of Maria dos
Anjosthat in three decades, was imprisoned in total three institutions: prison, hospice, and mental hospital.
Before identifying her peculiarities, we present biographical aspects that are shed in complexities in her path.
Northeastern from poor backgrounds, she lived with her mother, father, and two brothers. She arrived in Rio de
Janeiro by truck ride to stay with her relatives after her father left the family due to alcoholism and her mother
claimed that she was not able to raise her, by being very messy. At the age of 12, she began to use drugs, then
she left school. At the same age, a blast crisis broke the leg of her aunt, having been admitted to a psychiatric
clinic. At the age of 15, she was delivered by her aunt to juvenile court, remaining recluse until 19 years old
when she began to prostitute herself, and perform small thefts. She got pregnant and after giving birth, the child
was donated under the allegation of being unable to raise it. In her second pregnancy, she came to see her son,
but the maternity reported that the child was born dead, did not accept that version, which is actually the reason
for aggressive incidents, for which she was arrested red-handed when attacking a nurse with shard of glass.
Forwarded to a psychiatric hospital for mental problems and unrestrained aggression, she killed another
hospitalized and came to be guarded for treatment. Currently, though not hospitalized, she still lives in
bureaucratic institution due to circumstances related to the absence of documentation, which makes obtaining
benefits, such as the back to home program, for her future referral to a shelter or to a residence therapy,
unavailable. This is the second problematic aspect that expresses the complexity of this case. Faced with such
circumstances, what should the process of social reintegration be inquired, since Maria dos Anjos is not
hospitalized anymore, but remains in the institution?
Theoretical and Methodological Framework
We assume that the Heitor Carrilho Hospital is a place of memory, “... places, in fact, in all three senses of
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the word: material, symbolic, and functional at the same time...” (Nora, 1993, p. 21). According to Dodebei
(2000, p. 64), “There is no memory without documents”. The Latin term “documentum”, according to Le Goff
(2003), derived from Docere “teaching”, evolves to the meaning of “proof” that also seems to be the meaning
that common sense attaches to the term (Dodebei, 2005). However, the entire document is a social construct, as
it is the result of socio-historical conditions that circumscribe its creation. Thus, “The document is not
innocuous. It is, first and foremost the result of an assembly, conscious or unconscious, of that time, the
company which produced it...” (Le Goff, 2003, p. 103). It comes into play interpretation and analysis of
production conditions that allow its maintenance and preservation. Therefore, we direct the look, in this
investigation, to the fact that the construction of memory must be held away from the mere rescue of a past,
whether its preservation is its transmission, which is the reason why, methodologically, we must distinguish
what of the past is useful for the construction of a memory, what is expendable, as the cult celebration that
today is closely linked to memory. This means that our intent is to discriminate filigrees events for constructing
a productive remembrance. For this reason, the study of memory in this research has the character to be a
process and product of shared meanings imposed by agents with administrative functions, the agents who
carried out the crime and are caught, the legal provisions that legislate on the operation of the institution and
finally the participation of the group of researchers moved from theoretical tools for analyzing the complex
relations woven from the convergence of different contingents of human experience. In other words, we are
interested in the meanings engendered by the joint action of human beings, an institution in a given historical
moment. Memory is the restoration of the present accomplished through language and social practices.
The case study of Maria dos Anjos was drawn from the documentary analysis of records of more than 600
pages of the hospitalized segments and transcription of conversations between this hospitalized and a member
of the research group, recorded on video. With regard to the conversations, they were treated by analysis of
narratives (Linde, 1993; Riessman, 2010), which promotes a field given to interactional settings not found in
other speech genre. Thus, the analysis of narratives is a window to the understanding of transient processes and
fluids of identity configurations that are constantly in the process of becoming something, to integrate to new
Webs of belonging that they do and they crumble in an unlimited social game: remember in order to narrate, in
other words, to provide, through the narrative, the organization of experience, placing chaos and the fragments
in an order and a bearable logic creating a dynamic of past/present in the order of discourse. The narrative
operates in the world of the story, the immediate context (what to tell for those now) and concomitant
socio-historical contexts in particular. Soon, the whole story is confined locally and macro-socially.
As mentioned above, the life of Maria dos Anjos is crossed by several stories whose pillars are foreclosure,
abandonment and violence experienced within her family, street and several hospitalizations in total institutions.
Below, we highlight some stories about the hospitalized, which explain the various exclusions and violence
experienced by herself: “She never got out of the third grade. She sold her body” (excerpts taken from a
psychiatric opinion). It is observed in both extracts that an identity construction of Maria dos Anjos is as
someone devoid of intellectual capacity and as a woman of easy living. This last identity is discursively
engendered repeated at other times another psychiatric opinion (from the beginning of her puberty, began
attending the underworld prostitution: brothels, low-level nightclubs, etc.).
The hospitalized Maria dos Anjos is characterized as violent temper, very aggressive (a person of violent
temper and very aggressive, unethical and immoral: amoral and unethical), defective character (this is a person
with bad character formed as evidenced by lies, violence, emotional coldness and premeditated malice),
436
irritable and resentful (is angry with ease. She is a spiteful person), and institutional unwieldy (often had to be
collected and remains much of his measure of security locked in her cell unlike other patients who remain in
the yard all the time). There is a curiosity item on the forensic psychiatric considerations. Initially, the author of
the text informed the patient in her various admissions always received the diagnosis of psychopathic
personality, but after scratching this latest information on the diagnosis (ever received a diagnosis of
psychopathic personality) and adds that Maria dos Anjos has no psychotic symptoms. Following the findings,
the author once again erased the information on Maria dos Anjos suffering from psychopathic personality, and
through a general statement, which appeals to a supposed essence of crazy criminal nature of subjects of similar
actions, regardless of the social aspects that are inserted (these patients with psychopathic
personalities—information erased—in all parts of the world is that they do not usually get improvements in
psychiatric hospital environment), opines that the women’s prison, and not the forensic hospital, is the
institution that may offer her better chance of recovery. Over the concluding section, we also note the slippage
between the categories crazy and criminal. If, on the one hand, they do not usually get improvements in
psychiatric hospital environment, discursive construction of identity that evokes the setting of hospital patients
custody and treatment (usually psychotic), the criminal side is revealed to indicate the type of institution that
better fits to these subjects, the prison: when placed in harsh prison regime, with very few perks and
intimidation when they commit criminal acts. The conclusion ends with the central argument that seems to
favor the welfare of Maria dos Anjos: We suggest that she should be transferred to a women’s prison where, we
believe, could have a better chance of recovery.
The narratives about Maria dos Anjos are always crossed by the episode of delivery of the child for
adoption, featuring another aspect of violence within her family and traversed by total institutions. According
to the report which includes an official letter of the director of the maternity, addressed to the Judge, that
interned constantly passes the institution, and her behavior narrated as extremely aggressive which we can
observe in various sections of the report below, either in the form of adjectives or actions that are attributed to
her: (1) “we hereby report to you some episodes of despair that has been caused by Maria dos Anjos over more
than nine months (...) we have not had peace (...) Maria dos Anjos only caused horror and horrible moments”;
(2) “untimely attitudes, violent, aggressive, causing injuries... depredating facilities... set fire in a consulting
room... it is common to show up carrying a knife, razor blades, broken glass, fork, etc., came unexpectedly and
violently in the emergency room, assaulted a nurse, handing her the razor in the face, causing deep cut”
(official letter of the director of Pro Matre to the judge); (3) “very nervous, invading the maternity, shouting her
son’s name... was very agitated... always attends causing uproar, claiming that her son is in our nursery” (Pro
Matre maternity social case summary); and (4) “on the street, under the influence of alcohol and marijuana (sic),
became very aggressive. She was admitted in Pedro II Hospital and there killed, during a fight, with a stick,
another patient in a cold and calculated way (...) without psychotic symptomatology” (Note: Clinic, Roberto
Medeiros Penal Hospital).
In the documents, we find the story of institutional violence and aggression contained in Maria dos Anjos
during her various passages and insertions in Pro Matre. Now, her narratives are from interviews conducted by
a researcher of the team, explaining the experience of not knowing the whereabouts of her son and her
expectation in meeting him again: (1) “I went straight from the psychiatry to take the baby”; (2) “I was not in
conditions to be with my baby, I returned to psychiatry full of stitches. Then when I was released, I was seeking,
they had donated. Then, I got and cut the doctor’s face and broke the director’s car. Then, I ended up here”; and
437
(3) “At the clinic, I did not go back there. Only after, every time I go there, comes out a mess, I come up here ...
because I take my baby which is in the nursery okay, you know”? Through narrative, Maria dos Anjos
presenting her in order to play the roles of mother, mentally ill and insanecriminal, sometimes explaining and
highlighting agencies harmful actions on another punishable, sometimes mitigating the agency, and designing
performance role of mental patient. Thus, we see a constant game of impressions which alternate both roles.
The presentification of the scene observed by the present tense of the verb will go, come out, and call
adverbial phrases every time, which suggests that the narrator exerts a compression in time, evoking the
indefinite repetition of the scene. It is as if the traumatic scene was frozen, and the passage of time in no way
contributes to the development of loss. The pain of losing her son, which occurred in 1984, yet is narrated with
great emotional charge at various times. Through this feature, we can infer that there was a freeze of a scene
that was repeated several times, according to several reports and documents attest, it occurred more than two
decades ago. The narrative analysis allows us to observe the nuances of identity configurations of Maria dos
Anjos, which evokes a socially constructed system of values in the category insanecriminal (Farias, 2010), but
not restricted to it. Thus, it provides us tools to build a memory that does not cover the essence of subjects from
a supposed nature of insanecriminal, but a memory that is attentive to the implications of the recent institutional
movements.
Final Considerations
Considering the guidelines of forensic psychopathology, we can say that once admitted, the insanecriminal
has initially two possible destinations: (1) be treated by his mental disorder, and, after treatment; and (2) be
evaluated by the expert that testifies the cessation of danger, allowing the judge, therefore, the suspension of a
security measure, follows this the return of their activities in the context of social relations. However, the judge
can determine their stay in the institution due to the chronic nature of his mental state. Given the new mental
health policies guided by the axis of deinstitutionalization (Hirdes, 2012), as mentioned in the introduction, the
insanecriminal will undergo treatment in institutions not total, with the support of the community, seeking their
psychosocial rehabilitation, constituting, thus a third alternative that emerges in the current scenario, despite the
lack of devices of similar nature in the country. So, three questions become pressing: What is the future of these
institutions face the new hybrid nature determinations in favor of deinstitutionalization? What is the future of
former hospitalized without social bonds in the context of the network of mental health in the city of Rio de
Janeiro, in which devices currently offer only 35% coverage for the population as a whole? What will be the
position of the legal apparatus on those who commit a crime because of a mental disorder and are thus
considered unimputable?
Given the imminent transformation of how the insanecriminal or adults with a mental disorder in conflict
with the law are treated in Brazil. The initiative to build the social memory of the Heitor Carrilho Hospital is
significant the extent that; on the one hand, we passed a moment of transition in engendering public policies for
this population, on the other hand, it represents a way to observe the guidelines that will drive the change in
social perception and look on this subject. Given the specificity of this institution and the nature of
insanecriminal, this study adopts an unpublished approach to discuss the issue of social memory to the extent
that aims to go beyond the assessment of the documentary aspects, historical, political, and ideological that
shaped and still shapes. To this end, considering the methodological presuppositions, we aim to understand the
institution’s memory based on ethnographic observations of communicative practices that constitute the routine
438
of the hospital/prison and narratives listed by its members—hospitalized, team management, prison guards,
experts, and mental health professionals. We also treat insanecriminal as a category in ethnomethodological
perspective based on the experiences of the subjects about to commit a crime and live in such an institution.
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D
June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 439-446
DAVID
PUBLISHING
An Islamic Perspective on the Role of Education in Responding
to Social Issues Among Students in Malaysia
Nik Rosila Nik Yaacob
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia

In meeting its economic, social, and political goals, Malaysia and many other countries are challenged with the rise
of social problems among their citizens. Being an Islamic country, the question of the role of religion in shaping
good behavior has been an issue of concern. In spite of religion, education is seen as a significant instrument to
tackle this social issue. The aim of this article is to highlight an Islamic perspective on the role of education in
responding to social issues among students. This paper begins with philosophical discussion on the purpose and the
meaning of education. Further discussion is on the three aspects inherent to the concept of education, i.e., the man,
the content, and the method, is explained. To conclude, several suggestions are recommended to strengthen the
existing educational system in Malaysia.
Keywords: concept of education, social issues, knowledge, Islamic education
Introduction
The emergence of science and technology has positive and negative effect. The positive effect, such as
innovation in science and technology, has transformed human beings into a better life and has accelerated their
activities and productivities. Nevertheless, the negative effects of modern life are rapidly accelerating. The
rapid development and innovation of technology has exerted a great influence upon the pattern of human
interaction, and has resulted in the changes of interpersonal and intergroup relations. Technology has connected
people more closely, yet technology also has brought into the traditional culture a new wave of other cultures,
which has somehow impacted the values. As a result, individuals have been very busy with their own matters
and they no longer pay much care and concern about other people. This is as reflective as what has happened in
the community when a “single collective religious identity” seems to fragment due to the development of
communication (Ameli, 2002) and also decline in religious values, tradition, and belief (Patrick & Joseph, 2007;
Sergio, 2003; Malaysian Ministry of Education, 2004). This has reflected the various potential ways leading to
youth behavioral problems. Azhar and Nasir (2010) held the behavioral problem of modern youth is mainly
because human identities and characteristic are converted into machines of consumption, feeding the desires of
our bodies, but always to the detriment of the true desires of our souls, which has led us to a “moral and spiritual
void”, resulting in a state of human disequilibrium. Though the emergence of science and technology is not
opposed to Islam, its conception that void of religion is contradicted with Islamic worldview (Malik, 2000). In
Islam, religion is a way of life that educates man to be good. Therefore, education is indeed pivotal. Education
aims at modification of human behavior in the light of Islamic virtues.
Nik Rosila Nik Yaacob, Ph.D., School of Educational Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia.
440
ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE ON THE ROLE OF EDUCATION
The Concept of Education in Islam
The concept of education in Islam can be divided into its purpose and its meaning. In general, the purpose
of education is to serve only to God (Abdullah, 1989)1. As God is divined and he loves all the goodness, man
should be good too. On this point, many Muslim scholars (Hadi, 1979; Al-Attas, 1991) referred man as “the
image of God” (vicegerent of God), because he partaked the transcendence of God. In this respect, man is being
created to comprehend all the qualities of God. Therefore, the main aim of education in Islam is to produce a
good man. The description of good man can be categorized into two dimensions. The first dimension is about
the relationship between man and his creator, and the second is his relationship with others. The good man in
the first dimension is the one who is sincerely conscious of his responsibilities towards the true God, recognizes
the power and the unity of God, and creates God-consciousness in his soul (Hadi, 1979; Bidmos, 1994;
Al-Taftazani, 1986; Al-Attas, 1991). In practical, he is the one who fulfills the essential elements in Islam, such
as five times daily prayer, fasting during the “ramadhan” and pilgrimage in Mecca and also observe the
regulations of Islamic rules in all their actions. In spite of fulfilling his responsibilities to himself, man is
obliged to maintain friendly relationship with other creatures with justice (Bidmos, 1984; Al-Taftazani, 1986).
This is the second dimension of good man. God likes man who respects the dignity of his brother and always
invites others to goodness (Abdullah, 1989)2.
The second purpose of education in Islam is to harmonize between the good (divine) and the bad (evil)
qualities in the human soul. The main aim of harmonizing these two elements is to ensure a balance
development of the body, the mind, and the soul of individual (Bidmos, 1984; Hassan, 1983). Al-Attas
described a good man is when he constantly strives to improve every aspect of his inner self towards perfection
as a man of “adab” (good manner) (Wan Mohd Nor, 1998). In relation, there are three different potentialities
governed the human soul which represent the good and the bad qualities. The first potential is “nafs
al-ammarah”, the root of all blameworthy qualities (evil). If this blameworthy quality is stronger and more
powerful than the divine (good) elements, human soul will be subservient to evil and follow the lust, which will
affect his behavior and action. On the other hand, if the divine (good) elements are stronger and highly
conscious of God, they will be able to instruct the evil soul to submit to the goodness. Thus, all the
blameworthy qualities are substituted with goodness, and tranquility will finally exist in the human soul. This
potentiality is called nafs al-mutamainnah. The third potentiality is nafs al-lawwamah, which is midway
between the evil potentiality of nafs al-ammmarah and the good elements. This soul is always unconscious
except when it is illuminated by the light of the goodness and later on becomes conscious (Al-Ghazali, 1998a).
In this situation, self-discipline and spiritual training are significant in disciplining the soul to the goodness.
The second aspect in the concept of education in Islam is its meaning, which referres to the terminological
and philosophical point of view. According to Al-Attas (Wan Mohd Nor, 1998), the meaning of education in its
totality is inherent in the connotations term “tarbiyyah”, “ta’lim”, and “ta’dib” taken altogether. Though all
terms refer to education, ta’dib is more accurate and precise in interpreting the concept of education. Ta’lim
means to instruct, to teach, to train, to school, and to educate3, which contains elements of knowledge and
1
God says, “I have only created Jinns and men, that they may serve Me. No sustenance do I require of them, not do I require that
they should feed Me” (Surah al-Dhariyat, 51:56-57).
2
See Surah Al-Imran, 3:104.
3
Hans Wehr, A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic Edition. J. Milton Cowan, 3rd printing (Beirut: Librairie Du Liban), 1980,
636 (Hereafter, as cited in a dictionary).
441
schooling. Tarbiyyah means to nurture, to bear, to feed, to foster, to nourish, to cause to increase growth, to rear,
and to bring forth to mature produce (Al-Attas, 1991). However, tarbiyyah is not adequate to convey the
meaning of education from its terminological point of view. This is because its meaning is not only applied to
man, but also to other species such as animal, minerals, and plants (Al-Attas, 1991). The focus of tarbiyyah is
more on physical and emotional aspect of man. Therefore, ta’dib (root word: “addaba”) which means to refine,
to educate, to discipline, to punish, and to chastise (Wehr, 1980), is more appropriate to denote education, as its
meaning conveys the process of educating man intellectually, spiritually, and socially. Moreover, its meaning is
already, including tarbiyyah, ta’lim, and also knowledge or the content 4 (Al-Taftazani, 1986; Bidmos,
1984).The word ta’dib is also used by the prophet (pbuh) when he says, “My Lord educated (addaba) me, and
made my education (ta’dib) most excellent” (Al-Ghazali, 1998a) Based on this hadith, the fun damental
element inherent in the concept of education in Islam is to inculcate adab to individual. Hence, what is the
meaning of adab and how it relates to education? Adab in its original sense means invitation to a banquet which
implies the idea of a good and honorable social intercourse. In this case, adab is about disciplining the mind and
soul. It is also about acquisition of good qualities and attributes of the mind and soul, so that individual can
differentiate between: good and bad; right and wrong; and true and false (Al-Attas, 1979). In conclusion, ta’dib
according to Al-Attas is referred to a process of instilling something into human beings and inculcation of adab
in man. Three elements inherent in the concept of ta’dib, i.e., the method or education (refers to “a process of
instilling”), a content (refers to “something”), and recipient (refers to “human beings”) (Al-Attas, 1991). The
discussion of these elements is as follows:
The Man
Man is constituted of the body and the soul. The body and the soul are very closely interrelated.
Nevertheless, the real essence that gears the physical body to function is the soul. Man is also known as a
rational being. The rational or “aql” distinguished man from other beings. The real nature of aql is that it is a
spiritual substances by which the rational soul recognizes and distinguishes truth from falsehood (Al-Ghazali,
1998a; Al-Attas, 1991). Rationality in man refers to the capacity for understanding speech, and the power
responsible for the formulation of meanings (which involves judgment, discrimination, distinction, and
clarification), and articulation of expressions in meaningful pattern (Al-Attas, 1991). In relation, the
development of human intellect depends upon the internal and external senses. There are five external senses in
the developmental order of sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch, respectively. The function of the external
senses is to perceive objects or things in the external world. On the other hand, there are also five internal
senses. These internal senses perceived internally the sensual images and their meanings, combined or
separated them, conceived notions of them, preserved the conceptions, hence conceived and formed intellection
of them. Unlike the external senses, these internal senses do not have specific sense organs, but they are
naturally intellectual and connected with the physical intermediaries. Their function is localized in the anterior,
posterior, and middle regions of the brain (Al-Attas, 1991; Muhammad, 1992).
The Content
The content refers to knowledge (“ilm”). As human soul from the very beginning has been equipped with
the knowledge of God, seeking knowledge is an important attributes of man. Because of knowledge, teaching
4
Concept of Education, 26.
442
and learning becomes meaningful and reasonable. Knowledge from modern conception is something that can
be proven by human reason and known in the scientific and empirical investigation (Feibleman, 1999). It is
something that can be experienced by man and can be grasped by human reason. However, in Islam, all the
invisible aspects, such as values and religion are part of knowledge. Therefore, knowledge from Islamic point
of view is “the arrival in the soul of the meaning of a thing”. The “meaning of a thing” is the right meaning of it
obtained from the Holy Qur’an (Al-Attas, 1991).
Knowledge is divided into “fard ‘ayn” and “fard kifayah”. The former is referred to the knowledge of
Oneness of God (tawhid) which also encompasses the fundamental principles in religion. This kind of
knowledge can be acquired by man through his acts of worship and devotion. His worship to God depends on
God’s grace and his own latent spiritual power and capacity created by God to receive it (Al-Ghazali, 1998b;
Al-Attas, 1978). Man receives this knowledge by direct insight or spiritual savoring (dhawq) and unveiling to
his spiritual vision (kashf). This knowledge is referring to the highest knowledge (“makrifah”). It is considered
as the highest knowledge, because it gives insight into knowledge of God or the knowledge of the truth
(Al-Attas, 1995). Hence, it is obligatory (fard’ayn) to every Muslim man and woman to learn it. The second is
the knowledge which is obligatory to some Muslims only. It can be divided into religious (shar’iyyah) and
non-religious (ghayr syar’iyyah). The religious sciences are derived from the Prophets (pbuh), while the
non-religious sciences are acquired through reasoning and experimentation. This kind of knowledge which can
be acquired through intellectual and bodily faculties in man is discursive and deductive (Al-Ghazali, 1998b;
Al-Attas, 1978). Knowledge is unlimited. However, man’s nature, capacity, lifespan, and needs are limited. He,
hence, needs to limit his personal acquisition of knowledge. It is neither desirable nor possible for an individual
to acquire all the sciences. However, the Muslim community should organize its educational system, so that all
the sciences and also the religious virtues can be studied and applied as well as can be expanded all over the
world (Wan Mohd Nor, 1998). For this reason, this kind of knowledge is obligatory upon only some
individuals in the community (fard kifayah). Nevertheless, this category of knowledge should be guided by the
former one, which is the true knowledge.
The Method
Educational process is related to disciplining the physical and spiritual aspects of an individual which
involves in acquisition of knowledge and transformation of his personality. When knowledge is transferred to
man, not only the mind-set changes, but also the behavior and character are affected. The thinking ability will
respond to an affective domain and results to the way of doing things (Sidek, 2009). This process entails
spiritual struggle (“mujahadah”) and discipline (“riyadah”). These two activities will lead towards purification
of the soul and refinement of character (“tahdhib al-akhlaq”). In educating young children, self-discipline is
indeed important. Self-discipline means a training to inculcate good traits in the soul through simple and
continuous practice and finally with intense struggle until good action is manifested (Al-Ghazali, 1995;
Al-Miskawayh, 1968). Since the faculty of desire is the first to appear in childhood period, disciplining the
child at this stage is aimed at preserving the balance and moderate between the excess and deficiency of his
faculty. Thus, the child especially at the discernment age should be supervised carefully. The first trait to be
controlled is the greed for food (Al-Ghazali, 1995).
In disciplinary process, punishment is inevitable. Mild physical punishment will be imposed as soon as the
child reaches seven years of age, particularly in the case of leaving his daily prayers. The intention of
443
punishment is to accustom a child to his religious duty (Al-Ghazali, 1995; Al-Miskawayh, 1968). Formal
education for young children is started when he/she approaches seven years old, whereby his discernment
faculty is emerging. At this phase, the teachers or tutors are given full authority to supervise the child in terms
of his action and his conduct as well as to teach him knowledge. The teacher will be more concerned with the
child’s cognitive development through instruction and transmission of knowledge, while the parents will get
involved in its practical application. The parents will take a responsibility to ensure that their child will
consistently perform the five fundamental rituals in Islam (Al-Ghazali, 1995). Learning, according to
Al-Ghazali (1995), is a process of recollecting our own identity. He referred to the soul in the situation when it
was struggling to get rid from the evil domination and deviant from God. When the faculty of reason has been
successful in subjugating the soul and brings it back to the truth, it is actually the process of recollecting its
identity (Muhammad, 1978). Therefore, the acquisition of knowledge indeed begins with inner purification,
whereby the child needs to be taught to purify his soul from vices and blameworthy qualities which is doomed
inside the evil tendency.
Socialization is another method in educating young children by associating with a right companion. Parental
authority at this stage is crucially important in determining the peer group for their child to mingle with. He
should be prevented from playmates or peers who could influence him in contrary to what has been taught by his
parents, from those who talk nonsense, who curse and insult others; and from mixing with children who are
accustomed to luxurious and comfort life (Al-Ghazali, 1995; Al-Miskawayh, 1968). As the process of learning
during childhood period is developed through perception and imagination, a child inclines to imitate what he
perceives and listen as well as imitate their heroes and heroines from the Medias. In this case, good examples
from parents, teachers, and other authorities in community are ultimately important. Likewise, electronic Medias,
such as television, Internet, and radios should play their social role in promoting valuable programs and
inculcating good values for the young children. Therefore, Al-Ghazali (1995) and Al-Miskawayhy (1968)
reminded parents not to allow their children to listen to the amusement that could stimulate his desire, such as
poem which deals with lover and passion. This is because it would implant the seeds of corruption in their heart.
On the other hand, listening to the melodious recital of the Qur’an which contains of beautiful words and
wisdom are good to strengthening the soul and inculcating good character trait of the children.
The Role of Education in Islam vs. Malaysian Educational System
Education in this modern world not only gives students a sound intellectual, but also must respond to and
satisfy their social, emotional, and spiritual needs. Malaysian educational system today, especially the
designation of the curriculum focuses on the cognitive aspect of the learner and to develop the capable human
resource for the industries. Thus, the acquisition of knowledge is about having a good result in examination and
employs a good job in the future. This situation has caused a deficiency in inner purification and emotional
stability, which is the main aim in education (Hadi, 1979). The emphasis on cognitive or rational dimension
solely is inadequate, because intelligent is not resided in the human brain. Muslim philosophers, such as
Al-Ghazali (1998a) and Ibn Sina (Muhammad, 1992), held intelligent is resided in the heart. Their
argumentation is based on several verses (Abdullah, 1989)5, which implied the potentiality of human intellect
in the heart. To improve human heart is by learning and understanding wholeheartedly his “curriculum”, which
5
Surah Qaf, 50:37; Surah al-Munafiqun, 63:3; Surah al-Naml, 27:46.
444
is the Holy Qur’an. As God is the creator of the universe, he has designed a very appropriate curriculum to all
mankind which embedded in the Qur’an. It is mentioned in the Qur’an that God taught Adam all the names of
the things then presented it to the angels (Abdullah, 1989)6. Therefore, his curriculum (the Qur’an) should be
the first subject to be taught and the Sunnah of his messenger as a second subject.
The content of the Qur’an encompasses all aspects of human life: the knowledge of sciences and universe;
the history of the past and other civilization; the knowledge of mathematics and jurisprudence; the psychology
of human beings, and so forth (Abdullah, 1989). The Sunnah is the tradition of the Prophet is regarded as the
second source of knowledge in Islam. It encompasses the saying of the Prophet, his action, his silent, and his
approval of the actions of others. Its function is to explain and interpret some of the ambiguous verses or
command in the Qur’an, such as the way to perform prayer (salat) or the way to perform pilgrimage. Qur’an
has been the main subject in traditional education. For example, in traditional Malay education, Qu’ran has
been taught to the children at very early age. The children will stay with their religious teacher for a certain
period or years to study the sciences of Qur’an, Arabic language, and also the essential of Islam until they
graduated. As part of their informal training, the children were trained to be independent and habituated with
interpersonal skills training, such as cooking and laundry (Abdullah, 1970).
The current Malaysian educational system should emphasize religious sciences, which is fundamental and
“fard ‘ayn” (obligatory). The religious science encompasses the studying of Holy Qur’an, the Sunnah, and the
jurisprudence, theology, Islamic metaphysics, and linguistic sciences should be inculcate at every level:
primary, secondary, and pre-university and university level. Its content and scope should be designed in
gradations as befitting each level (Al-Attas, 1991). This rudimentary knowledge is crucial for our young
generation in responding to modern and post-modern challenges. Though it might be difficult for some young
Muslims to mastery these subjects, but not so to acquire a rudimentary knowledge of these traditions (Seyyed,
1993).The second focus is on fard kifayah (acquired knowledge). It encompasses the human sciences, the
natural sciences, the applied sciences, and technology sciences. The teaching of these subjects must be imbued
with Islamic elements and key concepts. Besides these subjects, new disciplines must be added, such as
comparative religion from the Islamic perspective, western cultures and civilization, linguistic sciences, and
Islamic history. These new disciplines will ensure logical continuity and cohesion in the successive educational
progression from religious sciences to the rational, intellectual, and philosophical sciences and “vise-versa”
(Seyyed, 1993).
Amongst the main aim of education as drawn by ministry of education in Malaysia is to produce person
with a balanced growth spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and bodily senses. To achieve this target, individual
should love knowledge. Love of knowledge means an effort to seek knowledge not only through reading but
also through discussing, researching, debating, or observation. The importance of knowledge has been
emphasized clearly in the holy Qur’an (Abdullah, 1989)7, when God urged men to read and to seek knowledge.
It is reported that knowledge has played an important role in the emergence of the great civilization in the past,
such as Islam and the Greek (Wan Mohd Nor, 2003). The effort of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his
companion in disseminating the knowledge of Islam all over the world is much appreciated when they have
successfully changed and transformed the people from ignorance to the truth (Ahmad, 1983). Therefore, love of
6
7
Surah Baqarah, 2:29.
Surah Al-Iqra’, 96:1-4.
445
knowledge should be inculcated at a very young age through reading habit. Prior to that, it should be infused in
the curriculum too, so that it can be discussed comprehensively. In the current Malaysian curriculum, love of
knowledge has been integrated in the 16 values of the integrated curriculum for primary and secondary school.
However, it is insufficient to explain the whole conception of love of knowledge (Wan Mohd Nor, 2003)
particularly on the fundamental virtue (ummahat al-akhlaq), i.e., wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice
(Al-Miskawayh, 1968). From the fundamental virtue, emerged other virtues, such as compassion, self-reliance,
moderation, respect, love, freedom, cleanliness, honesty, diligence, co-operation, rationality, public spiritedness,
and good morals as existed in the current Malaysian curriculum. Yet, these virtues were not explained
comprehensively especially from philosophical point of view (Sidek, 2009). In this case, teaching method
should be multiplied. To enhance moral consciousness among students, their moral reasoning should be
stimulated in teaching and learning, such as through moral reasoning activities (Pushphavalli, 2009). Since
values can be divided into values of being (such as courage, honesty, and discipline) and values of giving (such
as respect, love, and loyal), outdoor exercise which is social based is profoundly important (Linda & Eyre,
1993).
The above discussion reveals Malaysian educational system is basically impersonal and teaching is just a
profession rather than a vocation for developing knowledge or moral understanding. It is unfortunate that some
of our teachers consider their professional function separate from any moral or ethical values. This perception
contradicts with Islamic teachings that regard teachers as spiritual source as well as professional guidance. Thus,
teacher’s training program should be revised. The correct understanding of the concept of knowledge and the
importance of ethics should be properly taught in the training program. Likewise, love of knowledge should be
part of teacher’s training program.
Conclusions
Education has always been a major agenda in child’s development program, as it can bring about social,
emotional, and spiritual change towards better quality of life. The foregoing discussion is a humble attempt to
clarify, according to Islamic, perspective the role of education in responding to social issues among students.
By highlighting the concept of education in Islam, it is no doubt that education at every level in Malaysia
should be revised and strengthened. Despite focusing on content and method, the correct understanding on the
concept of knowledge and the teaching and learning approach should be improvised. Aside of teachers and
school authority, parents play an important role in education. Since parents certainly know their children better,
it is very beneficial if they can involve in their children’s education in particular monitoring their social life.
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D
June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 447-458
DAVID
PUBLISHING
The Development of Basic Competencies for Sustainability in
Higher Education: An Educational Model
Luis Amador Hidalgo, Juan Manuel Arjona Fuentes
Universidad Loyola Andalucía, Córdoba, España

Existing paradigms, which are deeply rooted in our educational systems, are fomenting unsustainable development.
For this reason, it is necessary to opt for a style of education that allows university students to be aware of the need
to live in a different way and be aware of our absolute dependency on our natural environment. This goal requires
fundamental changes in the curriculum, as well as a broader vision of the role that educational institutions must
play. One of the objectives of education in this new century must be to help achieve sustainable social and
environmental human development. In this sense, higher education plays a very important role in the field of
education for sustainability and the university must take on this challenge with great determination. This work
presents a model for formation that furthers the development of basic competencies for sustainability, which must
be incorporated into the curriculum of all higher educational studies.
Keywords: higher education, sustainability, basic competencies, environmental competencies, university
Introduction
The XXI century poses a great challenge for mankind: the search for sustainability. This concept goes
beyond the consideration of the environment on a global scale, since it also integrates such aspects as fairness
and social justice. The degradation of all ecosystems, the loss in biodiversity, the depletion and destruction of
natural resources, numerous instances of pollution, or the extreme poverty of millions of human beings all
originate from how people think. Therefore, this should be first and foremost a problem of education, and
linked to the content and process of formal education and higher education. Recognizing this requirement, in
turn, an understanding of the problem of education itself, not only of the problems that exist in education (Ull,
2011).
Existing paradigms, deeply rooted in our higher education systems, are helping to further unsustainable
development (Tilbury, 2011). That is the reason why it is necessary to opt for a type of education that allows
the university to instill in us the need to live in a different way, recognizing our absolute dependence on the
natural environment. This requires fundamental changes in the curriculum, as well as a broader view of the role
played by educational institutions. All university students have to be trained in skills regarding sustainability, if
we are to have professionals who know how to deal with problems regarding unsustainability. They will have
to contend with this type of dilemma in the future, so that their decisions do not contribute to further increasing
unsustainability.
Luis Amador Hidalgo, Ph.D., tenured teacher, Department of Economics, Universidad Loyola Andalucía.
Juan Manuel Arjona Fuentes, Ph.D., statistics teacher, Department of Quantitative Methods, Universidad Loyola Andalucía.
448 DEVELOPMENT OF BASIC COMPETENCIES FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION
In academic circles dealing with sustainability, a broad debate is being encouraged to determine the basic
skills that university graduates should have been acquired by the end of their formation (Wiek, Withycombe,
Redman, & Banas, 2011). Despite some criticism (Hyland, 2003), there is a certain consensus in educational
literature on the importance of clarifying key skills and learning outcomes when it comes to the design of
academic programs (Burke, 1989; Spady, 1994; Bowden & Marton, 1998; Voorhees, 2001; Baartman,
Bastiaens, Kirschner, & van der Vleuten, 2007). According to Wiek (2012), these skills are an explicit
framework for developing distinct and recognizable profiles in a field of training that also represent an explicit
frame of reference for the development of programs and academic courses; the assessment of progress in
learning, and efficient teaching methods; and finally the elaboration of a suitable training profile for students to
help them carry out their professional activity in the future and resolve problems, act as agents of change and
adequately manage transition processes (Orr, 2002; Rowe, 2007; Loorbach & Rotmans, 2006; McArthur &
Sachs, 2009; Willard et al., 2010).
This paper presents a training model that enables the development of core competencies for sustainability
which should be incorporated into the curriculum of all plans of study.
A New Assignment of Functions for Higher Education: Now Is the Time for Sustainability
Higher education is called upon to exercise leadership in the achievement of sustainable development, in a
context where many educational institutions are currently helping to trigger the crisis of sustainability on a
global scale.
During the first half of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014),
various approaches have been applied in order to make sustainable development, a transversal axis within the
field of higher education. In most cases, these have been more or less systematic attempts to integrate
sustainability into teaching and learning (Barth, Rieckmann, & Sanusi, 2011).
From a broader perspective, integrated action towards institutional sustainability would have to consider
actions in different contexts in participation, management, training, and research1. Their effective integration in
higher education institutions depends on a series of factors that belong to three different areas (Aznar & Ull,
2009):
(1) The macroscopic level. It refers to initiatives at international, national, regional, and local levels. This
field involves political and administrative issues; fundamental factors are institutional support and the
development of educational policies aimed at promoting education for sustainable development, which involves
basic guidelines and a support structure of personnel and materials (coordinators, resources, tools, etc.) and
supporting the design and development of plans for institutional sustainability;
(2) The microscopic level. It is based on actions developed in the center or faculty aimed at designing new
university degrees and determining the skills that must be developed, including those for sustainability. This
level refers fundamentally to the institution as an instigator, and center policy;
(3) The strategic level. With respect to teaching, refers to the involvement of teaching staff in the design
and application of actions related to the integration of sustainability into curriculum profiles. A key issue in this
regard is the training of faculty members to include sustainability criteria in their respective disciplines (Aznar,
1
This is exactly how it is expressed in the Commitment for Sustainability Practices in Institutions of Higher Education on the
occasion of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. Consult in this regard the initiative of Higher Education
for Sustainability in Río + 20: http://www.uncsd2012.org/index.php?page=view&nr=341&type=12&menu=35.
DEVELOPMENT OF BASIC COMPETENCIES FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION 449
Martinez-Agut, Palacios, Piñero, & Ull, 2011).
University centers have to integrate sustainable development in the context of both education and research.
As regards the former, education for sustainable development is not only another item to add to an overloaded
curriculum, but also a path that leads to a different perspective about the curriculum itself, pedagogy,
organizational change regarding policy, and especially, ethics (Barth & Timm, 2011).
Clearly, much of the learning, concepts, and techniques used to form students in their different degrees are
related to sustainability. For some time, different universities have used different procedures aimed at their own
sustainability: the creation of degrees in environmental science or environmental engineering, offering doctoral
programs in these fields, etc.. In other cases, it has been a question of incorporating an environmental variable
in training cycles and lines of both basic and applied research that are not directly concerned with sustainable
development, but are related to it in some way. On the other hand, in cases where the plans of study had no
connection with this paradigm, the students involved have in some way been able to get access to some basic
formation in sustainability by taking some specific course on this subject. However, if the idea is to generalize
all areas of knowledge to achieve the objectives in formation referred to in the introductory section, important
changes would have to be made in the curriculum (Orr, 2010; Ull, Martínez-Agut, Aznar, & Piñero, 2010), and
also there would have to be a broader participation in the role played by university education institutions.
The integration of sustainability in higher education can be considered as an innovation that requires some
reorientation in both learning and teaching as well as the reformulation of traditional issues and of conventional
approaches which are proposed for adoption in this text (Barth, Michelsen, & Sanusi, 2011), since there is
evidence that suggests that the area of higher education does not really understand the true nature of the
challenge that humanity is facing (Cotton & Winter, 2010; Abdul-Wahab, Abdulraheem, & Hutchinson, 2003;
Ferreira & Tilbury, 2012; Cortese, 2003; Thomas, 2004; Moore, 2005; Nomura & Abe, 2011; Park, 2008;
Verbitskaya, Nosova, & Rodina, 2002). Curricular sustainability includes revising categories through which we
interpret society, science, technology, economy, territory, education, etc. and reorienting them towards
sustainability (Barth & Godemann, 2007). It is necessary to change the focus through which we study reality to
resolve the social and environmental problems that we have generated. According to Barrón, Navarrete, &
Ferrer-Balas (2010), curricular sustainability involves not only including environmental content in the syllabus
of different subjects, but also another broader series of changes in the conception and design of the educational
process, keeping in mind certain aspects like those specified as follows2:
(1) Replacing the static and fragmented view of reality with a complex and dynamic vision capable of
overcoming the tradition of breaking down reality into unconnected parts, while opening up the university more
to the collaboration of societies and social organizations to resolve socio-environmental problems;
(2) Enhancing disciplinary flexibility and permeability to encourage systematic and relational thinking
through the incorporation of interdisciplinary work projects from different areas and subjects;
(3) Improved functionality and contextuality in teaching, incorporating the study and treatment of local
and global issues, and strengthening partnerships with local entities;
(4) Promoting coherence between theoretical discourse and action, between the theoretical and the
practical, the programming of practice sessions coherent with theoretical proposals, and trying to make the
management of the center be also coherent with the process of sustainable development itself;
2
Adaptation of the methodological proposal for orientation on sustainability in higher education studies in on the ACES Network
(Curricular Ambientalización de los Estudios Superiores). ACES Network: Red ACES.
(5) Adoption of a constructivist epistemology and a holistic education that explicitly recognize the
diversity in students, cognitive styles, cultures, situations, etc., accepting the role of individuals and groups as
active subjects in the history and construction of their own knowledge; and promoting as an integral formation
of educators in their intellectual, psychomotor, affective, social, and moral aspects.
Higher education is then finally a key instrument for reaching sustainable development, which means that
the university should form professionals capable of using their skills and knowledge, not only in a scientific
context, but also to provide an answer for social and environmental needs. The professionals that the university
forms will have to (Ull, Martínez Agut, Aznar, & Piñero, 2010):
(1) understand the contribution of their work in different professional, cultural, political, and social
contexts and their influence in promoting a greater awareness of the considerations of sustainable development;
(2) work in multidisciplinary teams, to find solutions for the demands made by socio-environmental
problems, including proposals for professional alternatives to contribute to sustained development;
(3) apply a holistic and systematic approach for solving professional problems;
(4) actively participate in the discussion, definition, and evaluation of policies and actions, both in the
public and private domains, to contribute to redirecting society towards more sustainable development;
(5) apply professional knowledge according to ethical principles of conduct and ethical values related to
sustainability;
(6) understand the contribution of their work in different professional, cultural, political, and social
contexts and their influence in promoting a greater awareness of sustainable development.
Basic Competencies for Promoting Sustainability in University Education
Social changes, the development of new technologies that lead to the availability of a rapid and growing
information flow, cultural diversity, globalization trends occurring in today’s society and the need to cope with
constantly increasing complexity and uncertainty all present new challenges that require the acquisition of skills
for their management (Aznar & Ull, 2009).
In general, the term “competency” is determining a qualitative change in the way we understand human
learning: The development of skills makes possible an expansion and deepening of the very concept of learning,
since meditating on it acquires a whole new systematic and holistic dimension; it implies, ultimately, a new
concept in comprehensive professional training.
In the field of university education, sustained development could be considered as a reference point in the
process of selecting key competencies (Rieckmann, 2007). Nonetheless, educational literature deals with
competencies in general and with competencies referring to sustainability matters in particular, and its
terminology becomes very ambiguous, since “competencies” are associated with skills, capacities, qualification,
and other terms (Baartman, Bastiaens, Kirschner, & van der Vleuten, 2007). In the last few years, various
articles and reports have managed to make some progress in the conceptualization of the key competencies
related to sustainability (Byrne, 2000; de Haan, 2006; Barth, Godemann, Rieckmann, & Stoltenberg, 2007;
Sipos, Battisti, & Grimm, 2008; Segalas, Ferrer-Balas, Svanstrom, Lundqvist, & Mulder, 2009; Willard et al.,
2010). However, the identification of what constitutes competencies in the area of sustainability is still but in its
infancy. A review of the literature on sustainability in education, carried out by Wiek, Withycombe, and
Redman (2011), reveals a certain convergence in key competencies in sustainability research and the resolution
of problems, but also concludes that specific key competencies that are essential for the design of programmes
and education are not sufficiently justified and developed (Wiek, Withycombe, Redman, & Banas, 2011). By
the same token, there are still very few cases where curriculum change has been successfully integrated on a
large scale (de la Harpe & Thomas, 2009), a fact which is due in great part to the lack of research on the
evaluation of competencies in the field of higher education.
This article defines competency as a set of knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are functionally related,
and that allow tasks and problem-solving to be executed satisfactorily (Spady, 1994; Baartman, Bastiaens,
Kirschner, & van der Vleuten, 2007). Applied to sustainability-related skills, competency represents a complex
and integrated set of knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and values that people bring into play in different
contexts (society, education, labor, and family) to address situations involving environmental issues, as well as
to act upon and transform reality according to sustainability criteria (Dale & Newman, 2005; Geli, Junyent, &
Sánchez, 2004; Rowe, 2007; Barth, Rieckmann, & Sanusi, 2011). It is the art of knowledge, knowing what to
do and how to evaluate, which requires working with content related to the environment (nature and
socioeconomic and cultural aspects), which enables professionals to give sustainable responses to problems or
situations that they have to face.
What competencies in sustainability must university graduates possess to meet current and future demands
of society? Determining what these demands are can help to assess the degree of preparation achieved by
graduates to meet the challenges of sustainability and the promotion of sustainable development, as an
objective of systems of education (Cortés et al., 2010). Different approaches have been proposed to undertake
the selection of key competencies for sustainability (Rieckmann, 2011): shaping competences (de Haan, 2006),
sustainability literacy (Parkin, Johnson, Buckland, & White, 2004), sustainability skills (Hopkins & McKeown,
2002; Stibbe, 2009), professional competences for sustainable development (Martens, Roorda, & Cörvers,
2010), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development definition and selection of competencies of
key competencies (Rychen & Salganik, 2001; 2003), and core competencies (Wiek, 2010).
A proposal for education about sustainability must incorporate the promotion of three basic types of
competencies: cognitive, methodological, and attitudinal. They are considered to be basic competencies for
three main reasons: (1) for the way in which they serve as a point of reference to achieve the final objectives set
for university education; (2) because their acquisition is transversal, as they are facilitated from different
academic areas and at different moments of evolution; and (3) for how they require the learning of new
contents (conceptual, procedural, and attitudinal) through the implementation of various active methodologies
to be applied in different contexts.
The training model for basic competencies in sustainability that is described in continuation presents a set
of competencies that are integrated conceptually and inter-related. This model has been obtained, on the one
hand, from the results of surveys completed by university teachers to establish minimum contents based on a
previous definition of the objectives of sustainability in formation, and the specification of the core
competencies that have to be developed3; and on the other hand, through a study of related research in different
contexts (Junyent, Geli, & Arbat, 2003; Rychen & Salganik, 2003; Barth, Godemann, Rieckmann, &
Stoltenberg, 2007). The model is organized around three categories (Aznar, 2006):
Cognitive competencies (knowledge) include critical understanding of global, national, and local
3
This model is found in the results of the research work “Curricular Environmentalism in the University of Valencia” financed
through public concourse, directed by Pilar Aznar with the collaboration of Mª Ángeles Ull and which concluded in 2007. See
Aznar M. P. (2006).
socio-environmental issues. The subjects that make up each university degrees can lead to developing
competencies in their courses by using, in a specific context, the underlying concepts in socio-environmental
issues, and the analysis of causes and effects as well as their incidence in the sustainability of development.
Critical understanding of the socio-environmental issue requires:
(1) The ability to perceive what is global through local action (trans-cultural comprehension);
(2) The ability to reflect objectively on the models of individual behavior and cultural patterns existing in
society;
(3) The use in context of underlying environmental concepts in environmental issues;
(4) The ability to detect cause/effect relationships in environmental issues; knowledge about the historical
origins of current environmental concerns;
(5) The ability to integrate various environmental dimensions (social, cultural, economic, political,
aesthetic, physical, and biological) when making professional decisions;
(6) The ability to apply actions related to the environment transversely through decisions taken in
professional circles;
(7) The ability to analyze differing theories about development and its link to models of real development;
(8) The ability to critically analyze the information and data broadcast by the media about environmental
issues;
(9) The ability to distinguish between different forms of social and political organization and their
influence on the resolution of environmental problems;
(10) Knowledge about international, national, and local initiatives to protect and improve the natural and
social environment.
Methodological competencies (skills) include acquisition of skills, strategies, techniques, and procedures
for decision-making and taking actions related to sustainability. Various teaching guides would have to
contemplate contents and activities students should learn to be able: to elaborate and apply indicators for
problems related to environmentally sustainable human development; to design action plans that include
educational actions to promote sustainability values, the creation or modification of attitudes that develop them
and the permanent up-dating of behaviors that apply them; to interact in interdisciplinary fashion to resolve
environmental problems related to the professional-academic setting; to participate in managing the
environment of the local community as well as knowing how to transversely apply actions resulting from
professional decisions affecting nature and the social environment.
This section will consider the following basic skills:
(1) The ability to take environmentally-related ethical decisions and to rationalize and justify possible
solutions;
(2) The ability to design action plans to improve any process-product relationship from an environmental
point of view;
(3) The ability to interact in an interdisciplinary way when resolving environmental issues that are related
to the academic and professional worlds;
(4) The ability to develop and apply indicators for environmental problems;
(5) The ability to carry out/collaborate in conducting environmental audits.
Attitudinal competencies (knowing how to act and evaluate) implicit in the very definition of sustainable
development are the moral conception and ethical attitudes which encourage new behaviors and values
coherent with sustainability; they imply the evolution of a new type of ethic that encompasses different spheres
of human interaction in society, with institutions and with the whole group of biotic and abiotic systems (Jonás,
1995). All these interactions lead to a new three-dimensional ethic: (1) One which places first and foremost
individual rights affects relations between human beings (the first generation of rights); (2) One where the
values defining social rights are what affect relationships between human beings (second generation of rights);
and (3) One which emphasizes environmental values, peace, and the development of peoples (the third
generation of rights) involves the relationships between human beings, all other living things and even
inanimate objects.
This change in perspective affecting the ethical framework would imply that, through the syllabuses for
different subjects, actions could be contemplated to develop the ability to relate values/behaviors through
knowledge about the beliefs, values, and attitudes that underlie the relationship between people and their
environment; the ability to recognize the ethical models that drive decision-making related to sustainable
development; the ability to recognize one’s own beliefs, values, and attitudes toward issues related to
sustainability; the ability for empathy, compassion, and solidarity within and between generations (Espunya &
Juandó, 2011); the capacity to take a stand on environmental and ethical dilemmas and justify possible
solutions; the capacity for self-motivation in favor of behavior coherent with values of sustainability; the ability
to develop personal ethics with respect to sustainability; the ability to foresee the consequences of decisions to
be taken (forward-thinking); and the ability to develop a sense of responsibility with respect to the
consequences of one’s own actions.
In this section, the competencies that should be incorporated are:
(1) Knowledge about the beliefs, values, and attitudes that underlie the relationships between people and
their environment (capacity to relate values—behaviors);
(2) The ability to recognize the models of environmental ethics that drive decision-making and the
implementation of measures related to the environment;
(3) Building a personal environmental ethic based on sensitivity towards the natural and socio-cultural
environment;
(4) The ability to recognize one’s own beliefs, values, and attitudes with respect to environmental issues;
(5) The acquisition of a sense of accountability for the consequences of one’s own decisions and actions.
The change in approach involving new considerations based on sustainability requires a modification of
traditional axiological models that have been based on relationships between humans and their social and
natural environment where the repercussions of human actions on the environment are not considered ethically
significant. Hence, the inclusion of core competencies contributed to sustainability cannot merely refer to
cognitive and methodological aspects while ignoring ethical considerations.
Incorporating sustainability in course profiles is a strategy that tends to facilitate the achievement of those
educational objectives referring to the promotion of basic skills for sustainability in university graduates. This
is possible due to the reformulation of subject contents, which must be worked on through disciplinary dialogue
and from the consideration of specific criteria based on ethics, equity, multiculturalism, etc., to guide the
progress of the whole process fomenting sustainable development. In this sense, some research has been
published which fixes criteria frameworks as proposals to guide the development of core skills in all degrees
(Geli, Junyent, & Sánchez, 2004; Barth, Godemann, Rieckmann, & Stoltenberg, 2007). Conducting a synthetic
analysis of the different proposals has led us to introduce the following basic criteria (Aznar & Ull, 2009):
(1) Interdisciplinary criterion. University teaching has to be oriented towards interdisciplinary ends; the
faculty consists of professors and researchers from different academic areas who provide diverse academic and
cultural approaches to facilitate the development of interdisciplinary dialogue from the logic of their various
disciplines;
(2) Criteria mainstreaming. The content aimed at developing competencies for sustainability must be
integrated in different academic areas in the different subjects included in the degree and must pass through the
different levels of university management;
(3) Criterion of university and society, academia and workplace. University degrees have to meet the
challenges raised by existing institutions in the area, like that of preparing competent professionals to live up to
the demands of their work responsibilities when dealing with sustainability;
(4) Criterion of complexity. Today’s changing and complex reality demands an ability to deal with
complex situations, to act after reflection and make coherent and fair decisions through the principles of
complex thinking4 (dialectical, contradiction, order/disorder, recursive, and homogramatic);
(5) Criterion of scientific and ethical development. This involves the ability to take on responsibilities that
contribute new knowledge, strategies, and attitudes to the culture of sustainability in the field of higher
education;
(6) Criterion of policy guidance in educational formation. Since the learning processes are based on the
achievement of competences, the achievement of key competencies for sustainability requires a regulatory
framework to justify the selection of skills to be developed;
(7) Criterion of socially oriented learning. Learning for sustainable development must be linked to real-life
situations;
(8) Global criterion for actions to be taken. The contents in curriculum profiles under elaboration must be
based on global referents when dealing with local and contextual issues;
(9) Criterion of integrating formal and informal learning experiences. The university is an environment
that offers opportunities for informal learning: through the generation of debates and dialogue, the promotion of
voluntary activities, the development of tacit styles of learning through the internalization of values, attitudes,
behaviors, skills, etc., during daily life in the university community.
Conclusions
Fortunately, there is evidence of more and more companies who are taking both social/environmental
ethics into consideration, as well as the technical training of university students, as essential elements in the
recruiting of graduates. Achieving a sustainable future requires that individuals adopt different values, attitudes,
skills, habits, and behaviors that are often learned and grounded at an early age. Unfortunately, current
educational efforts are not sufficient to achieve enough of a transformation in these areas.
One of the aims of education in this new century must be to contribute to environmentally and socially
sustainable human development. In this sense, higher education plays a very important role in the field of
education for sustainability, and the university must take up this challenge with determination.
Education for sustainability is an ongoing process of cultural production, aimed at training professionals
committed to attaining the best possible relationship between society and the environment for the survival of
4
Reference to complex thought necessarily implies consulting the concepts of Edgar Morín (Morin & Pakman, 1995).
both, taking into account the principles set out in ethical models coherent with environmentally and socially
sustainable development, such as justice, solidarity, equity, or the respect for both biological and cultural
diversity.
Universities must take the lead in the development of new forms of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary
education that is ethically oriented for proposing solutions for problems related to sustainable development.
Through the formation of students, research, the promoting of critical consciousness, etc., they take on
unprecedented responsibility in the history of higher education for the dissemination of knowledge, values,
attitudes, and behaviors aligned with sustainable human development, which is meant to inspire decisions made
by graduates in the exercise of their respective professional activities.
In essence, the curriculum must enable students to be aware of the values that should guide their future
professional career activity and their collaboration in tackling global challenges. Through curricular profiles,
the aim is to achieve overall formation for the student, not from fragmenting the curriculum into disjointed
sections, but through the implementation of environmental criteria and contents from all the areas that comprise
it and at all levels of education. In this sense, it is necessary to establish a framework to facilitate the
involvement of the whole university community in the launching of an institutional process that contributes to
sustainable development on a world-wide scale. The specification of key competencies for sustainability, and
their incorporation in a set of general or basic competencies, is a requirement for the elaboration of new
university studies curricula. All students in this area should be formed in their fields of specialization in accord
with criteria and values related to sustainable development. Thus, they will have to acquire a centered
understanding of what sustainability is, so that in the future they can take this perspective into consideration
and incorporate it into their professional activities. To achieve this, certain objectives should be met. Among
them, some that could be highlighted are:
(1) The strengthening of environmental competencies in professionals trained and educated in the
university. That is why the work methodology considered relevant is the introduction of sustainability based on
formation that is oriented toward learning competencies, which is understood as the set of complex and
integrated procedures, knowledge, attitudes, and values that individuals bring into play in different contexts in
which they interact to resolve environmental issues through sustainability criteria. In this sense, education with
respect to sustainability should include basic skills training in these areas:
(a) Cognitive: The cognitive competencies related to knowledge and linked to a critical understanding of
global and local environmental issues;
(b) Methodological: The methodological skills related to know-how, the acquisition of skills, strategies,
techniques, and procedures for decision-making and action-taking related to the environment and sustainable
development;
(c) Attitude: attitudinal skills related to know-how and evaluating, where the development of sustainability
attitudes and values are essential.
(2) Promoting incentives in teaching and research that contribute to the transformation of relationships
between society and the environment, and promote the prevention and resolution of issues that lead to
unsustainability;
(3) Improving interaction between the social demand for sustainability experts in any field and the
formation of university students;
(4) The development of flexible curriculum models that facilitate a holistic perspective of sustainable
environmental and social human development;
(5) The strengthening of the role of universities and the demonstration of their ability to teach those values,
behaviours and life styles necessary to achieve sustainability.
In this new approach, with respect to the mission of the university institution, there has to be a revamping
of those old values that have led to the global crisis on this planet, and actions have to be based on an ethical
consideration that makes evolution possible, leaving behind a culture and lifestyles that have been proved
unsustainable while moving forward to other alternatives that make the quality of life compatible with
sustainable development.
The university is not only a place for formation. It is also a place where new educational proposals can be
experimented with, and a platform for spreading changes in perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors towards new
more sustainable lifestyles. In short, it is necessary to design and implement a new educational model to
inculcate university students with the need we all have, on facing this planetary emergency, to learn to live
differently, and recognize our crucial dependence on the natural processes that maintain the functioning of the
biosphere.
Sustainable development requires a change in the mind sets that structure our thought and provide a basis
for our decisions and actions. It is a way of making a reflection about how we organize our lives and our work,
even our educational system, in order not to destroy our most valuable resource, the planet earth, and address
growing concerns about the future viability of life on it. Definitively, sustainable development is much more
than recycling bottles or donating funds. It is all about thinking and working in a completely different way.
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June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 459-469
DAVID
PUBLISHING
Resource Integration Strategies for Elder Education
Organizations: A Case Study in Taichung, Taiwan
Chi Hu Tien
Wen Chi Tsai
Hung Kuang University, Taichung, Taiwan
Meiho University, Pingtung, Taiwan

Dealing with the aging problem has been a global issue. One of the keys to help successful aging is to implement
elder education. The government in Taiwan has invested a lot of budget in elder education, but in practice, there are
two independent and diversified elder education systems in Taiwan, which had led to a lack of resource integration,
in turn, causing duplicity in investment and wastage. The aim of this study is to explore some suitable strategies for
resource integration by investigating the organization and implementation of elder education in Taichung. From the
results of this study, a total of 23 strategies for the resource integration of elder educational organizations were
identified, including mutual support of manpower and material resources, certification of teaching staff, conducting
joint classes and setting up a shared Website, and so on. These strategies could be grouped based on the five
categories of resources: human, financial, material, knowledge and technical, and marketing.
Keywords: resource, resource integration, cooperation, elder education
Introduction
The issue of aging population is a global one, with its effects extending from the end of the 20th century to
the 21st century, and Taiwan is no exception. This phenomenon is mainly caused by some reasons, including
declining birth rates, advancing in medical technologies, and increasing life span in human populations. As the
proportion of population aged 65 exceeds 7%, Taiwan has entered into “aging society” (Wei, 2008).
Accordingly, our government has responded to the elder’s needs to hold many learning activities. It mainly
comes from two different government system—social welfare department and education department (Yang,
2008).
In Taichung, about 10 different types of organizations undertake the provision of elder education,
including the city and county governments, township offices, public and private schools, colleges and
universities, farmers’ associations, community associations, senior citizens’ clubs, foundations and churches.
The nature of these various organizations is diverse and each has its own distinguishing features. As of
December 2012, there are 24 Evergreen Academies and 16 SCLCs (Senior Citizens’ Learning Centers) in
Taichung.
Despite of limited resources, government funding still had to be divided into social welfare and education
systems, leading to dispersed resource. Furthermore, there was a lack of communication and coordination, and
an absence of an integration mechanism between the two systems. Consequently, the same types of educational
Chi Hu Tien, Ph.D., dean of General Affairs, Department of Cultural Development, Hung Kuang University.
Wen Chi Tsai, Ph.D., adjunct associate professor, General Education Center, Meiho University. 460
RESOURCE INTEGRATION STRATEGIES FOR ELDER EDUCATION ORGANIZATIONS
services were often provided within the same area, causing wastage of resources. The aims of the various elder
educational institutions, whether set up under the social welfare or education systems, were essentially the same:
Provision of educational and learning services to the elderly. There was actually a very high degree of
similarity in terms of the course contents provided by the various institutions, making resource integration
necessary. Considering the limited resources available for elder education in the first place, the needless
operational overlaps inhibited these resources from generating their full benefits, and also led to much wastage.
As a result, the purpose of this study is to explore resource integration strategies by interviewing operators
and practitioners in elder educational organizations. Also, the findings will provide better insight and
understanding of the issues faced by elder educational organizations over resource integration, and could serve
as a reference to various government departments during future attempts at resource integration of these
organizations.
Literature Review
Definition of Resource
Wu (1994) assimilated the views of several scholars and grouped resources into two main categories:
assets and abilities (see Figure 1). Assets refer to the stock of elements, both material and non-material that an
organization owns or is able to control. Abilities are the means by which resources can be built up and allocated,
and can be further divided into those belonging to the organization or the individual.
Figure 1. Classification of resources. Source: Wu (2000, p. 128).
From the reviewing literature, it was found that resources can be categorized into seven types: human,
material, information, marketing, public relations, performance appraisal, and digital technology (hardware and
software). Some researchers in the education field further classified resources as human, material, finance and
information, etc., with information resources generally referring to all intangible assets (Zhou, 2009). On the
other hand, Wei (2007) highlighted the 5Ps related to marketing resources: product, price, promotion, place,
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and people. These 5Ps correspond with the five main topics in elder education: courses, fees, publicity, venue,
and professional staff. Other intangible assets, such as organizational culture, trademark, reputation, etc., can all
be grouped under marketing resources.
Therefore, this study tends to see marketing resources as a separate category and integrate with other
researcher’s view to form the following classification of resources (see Table 1). This classification would
serve as the foundation for further discussion on organizational resource integration strategies.
Table 1
Classification of Resources
Category
1
2
3
4
5
Level
1.1
Professional
manpower
1.2
Professional
competence
2.1
Fund raised
internally
2.2
External
funds
3.1
Facility
3.2
Space
4.1
Intellectual
property
4.2
Database
5.1
Product
5.2
Price
5.3
Place
5.4
Promotion
5.5
People
Human
Financial
Material
Knowledge and
technical
Marketing
Item for integration
1.1.1
Organization leaders
1.1.2
Professional administrators
1.1.3
Teaching staff
1.1.4
Volunteers
1.2.1
1.2.2
Professional administrators
1.2.3
Teaching staff
1.2.4
Volunteers
2.1.1
Income from course fees
2.1.2
Income from organized activities
2.1.3
Other incomes (donations, fund, raising, etc.)
2.2.1
Government grants
2.2.2
Supplementary grants from other government units
3.1.1
Teaching facilities
3.1.2
Office equipment
3.2.1
Course venues
3.2.2
Activity venues
4.1.1
Planning of programs
4.1.2
Professional knowledge and guidance
4.1.3
System of learning and information channels
4.2.1
Database of learners
4.2.2
Database of courses
5.1.1
Courses
5.1.2
Activities
5.2.1
Course fees
5.2.2
Method of payment
5.3.1
Venue of classes
5.4.1
Enrolment
5.4.2
Advertisements
5.4.3
Publicity
5.4.4
Gifts
5.5.1
Teachers
5.5.2
Other staff
Note. Source: Compiled by the authors.
Theories on Resource Integration
RDT (Resource Dependency Theory) perspective. The RDT has three basic assumptions: (1) The
success of an organization depends on the maximization of its market network; (2) The source of an
organization’s power is based on its acquisition of resources to minimize uncertainties within the organization;
and (3) When an organization reduces its dependency on external resources and controls more resources, it will
462
become less constrained by the market. Following these assumptions, an organization will strive to ensure that
its supply of resources will not become scarce, and to reduce its level of dependency on its environment for
resources. Its decision-makers will also propose a proper operational strategy, which is used to manage the
level of resource dependency on other organizations and to enhance the power and status of their own
organization (Qiu, 2000).
Social exchange perspective. This theory analyzes the structure of, and interactions between reward and
cost, the result of which can be used to explain basic social behavior. It postulates that a person’s current
behavior is affected by a similar behavior in the past and the available means to obtain a reward (Lin, 2008).
Blau (1986) believed that social interactions exist within a social group and that people are attracted to a certain
organization because of the potential personal rewards that can be reaped from that organization. Hence, once a
connection is made, each party will provide their respective intrinsic rewards (e.g., emotions, respect, love, etc.)
and extrinsic rewards (e.g., money, physical strength, labor, etc.), to be used to maintain and further strengthen
the connection.
Figure 2. Levels of cooperation. Source: Wu (2000, p. 242).
Transaction cost perspective. Cost refers to the highest price that is inevitable, while price is the value
that one is prepared to pay in exchange for something (Zhang, 2002). This theory was proposed by economics
Nobel Prize winner Ronald H. Coase. To him, the theory investigates the issue of coordination between
consumers and producers in the decision-making process (Wu, 2011). When discussing this theory, mention is
often made of Williamson’s discourse on the promotion of development. The main point is that an
organization’s decision to “manufacture” or “purchase” a needed resource is usually based on the consideration
to reduce its transaction cost when interacting with other organizations (Shen, 2000).
Cooperation and alliance perspective. Buckley and Casson (1988) defined cooperation as “coordination
463
affected through mutual forbearance”. Coordination refers to the mutual sharing and allocation of resources,
which is conducive to each other’s development, leading to a win-win outcome. Qiu (1998) pointed out that a
strategic alliance is a partnership created when different organizations jointly invest in resources and merge a
specific value chain of their business units, in order to achieve a specific goal and to establish competitive
advantage. Wu (2000) categorized the types of cooperation into nine levels, with relationships ranging from
distant to intimate (see Figure 2).
Methodology
Interviews were chosen as a method to investigate and explore issues related to resource integration for 38
informants including practitioners of elder education in Taichung and officials from related government
agencies. Informants were invited to share their personal experiences and opinions through guided and
standardized open-ended interviews, which led to the identification of new dimensions that helped to develop
and concretize the issues (Patton, 1990).
Interview questions were drawn from literature related to the study, with an aim of obtaining a more
in-depth understanding of the resources available for elder education and observing and analyzing informants’
ideas and thoughts on the issue. The data gathered from the interviews were transcribed verbatim onto a
computer. Interview data supplemented the information from documents published by the various elder
educational organizations in Taichung, including enrollment brochures, posters, meetings, annual reports, and
press releases.
Results
Based on the literature review conducted, resources were categorized into five main types: human,
financial, material, knowledge and technical, and marketing. The data obtained from the interviews and the
integration strategies suggested by the informants were sorted based on these categories, and the results are as
follows.
Human Resources
Human resources can be sub-divided into two levels: professional manpower (quantity) and professional
competence (capabilities). The items for integration include organization leaders, professional administrators,
teaching staff, and volunteers. The organization leaders are the soul behind the operation of the entire
organization. The leaders’ knowledge, background, attitude, and social network have a strong impact on the
general direction of the organization’s work.
Based on the data from the interviews, the integration of organization leadership could be achieved either
through appointment by the government or self-appointment. For example, Informant A2, who preferred
government appointment, stated: “There can be regular rotation of elder education organization leaders, with
the posting assignments made by the government department in charge” (Informant A2-9-3). Informant A12,
who preferred self-appointment, stated: “After the merger, staff of the new organization can vote internally
before the new organization leader is appointed” (Informant A12-12-4).
In terms of integrating professional competence, one suggestion was for the government authorities to
appoint specialists. According to Informant A8, “The government authorities can appoint specialists to guide
the organization leader, making it mandatory for the organization’s operations to be carried out based on the
government’s directives” (Informant A8-11-1). The suggested strategies relating to the integration of the two
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levels of human resources are listed in Table 2.
Table 2
Resource Integration Strategy—Human Resources (Category 1)
Level
1.1
1.2
Professional
manpower
Professional
competence
1.1.1
1.1.2
Professional
administrators
1.1.3
Teaching staff
1.1.4
Volunteers
1.2.1
1.2.2
Professional
administrators
1.2.3
Teaching staff
1.2.4
Volunteers
Suggested integration strategies
a
Appointed by the government
b
Self-appointed
a
Joint appointment
b
Mutual support
a
Mutual support
b
Joint appointment
a
Mutual support
b
Joint formation of a volunteer corps
a
Specialists to provide guidance
a
Seminars
b
Joint formation of book clubs
a
Joint training of teaching staff
b
Certification of teaching staff
a
Joint training
b
Expansion of services
Financial Resources
Financial resources can be sub-divided into funds raised internally and externally. The former includes
income from course fees and organized activities, donations and fund raising, etc.. The latter includes
government grants and supplementary grants from other government units.
During the interviews, it was suggested that the income from course fees be integrated through the joint
organization of courses. As stated by Informant C1: “Work together to organize courses and set up methods
and procedures to manage the fees and expenses for the joint courses” (Informant C1-10-2). Informant A2
added:
Standardize the issuance of funding, have a designated organization to manage the funds (like a school), then let the
original undertaking agency continue its own development. Its success or failure can be left to market mechanisms.
(Informant A2-10-2)
For financial resources, the suggested strategies related to the different levels and items for integration are
listed in Table 3.
Material Resources
Material resources can be grouped according to facilities and spaces. The former includes teaching
facilities and office equipment, while the latter includes venues for courses and activities.
According to the informants, resource integration for teaching facilities could be carried out through three
methods: (1) mutual loaning of equipment; (2) opening up of facilities for use by others; and (3) common usage
of facilities. For example, Informant C9 suggested: “Formulate a policy and method for the mutual loaning of
teaching equipment” (Informant C9-12-2). While Informant D1 stated: “After the merger, everyone can have
common use of all the teaching equipment” (Informant D1-12-5).
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Table 3
Resource Integration Strategy—Financial Resources (Category 2)
Level
2.1.1
Income from course fees
Fund raised
internally
2.1
2.1.2
2.1.3
Income from organized
activities
Other incomes (donations,
fund raising, etc.)
2.2.1
a
Joint organization of courses
a
Joint organization of activities
a
Combined fund raising
a
All funds to be managed by an appointed school
All funds to be managed by an administrative
department in the MOE (Ministry of Education)
Funds to be used to subsidize research and development
and to standardize curriculum design
Funds to be exclusively managed by a commissioned
trust
b
Government grants
External
grant
2.2
c
d
2.2.2
Supplementary grants from
a
other government units
Seek sponsorship for activities
The integration of office equipment could be achieved through mutual loans or mergers, as proposed by
Informant D5: “Formulate a policy and method for the mutual loaning of office equipment… there can also be
a merger to form a single office” (Informant D5-10-2). The suggested strategies related to the two levels of this
category of resources are listed in Table 4.
Table 4
Resource Integration Strategy—Material Resources (Category 3)
Level
3.1.1
3.1
Facility
3.1.2
3.2.1
3.2
Teaching facilities
Office equipment
Course venues
Space
3.2.2
Activity venues
a
Mutual loaning of equipment
b
Opening up of facilities for use by others
c
Common usage of facilities
a
Mutual loaning of equipment
b
Merger
a
Mutual loaning of venues
b
Assigned by the competent authority
c
Open up venues for use by others
a
Mutual loaning of venues
b
Assigned by the competent authority
c
Open up venues for use by others
Knowledge and Technical Resources
Knowledge and technical resources can be grouped into two levels: intellectual property and database. The
former focuses on the planning of programs, professional knowledge and guidance, and system of learning and
information channels. The latter focuses on the databases of learners and courses.
To summarize the information collected during the interview, the informants suggested the joint
planning of programs. For example, Informant G5 stated: “Share with one another the survey findings on the
educational needs of senior citizens, and jointly plan the contents of elder education” (Informant G5-2-2).
466
Informant D1 further suggested: “Jointly invite organizations or foundations with expert knowledge in elder
education to research and develop programs, then guide frontline and operations staff to conduct these
programs” (Informant D1-12-8). Informant C3 added: “Set up a platform managed by the school for the
sharing and exchange of practical experiences. Learning points can be circulated via directives” (Informant
C3-11-2).
The suggested strategies relating to knowledge and technical resources are listed in Table 5.
Table 5
Resource Integration Strategy—Knowledge and Technical Resources (Category 4)
Level
a
4.1.1
4.1 Intellectual property
Planning of programs
4.1.2
Professional knowledge and guidance
4.1.3
System of learning and information channels
4.2.1
Database of learners
4.2 Database
4.2.2
Database of courses
Joint planning of programs
b
Joint research and development
c
Establish an exchange platform
a
Joint appointment of counselors
a
Joint development of system
b
Shared system
a
Joint development of database
b
Sharing of information
c
Shared database
a
Joint development of database
b
Sharing of information
c
Shared database
Note. Source: Compiled by the author.
Marketing Resources
This category of resources contains five levels: product (courses and activities), price (course fees and
method of payment), place (venue of classes), promotion (enrolment, advertisements, publicity, and gifts), and
people (teachers and other staff).
In summary, for courses and activities, suggestions for integration included the exchange of course details,
as proposed by Informant D1: “Exchange information on courses that have been developed, plan courses
systematically to avoid duplication” (Informant D1-12-10). Informant C10 further suggested: “Jointly conduct
some of the courses” (Informant C10-11-2).
On the topic of a common platform, Informant F2 suggested: “Establish a common online platform to
provide information on course details and a system for online registration” (Informant F2-8-1). Informant C5
commented on the fees and payment method: “Jointly organize a few special courses and activities, preferably
charging the same fee, or allow senior citizens to pay the course fees at either side” (Informant C5-11-4).
Informant F2 further added: “Set up an online payment system, and have everyone collect fees via this network
system” (Informant F2-8-1).
The suggested strategies related to the different levels and items for integration under this category of
resources are listed in Table 6.
To summarize the results above, combine those similar suggestions and we got 23 resources integration
strategies as shown in Table 7.
467
Table 6
Resource Integration Strategy—Marketing Resources (Category 5)
Level
5.1
Product
5.1.1
5.1.2
5.2
Price
5.2.1
5.2.2
5.3
Place
5.3.1
5.4
Promotion
5.4.1
5.4.2
5.4.3
5.4.4
5.5
People
5.5.1
5.5.2
a
Exchange of course details
Courses
b
Conduct joint classes
Activities
c
Set up a shared Website
a
Joint charges
Course fees
b
Standardized fees
Method of payment
c
Establish an online payment system
a
Sharing of community spaces
Venue of classes
b
Joint enrolment
c
Online registration
a
Joint printing of enrolment brochures
b
Standardized publicity
Enrolment
c
Joint
enrolment activities
Advertisements
Publicity
d
Online network
Gifts
e
Joint offering of gifts
f
Standardized production of gifts
a
Create a platform for sharing of personnel-related information
Teachers
Other staff
b
Publication of specialized journals
Table 7
Resources Integration Strategies in Summary
Category
1
2
Level
Professional
manpower
1.2
Professional
competence
2.1
Fund raised
internally
2.2
External
funds
3.1
3.2
Facility
Space
4.1
Intellectual
property
4.2
Database
5.1
Product
5.2
Price
5.3
Place
5.4
Promotion
5.5
People
Human
Financial
3
Material
4
Knowledge and
Technical
5
1.1
Marketing
Strategies for integration
1.1.1 Organization leaders appointed by the government
1.1.2 Professionals joint appointment
1.1.3 Mutual support
1.2.1 Professionals joint training
1.2.2 Certification of teaching staff
2.1.1 Joint classes
2.1.2 Combined fund raising
2.2.1 All funds to be managed by an appointed organization
2.2.2 Funds to be exclusively managed by a commissioned trust
3.1.1 Mutual loaning of equipment
3.2.1 Mutual loaning of venues
4.1.1 Joint planning of programs
4.1.2 Establish an exchange platform
4.1.3 Joint appointment of counselors
4.2.1 Joint development of database
5.1.1 Conduct joint classes
5.1.2 Set up a shared Website
5.2.1 Standardized fees
5.2.2 Establish an online payment system
5.3.1 Set up a shared online registration
5.4.1 Joint printing of enrolment brochures
5.4.2 Joint offering of gifts
5.5.1 Publication of specialized journals
468
Many informants from the elder educational organizations clearly expressed their unwillingness to have
any form of integration with other organizations, or expressed that it was not necessary to do so. From the
perspective of transaction cost theory, an elder educational organization would not have the intention to
integrate unless the inevitable price (i.e., the cost of forming an alliance or cooperation with other
organizations) was lower than its income. Only under this scenario would it be possible for resource
integration to succeed. This study found that many elder educational organizations simply refused to
integrate with others, because it would be difficult to forecast potential income after integration. Sometimes,
the issue was not even about income: If an organization was confident of achieving its goal to obtain the
largest amount of grant, it would not matter even if integration were to result in a higher number of learners
because that would not translate to additional income. Hence, there was no motivation to seek integration
with others.
However, research finding shows that existing elder educational organizations paid relatively less attention
to the category of marketing resources. Based on observations, this could possibly be due to the existing system
and supplementary regulations on elder education. Currently, the operational target of elder educational
organizations receiving government grants is not to strive to enroll the most number of senior citizens. Rather,
they aim to enroll just the right number of learners based on the qualification standard and budget set for a basic
government grant in order to obtain the largest grant amount.
On the other hand, organizations that did not rely on government grants to survive, such as the Xiaoming
and Songbai Evergreen Colleges, often strived to enroll the maximum number of learners possible to achieve
survivability and profitability. Consequently, the number of actual classes held and learners enrolled by these
organizations far exceeded that of most organizations dependent on government funding.
Conclusions
According to above strategies for integration, four conclusions were derived as follows:
(1) Using integration strategies to integrate the existing resources, including mutual support of manpower
and material resources, certification of teaching staff, conduct joint classes and set up a shared website and so
on. These could be helpful to implement elder education in the future;
(2) Transaction cost was an important consideration affecting resource integration. Many informants
clearly expressed their unwillingness to have any form of integration with other organizations, or expressed that
it was not necessary to do so if the price is higher than income;
(3) Professional leadership in elder education should be highly-valued. Many interview subjects did not
believe that the government had the capabilities to carry out resource integration properly. Many of them
expressed that if a unit were to be assigned to facilitate and carry out resource integration, the most appropriate
organization would be a professional elder educational organization;
(4) A competitive system would create the pressure for elder educational organizations to integrate. To
ensure survivability and profitability, the number of actual classes held and learners enrolled by organizations
that did not rely on government funding far exceeded that of most organizations dependent on government
funding. Accordingly, a system must be created that allows for free competition and increase enrolment and
participation rates.
Lastly, we suggest that the findings of this study be taken into consideration and the highlighted issues be
469
addressed when the relevant government departments and elder educational organizations carry out resource
integration. Future researchers can then carry out empirical research on the outcomes in order to ascertain the
best strategy to use for resource integration.
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D
June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 470-479
DAVID
PUBLISHING
Teacher Candidates’ Attitudes Towards Inclusion Education and
Comparison of Self-compassion Levels
Aydan Aydin
Seher Kuzu
Marmara University, İstanbul, Türkiye
İstanbul, Türkiye

This study has been figured for the purpose of comparing attitudes of teacher candidates’ toward inclusion
education in terms of several variables and self-compassion levels. Sampling of the study consists of Grade 4
students of (547) Marmara University Atatürk, Faculty of Education and Faculty of Science and Letters. In this
study, a personnel information questionnaire is used to collect the demographic data of the participants. Also, to
measure participants’ attitudes towards inclusion “Attitudes” toward Mainstreaming Scale is used. Besides, to
measure self-compassion levels, a SCS (Self-compassion Scale) developed by Neff (2003a) and adopted to Turkish
by U. Akın, A. Akın, and Abacı (2007) is used. Self-compassion levels were at medium levels. It has been found
that self-compassion total scores and sub-dimension scores affected attitudes towards to inclusion education.
Keywords: teacher candidates, attitudes toward inclusion, self-compassion
Introduction
People’s adaptation to the environment in which they live in or their exhibitions of the expected behaviors
from them are possible with education. The education given to the children first comes from families and
environments and then schools. However, the expected behaviors from individuals can have different or similar
qualities and an education process which considers the differences and similarities, providing them to keep pace
with the developing and changing world is needed (Ersoy & Avcı, 2001).
General education services are inadequate for the individuals whose behavioral differences are distinct,
and therefore special education services are necessary for them (MEB (Ministry of National Education), 2010).
Special education is the type of education given to the children who cannot or partly benefit from the normal
education, by teachers who are trained in this area, using special programs and materials in the special
education settings (Baykoç, 1992). Special education not only can be performed in special classes and schools,
but it also includes handicapped children with appropriate qualities to have education with their peers. The
arrangements which are required for handicapped children and normally developing children to have education
together, is provided by mainstreaming education. The benefits of mainstreaming education are considered to
be closely related to the teachers’ attitudes and sensitivity toward mainstreaming.
Today, it is accepted that in education, developing a positive attitude towards the field and learning is as
important as teaching that field or subject (Doğan, 2004). There are several factors making mainstreaming
education to be successfully held. Teacher’s attitude is one of these factors. In principal, although there is no
Aydan Aydin, assistant professor, Atatürk Faculty of Education, Department of Special Education, Marmara University.
Seher Kuzu, Special Education Teacher.
TEACHER CANDIDATES’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS INCLUSION EDUCATION
471
great difference between general and special education in planning and implementing education programs,
many teachers who will take part in general education classes, graduate without adequate background about
special education (Kargın, 2004). For a teacher to prepare environments that facilitates interaction between
children with and without disabilities, to teach methods of communication with each other, to model them and
to get others to be noticed about handicapped child’s qualifications, first of all her/his attitudes and thoughts
should be positive (Sucuoğlu & Kargın, 2006). The presence of attitudes requires the development of emotions,
beliefs, and thoughts towards facts, events, and individuals beforehand. Facts, events, and individuals are
responded in a particular way by means of emotions, thoughts, and beliefs, or so called attitudes towards
entities, individuals, events, and thoughts (Özyürek, 2006). In other words, attitudes can be defined as
individual’s possible form of expected behavior to be put on towards a situation, an event or a fact (İnceoğlu,
2010).
Due to its subject and nature, the area of special education can be considered as not only an area of
information, but also an area of compassion (Soyer, 2010). It is possible to think that a teacher of intellectually
disabled has to show a higher level of compassion about empathy, forming emotional relationships, and
understanding other than those of other fields. While compassion feeds from the teacher’s professional
knowledge, technical competency and ethical understanding, it also considered to be directly related to
teacher’s psychological well being, level of self-awareness and considerate attitudes. Teacher’s well being is a
notion which should be advanced in order to increase compassion. Self-compassion helps people to be in
balance during difficult experiences and reminds that pities are common for everyone in life, and also teaches
the healing effect of self-understanding and to be patient (Hollis-Walker & Collosimo, 2011). Self-compassion
can be both counted as an element of teacher’s well-being and a premise of sensitive and compassionate
approach, which is professionally required. Recent researches showed that the individual’s level of
self-compassion who works in the social study fields is effective in coping with the professional difficulties
(Ying, 2009). The aim of this research is to determine the attitudes of teacher candidates from various fields
towards mainstreaming education and whether the level of self compassion has any effect on the development
of these attitudes. In the research also, whether the teacher candidates’ taking or not taking special education
and mainstreaming courses and the condition of having or not having handicapped relatives effects the total
scores of ATMS (Attitudes Toward Mainstreaming Scale) and SCS (Self-compassion Scale) will be
investigated as well.
Method
Research Model
This research uses relational screening model study which aims to investigate the relationship between
teacher candidates’ attitudes toward mainstreaming and their level of self compassion. Relational screening
model is a research model aiming to detect the existence and/or level of covariance between two or more
variables.
Sample
Students in the Marmara University, Ataturk Faculty of Education are included in the study with the
consideration of participant accessibility. Students in Department of Classroom Teacher of Mentally
Handicapped (29 students), Department of Science Teaching (33 students), Department of Literature Teaching
472
(29 students), Department of Math Teaching (29 students), Department of English Teaching (85 students),
Department of Psychological Counseling and Guidance (34 students), Department of Geography Teaching (36
students), Department of Pre-school Teaching (71 students), Department of Computer Teaching (58 students),
Department of Classroom Teaching (76 students), Department of Music Teaching (46 students), and
Department of Chemistry Teaching (21 students) with a total of 547 teacher candidates are participated in the
study.
Data Collection Tools
In order to get demographic information of participants, individual information form was used, and in
order to assess attitudes toward mainstreaming, ATMS (Attitudes Toward Mainstreaming Scale) were also used,
whereas SCS was used to assess self-compassion.
Individual Information Form. An individual information form developed by the researcher was used to
collect teacher candidates’ demographic information.
ATMS. Developed by Berryman and Neal (1980) and adapted to Turkish by Atay (1995), the scale’s
Cronbach Alpha validity was found to be 0.86 in reliability and validity study. The scale is Likert type and
consists of 18 items. Validity studies support that the scale has the applicability in the studies assessing teacher
attitudes towards mainstreaming and especially attitude change of non-handicapped individuals.
SCS. Developed by Neff (2003a), the scale evaluates the sub-dimensions of self-compassion and relies on
the self report of the individual (Soyer, 2010). The scale consists of 26 items and the confirmative factor
analysis has confirmed the six sub-dimensions: self-kindness vs. self judgment, common humanity vs. isolation,
and mindfulness vs. over-identification. SCS’s Turkish adaptation study was conducted by Akın et al. (2007)
with 633 university students who had been studying in various departments of Faculty of Education at Sakarya
University. In the confirmatory factor analysis, it was seen that the scale is compatible with the original form.
Scale’s internal consistency coefficient was found between 0.72 and 0.80 and test re-test coefficient was found
between 0.56 and 0.69. It was also found that Scale’s corrected item-total correlations aliened between 0.48 and
0.71 and all the differences between the 27% low-high group averages are significant. According to these
findings, it can be concluded that the scale has proper validity and reliability.
Data Collection
Personal information form, ATMS and SCS were applied to 547 teacher candidates who had been
studying at Marmara University, Ataturk Faculty of Education (Grade 4) and Science and Literature Faculty
(Grades 4 and 5). Data collection tools were submitted to lecturers with the required information, and they are
distributed by lecturers with informant consent to the students. Five hundred and fifty-two forms were delivered,
and 547 of them were accepted to have valid data.
Data Analysis and Discussion
Statistical analysis of data was conducted with SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) 16 data
analysis software. Frequency and percentage distributions describing the demographic characteristics of the
teacher candidates who formed the research group was conducted, then scales’ and sub-scales’ participant
number (N), arithmetic mean ( x ) and standard deviation (s) of scores were determined. One way ANOVA
(analysis of variance) was conducted to determine if individual’s total scores for ATMS are varied accordingly
to the level of self-compassion variable, Tamhane’s T2 test was used for to determine in which groups, the
attitudes towards mainstreaming scores are varied accordingly to the level of self compassion variable. To
473
determine if the SCS and ATMS are varied accordingly demographic variables, Kruskal Wallis-H Test and
Independent sample t-test were used. Since there is no special technique to determine in which groups the
differences occur, groups were compared by two with Mann Whitney-u Analysis. Pearson analysis was
conducted to determine the correlations between total scores of ATMS and sub-scales of SCS.
Results
A shown in Table 1, sample group’s self-kindness sub-scale score have a mean of x = 15.68, standard
deviation of 4.21; self-judgment subscale score have a mean of x = 12.82, standard deviation of 4.06;
common humanity sub-scale score have a mean of x = 12.66, standard deviation of 3.01; isolation subscale
score have a mean of 3.34, standard deviation of x = 10.65; mindfulness subscale score have a mean of x =
13.08 and standard deviation of 3.05; over-identification score have a mean of x = 10.76, standard deviation
of 3.38 and total scores of the SCS have a mean of x = 75.65 and standard deviation of 10.40.
Table 1
Descriptive Values of SCS Sub-dimensions Scores
Groups
Self-kindness
Self-judgment
Common humanity
Isolation
Mindfulness
Over-identification
Self-compassion total score
N
547
547
547
547
547
547
547
x
s
15.68
12.82
12.66
10.65
13.08
10.76
75.65
4.21
4.06
3.01
3.34
3.05
3.38
10.4
Table 2
Descriptive Values of Total Scores of ATMS
Groups
N
x
s
Total score
547
62.92
9.91
Table 3
Frequency and Percentage Values for Self-compassion Levels
Low
Medium
High
Total
f
%
%val.
%cum.
89
423
35
547
16.3
77.3
6.4
100.0
16.3
77.3
6.4
100.0
16.3
93.6
100.0
As shown in Table 2, the participants’ total score of ATMS calculated as mean of x = 62.92 and
standard deviation of 9.91.
As shown in Table 3, the sample group was consisted of 89 individuals with (16.3%) low, 423 with
(77.3%) moderate, and 35 with (6.4%) high levels of self-compassion.
As Table 4 shows, ANOVA was conduct in order to determine if the participants’ total scores of attitude
towards mainstreaming scale is varied with self-compassion level. The analysis revealed a significant
difference between the groups’ means (F = 3.86 p < 0.05). In order to determine which post-hoc multiple
comparison method to use after ANOVA, Levene’s test was used to check if the distribution of variances are
474
homogeneous. Since it appeared that variances are not homogeneous (LF = 3.38, p < 0.05), Tamhane’s T2
(Post Hoc Tests algorithms) multiple comparison technique was preferred which is used widely in these cases.
Another reason for the preference of the Tamhane’s T2 test was its sensitivity to alpha-type error. Tamhane’s
T2 multiple comparison analysis results are presented in Table 5.
Table 4
Results of ANOVA to Identify If Scores of ATMS Varied According to Level of Self-compassion
Descriptive values
Score
Group
n
x
s
Var. K.
Total
self-compassion
Low
Medium
High
Total
89
423
35
547
60.36
63.52
62.23
62.92
8.76
9.93
11.54
9.91
Btw. G
Inside G.
Total
ANOVA results
Sum of
Mean
df
squares
square
750.145
2
375.072
52,892.316 544
97.229
53,642.461 546
F
Sig.
3.86 0.022
Table 5
Results of Tamhane’s T2 Test to Identify in Which Groups Scores of ATMS Varied According to Level of
Self-compassion
Level (i)
Low
Middle
High
Level (j)
xi  x j
SD
p
Middle
High
Low
High
Low
Middle
-3.156
-1.869
3.156
1.287
1.869
-1.287
1.05
2.16
1.05
2.10
2.16
2.10
0.009
0.774
0.009
0.893
0.774
0.893
As Table 5 shows, results of the Tamhane’s T2 test revealed that the difference was significant at the
middle group (p < 0.01). Other groups’ mean differences was not found to be significantly different (p > 0.05).
Table 6
Results of Pearson Analysis for Determining Correlations Between ATMS and SCS Sub-dimensions Scores
Self-compassion sub-dimensions
Self-compassion
Self-judgment
Common humanity
Isolation
Mindfulness
Over-identification
N
547
547
547
547
547
547
Attitudes toward mainstreaming total scores
r
p
0.141
0.001
-0.115
0.007
0.209
0.000
-0.114
0008
0.146
0.001
-0.080
0.060
As seen in Table 6, Pearson analysis results which was used to determine the relationship between
sub-dimensions of ATMS and SCS scores revealed positive relationships between ATMS scores and
self-compassion; self-kindness sub-scale (r = 0.141; p < 0.01), common humanity sub-scale (r = 0.209; p <
0.01), mindfulness sub-scale (r = 0.146; p < 0.01), and negative relationships between ATMS scores and
self-judgment sub-scale (r = -0.115; p < 0.01) and isolation sub-scale (r = -0.114; p < 0.01). No relationship
was found between over-identification sub-scale of SCS and ATMS scores (r = -0.80; p > 0.05).
475
Table 7
Results of the Independent Samples T-test to Determine If the Total Scores of ATMS Varied According to the
Variable of Taking Special Education/Mainstreaming Courses
T-test
Score
Groups
N
x
ss
sh
Attitude towards
mainstreaming scale
Yes
120
56.50
8.43
0.77
No
427
64.72
9.55
0.46
t
SD
p
-8.54
545
0.000
As shown in Table 7, means of the total scores of Attitude Toward the Mainstreaming Scale are varied
significantly accordingly to the variable of taking or not special education/mainstreaming course (t = -8.54, p <
0.001 ). The group which had taken the course showed more positive attitudes toward mainstreaming.
Table 8
Results of Kruskal-Wallis H. Test to Determine If Total Scores of ATMS Varied According to the Course Taken
Score
Groups
None
Mainstreaming
Special education
Both
Other
Total
Attitude towards
mainstreaming scale
N
x sira
119
12
211
199
6
547
178.35
211.08
274.06
333.65
316.42
x2
SD
p
74.36
4
0.000
Table 9
Results of Mann Whitney-U Test to Determine in Which Groups Total Scores of ATMS Varied According to the
Variable of Source of Information About the Mainstreaming
Groups
None
Mainstreaming
Special education
Both
Other
None
SO = 178.35
p > 0.05
p > 0.05
p < 0.01
p > 0.05
SO = 211.08
p > 0.05
p > 0.05
p > 0.05
SO = 274.06
p > 0.05
p > 0.05
SO = 333.65
p > 0.05
Mainstreaming
Special education
Both
Other
SO = 316.42
As shown in Table 8, the results of Kruskal-Wallis H. test which was conducted to determine if the ATMS
total scores are varied with the variable of courses taken revealed that the differences between groups rankings
averages are statistically significant (x2 = 74.36; p < 0.001). Since there is no technique to determine from
which groups the differences occur, groups are compared binary with Mann Whitney-U analysis.
As shown in Table 9, Mann Whitney-U test was conducted in order to determine in which groups do the
ATMS scores varied according to source of information about mainstreaming. The group who had taken both
courses showed significantly more scores on mainstreaming attitudes at the level of p < 0.1. The difference of
other groups on ranking averages were not significantly different from each other (p > 0.05).
As shown in Table 10, the total scores of ATMS did not vary according to the variable of having a relative
with disabilities or not (t = 1.71, p > 0.05).
As shown in Table 11, the group who had taken special education/mainstreaming courses did not score
significantly different on SCS from the group who had not taken these courses (t = 1.80, p > 0.05).
476
Table 10
Results of the Independent Samples T-test Determine If Total Score of a Varied According to the Disabled
Relatives Variable
Score
Groups
N
x
ss
sh
Attitude towards
mainstreaming scale
Is
None
48
499
65.25
62.70
10.65
9.82
1.54
0.44
t
T-test
SD
p
1.71
545
.088
Table 11
Results of the Independent Samples T-test to Determine If Total Scores of ATMS Varied According to the
Variable of Special Education/Mainstreaming Courses Taken
Score
Groups
N
x
ss
sh x
Self-compassion total
No
Yes
120
427
77.16
75.23
9.97
10.49
0.91
0.51
t
T-test
SD
p
1.80
545
0.073
Table 12
Results of Kruskal Kruskal Wallis-H Test to Determine If the SCS Total Scores Varied According to the
Variable of Courses Taken
Scores
Groups
N
x sira
None
Mainstreaming
Special education
Both
Other
Total
119
12
211
199
6
547
296.24
348.13
277.14
252.06
301.83
x2
SD
p
9.11
4
0.058
As shown in Table 12, according to the results of Kruskal Wallis-H test which was conducted to determine
if taking special education or mainstreaming courses are varied according to self-compassion scores, the groups
were not statistically different from each other (x2 = 9.11, p > 0.05).
As shown in Table 13, according to the results of the independent samples t test, having or not a disabled
relative did not affect the total scores of self compassion total scores (t = 1.90, p > 0.05).
Table 13
Independent Samples T-test Results to Determine Whether Total Scores of Attitude Towards Mainstreaming
Scale Varied According to Having a Disabled Relative
Scores
Groups
N
x
ss
sh
Is
None
48
499
78.38
75.39
8.61
10.53
1.24
0.47
t
T-test
SD
p
1.90
545
0.058
Discussion
The aim of this research is to determine the attitudes of teacher candidates from various fields towards
mainstreaming education and whether the level of self-compassion has any effect on the development of these
attitudes. ANOVA analysis which was conducted to determine if the individuals’ total scores of ATMS are
477
varied according to the level of self-compassion variable revealed that there’s a significant relationship between
the scores of ATMS and SCS. According to Tamhane’s T2 test which was used to determine in which groups
ATMS total scores varied according to the level of self-compassion variable, a statistically significant
difference was between low compassion group and middle compassion group, in favor of the middle
compassion group at the level of p < 0.01. Accordingly, it has been concluded that teacher candidates who have
middle or higher self-compassion level, also have positive attitudes toward mainstreaming. This result is
important for the teacher candidates who will work in social work field. This was also stated by Ying (2009)
that it is easier to handle professional problems for individuals who work at social work fields when they have a
high level of self-compassion level. Similarly, Robin and Pals (2002) said that, there’s a positive correlation
between individuals’ self compassion level and developing positive attitudes toward whole life since
individuals’ with high self compassion level have less harmful emotions toward life experiences. In the same
direction, Neff (2011) stated that individuals who have higher level of self-compassion feel more positive
emotions. Also, Yazıcı (2009) expressed that teachers’ awareness of their own needs, perceptions and emotions
influence development of their self-awareness, perception of sorrowful and happy aspects of life, and this also
lead them to see these effects on their own life. The findings of this research are in consistency with these
statements.
The analysis of SCS sub-dimensions scores and ATMS total scores showed a positive correlation between
sub-dimensions of self-compassion which are related to positive affections (self-kindness, common humanity,
and mindfulness) and ATMS total scores. Negative correlations were found between ATMS and isolation,
self-judgment sub-scales of SCS and no significant relation was found between over-identification sub-scale
and ATMS. These results emphasize that having positive attitudes toward mainstreaming education is in strong
relation with the sub-dimensions of self-compassion concept which are related to positive affections. As the
level of self-compassion, self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness increase, the level of positivity
about attitudes toward mainstreaming also tends to increase. Contrarily, as the level of sub-dimensions which
are related with negative affection (self-judgment and isolation) increases, positive attitudes toward
mainstreaming level tend to decrease. These results overlaps with the expectations prior to research and
supports the thesis of Neff (2003b) who stated that individuals with high level of self-compassion are kind and
compassionate to themselves and others.
Schultheiss, Jones, Davis, and Kley (2008) stated that as individuals with strong internal and autonomous
motivation sources have high level of satisfaction, their negative responses and attitudes also tend to reduce.
This statement and research findings emphasize the effects of teacher candidates’ psychological well being and
their level of internal and autonomous motivational sources on attitudes towards individuals who need special
education and mainstreaming education.
Findings of this research showed that teacher candidates’ attitudes toward mainstreaming varied
significantly with the variable of taking or not taking special education and mainstreaming courses, the group
who had taken the courses showed more positive attitudes. With these findings, it can be once again stressed
that special education and mainstreaming lectures should be included in curriculum of teacher education
programs. Additionally, in this research, there also appeared to be a statistically significant difference between
the group who had taken both of these courses and the group had taken neither of them. Also in a study
conducted by Bender, Vail, and Scott (1995), a positive correlation was found between teachers’ attitudes and
number of the courses had taken during the teacher education program of intellectually disabled. Orel, Zerey,
478
and Töret (2004) observed that having special education and mainstreaming courses have positive effects on
teachers’ attitudes toward mainstreaming education. It was seen in the study of Sarı and Bozgeyikli (2003),
which was about teacher candidates, the variable of whether having courses on special education and
mainstreaming education, was strongly in relationship with teacher candidates’ attitudes toward mainstreaming.
However, it was an expected result to see that self-compassion variable did not vary from the courses taken.
The analysis of whether participants have a handicapped relative did not cause a difference on
self-compassion total scores. When looking through the self-compassion sub-scales, the group with the
handicapped relative had significantly more scores on self-judgment and over-identification sub-scales. These
results attract attention considering the concept of self-compassion. Although the individuals who have a
handicapped relative are expected to show higher levels of compassion which leads to accept the difficult and
distressed situations with compliance, it is interesting to see that they got high scores on self-compassion
subs-scales which are related to especially to negative affection. In the study of Soyer (2010), the same results
were also found in self-compassion total scores. But at the sub-scales, the findings were different; Soyer did not
observe a significant difference at self-compassion sub-scales.
According to the results, the variable of whether or not taking special education/mainstreaming course also
did not cause a significant difference on self-compassion total scores. At self-judgment, isolation, and
over-identification sub-scales, the group who had not taken the course scored more, meaning that they had
more negative affection. It is interesting to observe these differences at negative affection sub-scale of
self-compassion.
According to the variable of taken courses, SCS total scores did not reveal a significant difference between
groups. In the sub-scales, at self-judgment dimension, a significant difference favoring the group had taken
both lectures, in isolation sub-scale dimension; a significant difference favoring the group had taken neither of
the courses, at over-identification dimension; and a difference favoring the group had taken mainstreaming
course have been observed. One of the most dramatic findings of the research is that there was no significant
difference between self-compassion level and courses taken.
According to these results, it would be beneficial to conduct studies on developing an awareness of the
concept of self-compassion as well as giving information at the special education and mainstreaming courses.
Moreover, conducting studies to evaluate the psychological well being of teacher candidates and teachers with
different assessment tools, and determining the levels of attitudes toward mainstreaming and self-compassion
level of teacher candidates in different universities can be advised.
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Kargın, T. (2004). Mainstreaming: Concept, development and fundamentals. Ankara University Faculty of Educational Sciences
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University Faculty of Educational Sciences Journal of Special Education, 5(1), 23-33.
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D
June 2013, Vol. 3, No. 6, 480-498
DAVID
PUBLISHING
Collaboration in Special Education: Its History, Evolution, and
Critical Factors Necessary for Successful Implementation
Stephen J. Hernandez
Hofstra University, Hempstead, USA

Collaboration in education is seen as a legal mandate, best practice in teacher practice, and necessary for the
inclusion of children with special needs. Over the years, there have been a number of evolutionary incarnations of
the collaborative model, each possessing various ingredients identified as important, if not essential, components of
a successful professional relationship. This article provides the reader with a review of the literature regarding
collaboration in education, particularly in reference to the service of students with special needs. In addition to
identifying those aspects of collaboration that have been deemed critical to its success, this article also discusses the
characteristics found to challenge effective collaboration.
Keywords: collaboration, interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, transdisciplinary approach
Introduction
The Education of All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (P.L. 94-142), and then its most recent
incarnation as the IDEIA (Individuals with Disabilities Improvement Act) in 2004, mandate that students with
disabilities receive their special education services in the least restrictive environment (Heward, 2013). The
LRE (Least Restrictive Environment) principle stipulates that students with special needs will be educated in
“settings as close to the regular educational classroom as possible in which an appropriate program can be
provided and the child can make satisfactory educational progress” (Heward, 2013, p. 71). That definition
notwithstanding implementation of the LRE principle has for many come to mean inclusion, or the placement
and education of every student with disabilities in the general education classroom setting (Friend, 2011).
Although not all students with special needs are placed in inclusive settings, general educators are nevertheless
now expected to provide instruction to students with a much broader range of learning, behavioral, and
developmental differences (Heward, 2013). This diversification of the student body, therefore, requires a host
of ingredients to be introduced into the classroom including culturally responsive teaching (Cartledge, 2006),
the application of universal design for learning, differentiated instruction, and positive behavioral supports
(Friend, 2011). For this, schools rely on support services, such as special education teachers and other
professionals of varied backgrounds (Heward, 2013) to work closely with one another, making collaboration a
“crucial dimension to the planning, delivery, and evaluation of special education and related services… and a
means to achieving inclusion” (Friend, 2011, pp. 27-28).
This article reviews the research related to a number of aspects of collaboration including the legislative
mandates for collaboration in special education, the varied definitions of collaboration, and the commonplace
Stephen J. Hernandez, Ed.D., Director of Early Childhood Special Education, School of Education, Hofstra University.
COLLABORATION IN SPECIAL EDUCATION
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models of collaboration that exist in the educational community, and most important are the elements of
collaboration as well as the obstacles to its successful implementation and maintenance. In particular, a good
deal of the literature on the subject engaged in research designed to gather data from a diverse group of
pre-service professionals as well as individuals already employed in the field including general educators,
special educators, speech-language pathologists, and others. With that, the research notes that fostering the
collaborative process among special educators, general educators, and related service personnel requires
recognizing and understanding several key influences to the process including ownership of a positive attitude
(Wiggins & Damore, 2009), interpersonal skill capability (Welch & Tulbert, 2000), as well as perceived
professional competency and confidence (Damore & Murray, 2009).
Professional collaboration has been viewed as a beneficial tool for helping teachers and other professionals
serve students with disabilities (Brownell, Adams, Sindelar, Waldron, & Vanhover, 2006; Ritzman, Sanger, &
Coufal, 2006) and has been deemed as the best practice in special education (Cross, Traub, Hutter-Pishgahi, &
Shelton, 2004; Barnes & Turner, 2001; Kurjan, 2000; Pena & Quinn, 2003). Gable, Mosert, and Tonelson
(2004) recognized the growing emphasis on collaboration as an important strategy for educators asked to take
on a wider range of responsibilities in today’s schools. Ritzman et al. (2006) noted the support collaboration
offers to teachers when working with students with significant special needs. Whether the children were
receiving services through early intervention (Bruder, 1998; Bruder & Dunst, 2005), were in inclusive settings
(Conderman & Johnson-Rodriguez, 2009; Whitten & Zebehazy, 2003; Carpenter, King-Sears, & Keys, 1998),
had mild to severe disabilities (O’Toole & Kirpatrick, 2007) or had multiple disabilities (Campbell, 1987;
Downing & Baily, 1990), the idea of having professionals from various disciplines working together and
collaborating was tied to the long term success of students with special needs (Banotai, 2006; as cited in Bauer,
Iyer, Boon, & Fore, 2012). Conversely, the lack of collaboration by professionals had been shown to negatively
impact on the extent and quality of services provided to students with special needs (Hunt, Soto, Maier, Muller,
& Goetz, 2002) as well as the typical child (Hunt, Soto, Maier, Muller, & Goetz, 2001; Wallace, Anderson, &
Bartolomay, 2009; Murawski & Hughes, 2009).
This review begins with a discussion of the legislative mandates for collaboration in special education.
The second section of the review provides an in-depth overview of the definitions of collaboration (including
its evolving trends and variations). The final section provides a review of the characteristics, ingredients, and
elements of collaboration as well as the obstacles that it faces.
Legislative Mandates for Collaboration
The first U.S. federal legislative mandate for students with disabilities began in 1975 with the passage of
P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Weintraub & Kovshi, 2004). For the first time,
American schools were required to provide a free and appropriate public education to children with special
needs (Driesbach, Ballard, & Russo, 2001). In addition to the legal mandates of P.L. 94-142, Cootes (2007)
noted best practice expectations underscores the need for collaboration while Wientraub and Kovshi (2004)
noted that P.L. 94-142 required special educators and related service providers work together in the
implementation of each American student’s Individualized Education Plan.
This legal mandate was extended to preschool age children in the United States with reauthorization of
IDEA in 1990. Finally, the reauthorization of IDEA in 1986, in particular Part H, extended special education
services and the “theme of collaboration” (Welch, 1998b, p. 120) to infants and toddlers ages birth to three
482
years old (Bruder & Dunst, 2005). While IDEIA 2004, the most recent incarnation of the law, does not define
collaboration, it nevertheless asks state governments and their departments of education to “promote improved
collaboration between special education and general education teachers” (IDEIA, 2004, p. 132) and requires a
measure of teamwork in the initial evaluation of children as well as in the personnel preparation of pre-service
teachers (IDEIA, 2004).
It must also be noted that several professional organizations incorporated collaborative skills and
dispositions (Welch, 1998a) into their standards and expectations for participating members. The CEC (Council
for Exceptional Children), an international professional organization dedicated to the betterment of those with
special needs, states in Special Education Content Standard #10 that “special educators routinely and
effectively collaborate with families, other educators, related service providers, and personnel from community
agencies in culturally responsive ways” (Friend, 2007, p. 515). In addition, the INTASC (Interstate New
Teacher Assessment Standards Consortium) reflected the need for new teachers to possess skills that
contributed to collaboration (Conderman & Johnson-Rodriguez, 2009). Nevertheless, Welch (1998b) noted that
“professionals from related disciplines may not fully grasp the collaborative nature of special educators’ role
within the context of the law” (p. 119). This may have been fostered over the years by an unintended
by-product of P.L. 94-142. While P.L. 94-142 “legislated” collaboration, this ground breaking piece of
legislation actually contributed to the creation of a separate culture and separate roles within education.
Students were now entitled to “special education”， and in many instances, this individualized service was
provided in a separate setting from the student’s typical peers, thereby fostering the development of a unique
culture (Welch, 1998b) that came to reinforce the historical process that emphasized separate and fragmented
service provision in conjunction with parallel rather than collaborative interaction (Harn, Bradshaw, & Ogletree,
1999; Tourse, Mooney, Kline, & Davoren 2005). The status quo was not addressed until the school reform
initiatives of the 1980’s resulted in the REI (Regular Education Initiative). The impetus of this initiative was a
position paper written in 1986 by Madeline Will, former director of the United States Office of Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services. In that paper, Will questioned the placement of students with disabilities
in separate settings. The position paper called for special educators and regular education staff to collaborate in
order to provide services to students with disabilities in the general education setting (Dettmer, Thurston,
Knackendofelle, & Dyck, 2009).
Understanding and Defining Collaboration
Collaboration is a term that has been misunderstood and gets subsumed in the rhetoric of educational
improvement (Hantzidiamantis, 2011). Any attempt to comprehend collaboration and its essential components
requires an understanding of its varied definitions, concepts, and terminology. This requires careful attention,
because meanings to words can vary from one user to the next and from one context to the next (Dettmer,
Thurston, Knackendofelle, & Dyck, 2005). Recognizing this, the definitions of collaboration identified in the
literature have been categorized below according to their primary ingredients or variables.
Interdependence, Shared Perspectives, and Goals
The word collaboration has its origin in the term “colabre or co-labor, which means working together”
(Welch, 1998b, p. 121). Snell and Janney (2005) elaborated by stating “working together means that positive
interdependence exists among team members who agree to pool and partition their resources and rewards and
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to operate from a foundation of shared values” (p. 6). Wright (2001, as cited in O’Toole & Kirkpatrick, 2007),
saw collaboration as “intensive joint working practice” (p. 343) while Carrea, Jones, Thomas, and Morsink
(2005) defined collaboration as “a mutual effort to plan, implement, and evaluate the educational program for a
given student” (p. 5).
Bruder (1998) spoke of collaboration as individuals with specialization in the therapeutic, medical, and
social service and educational fields coming together when a sense of functionality is bestowed upon them.
Bruder and Dunst (2005) spoke of “teaming” (p. 28) as a descriptor of professionals collaborating across
discipline specific boundaries for the purposes of assessment and intervention. Snell and Janney (2000) saw
collaboration as individuals with diverse expertise working together to achieve mutually agreed upon objectives.
Ritzman et al. (2006) noted collaboration as “characterized by parity, reciprocity, shared participation, decision
making, and resources” (p. 223). Finally, Friend and Cook (2003) defined interpersonal collaboration as “a
style for direct interaction between at least two coequal partners voluntarily engaged in shared decision making
as they work toward a common goal” (p. 5).
Interpersonal Characteristics
Wade, Welch, and Jensen (1994), Welch (1998a), and Welch (1998b) provided their own definitions of
collaboration, reflecting references to the “values, roles, and skills” (Rainforth & England, 1997, p. 86)
required by participants in the process to be successful. Wade et al. (1994) added to the description the concepts
of respect, trust, and communication.
Contextual Setting and Constructs
Wade et al. (1994), along with Welch and Tulbert (2000), spoke of a collaborative ethic in which an
individual embodies the social, cultural, and structural constructs and dimensions of collaboration as
exemplified by shared values and actions that support and encourage the collaborative process, while also
respecting one another’s discipline specific skills and role in the process. Through the use of a survey issued to
educators in 12 schools in Utah, Wade et al. (1994) looked to identify the concerns, needs, beliefs, and attitudes
general educators and specialists had regarding collaboration designed to promote the inclusion of children with
special needs into general education classes. Other purposes included identifying if teacher and school
characteristics impacted on the interest an individual had toward collaborative engagements. The findings of
the research indicate that in general, teachers (general educators and special education teachers) will be more
inclined to engage in collaboration, if they are interested in the intended goals and if those goals are in keeping
with their own role, practice, and philosophy of teaching. The researchers also determined that individuals will
collaborate if they are provided administrative support and believe that their autonomy will be maintained. In
addition, the findings indicate that smaller schools, or those with less than 27 faculty members, are more
inclined to engage in collaborative efforts than teachers that come from larger schools. It was also determined
that general education teachers with a long tenure in one school (more than 10 years) are not as interested in
collaborating with other staff. Finally, the data indicate that collaborators are generally more confident in their
own skills or their abilities to acquire those skills that are required for collaboration. Overall, the researchers
found that as a group, special educators indicated more than one of interest in collaboration in comparison to
general education teachers. Without having any direct evidence, they presumed that finding may result from the
“ethos of being a special education teacher… to take the role of an advocate for… children with disabilities,
which involves consulting or collaborating with others with other professionals” (Wade et al., 1994, p. 200).
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Welch and Tulbert (2000) conducted an investigation designed to socially validate the characterization and
operational definitions of collaboration as described in the professional literature and quantitatively identify
salient features of collaboration. The study was conducted in two phases. Phase one employed an Adelphi
methodology and asked practitioners to define and describe the collaborative process. Open-ended surveys
were sent to general education teachers, special education teachers, administrators, and related service
providers. A follow-up factor analysis factor analysis revealed several factors as salient components of
collaboration including the need for a cultural ethic within the organization.
Welch, Sheridan, Wilson, Colton, and Mayhew (1996) were clear to infuse into the definition the
influence of cultural and systemic variables, while Ritzman et al. (2006) emphasized that the promotion of a
collaborative ethic requires team participation in all aspects of program planning. Wade et al. (1994) added to
the description of the contextual aspect of collaboration by noting the need for joint commitment of resources
and shared ownership within the framework of an ecological perspective.
The fact that collaboration has so many definitions is only one of the variables that need to be accounted
for when attempting to understand its diversity and complexity. In addition to the nuances that emerge and the
potential for cognitive dissonance when attempting to arrive at a coalesced meaning, it is also necessary to
explain and account for the evolution of the basic tenets of collaboration that have developed over the years.
Evolving Models of Collaboration
As aptly described by Lawson, collaboration involves new relations between two or more “entities”
(Lawson, 2004, p. 2). The way in which individuals collaborate can be viewed through a lens which focuses on
how individuals relate and interact with one another as well as how they provide intervention for those they
serve (Lawson, 2004). In education, the manner in which individuals collaboratively relate to one another are
commonly called models of collaboration and consist of the multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and
transdisciplinary approaches (Friend, 2010). Each approach has different sets of underlying assumptions that
guide teacher and team actions. All three approaches incorporate the participation of service providers, but that
is essentially where the similarity ends. According to Carpenter, King-Sears, and Keyet (1998), how team
members interact with each other and within their world make a difference in terms of the approach employed.
Differences found between the above three approaches were assessed by analyzing the organizational structure
and purposeful function of the team. Structure alludes to the team’s organization, membership, and
corresponding role(s). Function refers to the intent, actions, and purpose of the interaction. Further analysis
concluded with the understanding that functions exist within a continuum that ranges from the individualized
and segregated application of skills to the integrated implementation of knowledge (Carpenter et al., 1998).
Multidisciplinary Approach
The multidisciplinary teaming approach is characterized by the application of services by a variety of
different disciplines acting independently (Carpenter et al., 1998; Stepans, Thompson, & Buchanan, 2002).
Even with the presence of multiple disciplines, the level of active involvement by each discipline was found to
be limited within the framework of the multidisciplinary approach. The overall approach of the
multidisciplinary model presumes that only those trained in the specific field are capable of assessing and
serving the child in need of their expertises (Kritikos, LeDosquent, & Melton, 2012). An example would be an
occupational therapist trained in understanding fine motor skills being the only discipline capable of working
485
with the child on handwriting and shoelace tying. This perspective then results in much of the assessment and
intervention process occurring in isolation of the other service disciplines and providers (Kritikos et al., 2012).
Interdisciplinary Approach
The interdisciplinary approach, on the other hand, attempts to create an atmosphere of collaboration,
primarily through enhanced coordination and cooperative engagements amongst disciplines during assessment
and activity planning (Carpenter et al., 1998). The interdisciplinary approach may still result in the disciplines
assessing students independently from one another, professionals using an interdisciplinary approach can
engage one another in a variety of ways including conferring with one another during the assessment, program
development, and intervention processes (Kritikos et al., 2012). While this approach engenders an enhanced
exchange of information, boundaries were noted to exist between team members that constrict the flow of
information, dialogue, and effective implementation (Carpenter et al., 1998; Stepans et al., 2002).
Transdisciplinary Approach
The transdisciplinary approach, or TD approach, has been promoted as an example of outstanding
collaborative practice, ever since its development in the 1960s (York, Rainforth, & Giangreco, 1990). Initially
developed to aid in the coordination of therapeutic and medical services for infants (Campbell, 1987), it was
further refined by the United Cerebral Palsy National Collaborative Infant Project of 1976 (Stepans, Thompson,
& Buchanan, 2002) in order to provide a “comprehensive and coordinated assessment system” (Stepans et al.,
2002, p. 239) for young children with severe and multiple disabilities. The goal was the establishment of a
more relevant and appropriate Individualized Education Program for each student.
In comparison to the multi- and interdisciplinary approaches, the TD approach has been promoted to be
more effective in many ways, most notably in the creation of an integrated team structure and service delivery,
deliberate and regular cross discipline communications, knowledge exchange across disciplines and its strong
student focus (Downing & Baily, 1990; Carpenter et al., 1998; Stepans et al., 2002; York et al., 1990). This
integration of services within the team structure has been identified as a key component of the TD approach and
is in contrast to the traditional model characterized by isolating, discipline specific therapeutic intervention
(Downing & Baily, 1990). Within an integrated team environment, team members are to engage in a
collaborative and collective power structure that emphasizes parental participation and cross discipline
intervention methodologies (Carpenter et al., 1998; Downing & Baily, 1990; Stepans et al., 2002). In the TD
model, practitioners “share responsibility for student learning by expanding and exchanging knowledge within
and between team members” (Prelock, Miller, & Reed, 1995). An example is when a speech-language
pathologist acquires an understanding of the classroom curriculum while the classroom teacher learns to
facilitate communication from the students (Prelock et al., 1995).
In many respects, the TD approach and its integration of services employs practices that have been
characterized as a mixing of services with the assignment of one therapist as the primary or lead service
professional (York et al., 1990; Downing & Baily, 1990). This approach has also been represented as a
consultative model where the various team members funnel information and strategies needed by the lead
therapist for program intervention (Campbell, 1987). In both cases, there is a collective responsibility for the
creation and implementation of the educational and therapeutic plan. No individual is solely responsible for the
progress and development in any particular skill area. Intervention is a shared event requiring an expansion or
exchange of one’s role, eventually leading to role release (Campbell, 1987; Carpenter et al., 1998; Prelock et al.,
486
1995; Stepans et al., 2002). Role release is the process where professionals engage in a variety of different
therapeutic and instructional activities across discipline boundaries, thereby giving up or releasing their role to
another member of the team. For successful implementation, this process necessitated the transfer of discipline
specific knowledge and skills. “To assure the collective store of knowledge, skill, and perspectives is tapped,
every team member, including staff, students, and family members, assumes the role of teacher, learner, and
implementer” (Rainforth & England, 1997, p. 91). For this to occur, teams needed to establish parity, mutual
trust, and respect amongst all team members as well as open communication between all parties (Downing &
Baily, 1990; Prelock et al., 1995).
Co-teaching
Another version of collaboration is the co-teaching, cooperative teaching, or a collaborative teaching
approach. These models can be considered one in the same and are more recent development in the evolution of
the collaborative model (Rainforth & England, 1997; Welch, 1998b). This collaborative approach to teaching
results in the teaming of general and special educators in an inclusionary classroom setting but can also apply to
teaming profiles which include related service professionals, such as speech/language pathologists,
occupational therapists, and counselors (Rainforth & England, 1997).
Rainforth and England (1997) and Welch (1998b) noted that while there are multiple co-teaching models,
the approach typically requires joint academic intervention by at least two professionals in a classroom setting
populated, in natural proportions, with students of typical ability, as well as students with special needs. Many
of the characteristics were identified as key ingredients of the other collaborative models, especially the TD
approach, have also been identified as necessary for successful implementation of a co-teaching model.
Included in this model is open communication, parity, role release, and consistent collaborative intervention
(Sileo, 2011). Friend (2011) provided an example of a more highly collaborative type of co-teaching,
specifically the team teaching model where two teachers “fluidly share the instructional responsibilities of the
entire student group” (p. 113), and share the instructional work load by teaching each student but not just the
student with or without special needs.
As can be seen, when one talks about collaboration, one needs to be conscious of the multiple variations
that exist and the variables they create. In addition, one must recognize that collaboration is a process that is
separated from the activities in which it is used (Snell & Janney, 2005). Collaboration is not just a set of actions
but “a way of being” (Pugach & Johnson, 2002). The collaborative process “reframes” (Dettmer et al., 2005, p.
14) how teachers and therapists engage each other in educational contexts. Finally, the multitude of personnel
and other stakeholders involved in the process must be recognized in an analysis of the essential characteristics
required for the successful implementation of collaboration (Friend & Cook, 2003).
Factors, Ingredients, and Elements Impacting Collaboration
The elements, competencies, and obstacles associated with successful collaboration arise from a
foundation of understanding schools, demonstrating the ability to process sometimes subtle information, and
delivering it all with resources in a helpful context (Dettmer et al., 2005). The work involved in collaboration
has varied but interrelated factors and ingredients that have been identified as important in the development of
collaborative skills within a person (Snell & Janney, 2005). These characteristics are:
(1) Perspectives, attitudes, and preparation;
(2) Professional efficacy;
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(3) Interpersonal skill capacity;
(4) Contextual setting and organizational capacity.
The last three characteristics are particularly important once teachers enter the schools with the literature
noting these as essential to the development of successful collaborative relationships (Brownell et al., 2006;
Butera, 2005; Welch & Tulbert, 2000). But even before the individual begins their first day as a teacher, they
enter the school building with, as Hantzidimantis (2011) noted, notions regarding their role as an educator that
impacts on how they enter into collaborative relationships with other teachers and the diverse group of
professionals they will most likely come into contact with. These notions, as well as specifics regarding the
other elements and ingredients that impact on the collaborative process are discussed in more detail below.
Perspectives, Attitudes, and Preparation
Individuals enter into the “teaching profession with a strong and enduring set of beliefs and attitudes about
teaching and learning… that… greatly influence how they approach any cooperative teaching effort”
(Hantzidimantis, 2011, p. 31). In contrast, while the modern day pre-service teacher has probably experienced
the use of social media as a vehicle for engaging and working with others, it is unlikely that they have used
their interactional skills to work collaboratively on behalf of a student with special needs (Dettmer et al., 2005),
reinforcing the belief that many of them do not feel prepared to work with others in a professional capacity,
while also exhibiting the limited training and experience they have in collaborative service provision
(Conderman & Johnson-Rodriguez, 2009).
As Dettmer et al. (2005) noted, the recognition that even as a new teacher one is expected to actively
engage other professionals and disciplines in constructive dialogue without having the professional
self-assurance that usually comes with experience often results in the novice teacher deferring to the attitudes
and perspectives of the more seasoned professional. That though can come with its own perils for as Dettmer et
al. (2005) suggested, good collaboration involves participants taking individual responsibility for their actions.
Welch et al. (1996) provided us with an overview of the challenges confronted by a number of different
professionals including general and special educators in a study that recognized the relative isolated preparation
of special education and related service professionals. As such, the authors worked to develop a professional
preparation program called the STEP (Site-Based Transdisciplinary Educational Partnerships Project) which
was collaborative action research with an ecological focus designed to prepare teachers in both general
education and special education to learn and function successfully in a collaborative environment within school
settings that serve children at risk. School psychologist and school administrators were also included in the
research process. The researchers categorized the project’s activities in “three domains: inquiry, reflection, and
outcomes” (Welch et al., 1996, p. 226).
Welch et al.’s (1996) study enrolled 72 university students from several education and related professional
preparation programs and placed them in area school districts. They were assigned to work with each other in
transdisciplinary cohorts to address the needs of students at risk. The intent was to have the university students
engage in collaborative interactions and learn about each other’s discipline through direct interaction. The
STEP project’s transdisciplinary field experiences included action research projects, interviews, observations,
and various other activities including, for example, the preparation and implementation of a team-teaching
activity and a social skills curriculum.
Welch et al.’s (1996) study on STEP was viewed as a success in educating the participants in the benefits
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of a transdisciplinary approach with several outcomes showing the effectiveness of the STEP’s endeavors.
Specifically, nine of the 10 action research projects were deemed successful with at least four of the projects
adopted by the participating schools. The focus group discussions produced additional data showing positive
attitudinal perspectives from the university participants towards the adoption of a transdisciplinary perspective
as well as enhanced recognition of the importance of collaboration. The authors did not identify any negative
results from the STEP, but noted the challenges that emerged as a result of its implementation process.
Specifically, the authors encountered resistance from administrators in area schools who thought that their
school and staff would be strained as a result of the presence of the university students and the researchers.
Examining the perspectives of newly appointed special education teachers, Conderman and Stephens
(2000) reported that novice special educators found collaborative relationship development more challenging
than many other aspects of teaching. The reasons for this were varied including the belief that many of these
novice teachers lacked training in collaboration at the pre-service level. This perspective was reiterated by
Dettmer, Thurston, Knackendoffel, and Dyck (2005). Carlson, Brauen, Klein, Schroll, and Willig (2002)
reported that just more than half of all teachers reported having coursework in collaboration while less than 30%
of all general education teachers had coursework in the subject.
The seemingly lack of collaborative skill development by pre-service teachers lead a number of
researchers to investigate the matter. The professional preparation and development of future collaborators was
recognized by Conderman and Johnson-Rodriguez (2009), Bruder and Dunst (2005), Robinson and Sadao
(2005), and Welch et al. (1996) as important in understanding the evolution of collaboration. These authors
provided studies pertinent to the preparation of future professionals. Conderman and Johnson-Rodgriguez
(2009) conducted a pilot study that surveyed the perceptions of beginning general education teachers and
special educators regarding the “importance of skills associated with their collaborative roles under IDEIA” (p.
236). The authors surveyed 46 teachers from the ranks of general education and special education at both the
elementary and secondary levels using a four-point Likert scale to indicate the respondents “perception of the
importance of 20 skills related to inclusion and collaboration” (Conderman & Johnson-Rodriguez, 2009, p.
236). The authors also engaged the participants in a subsequent research component that prompted responses to
five open-ended questions. The results of the survey included responses from 28 special educators from the
elementary and secondary level, representing the largest subgroup of the surveyed respondents. Findings from
the Likert portion of the survey included acknowledgement that both groups of special educators felt least
prepared when it came to working with other staff including professional and paraprofessional staff.
In addition to the Likert scale survey, Conderman and Johnson-Rodriguez (2009) questioned their
respondents using open-ended survey questions. The second question asked survey participants to identify what
they felt were the most challenging aspects of their current positions. The responses to this question were
grouped into a theme that resulted in 11 comments expressing concern with the “interpersonal issues and the
challenges of working with others because of differences in philosophy and style” (p. 239). A number of
respondents also commented on the need for training in collaboration as well as the need for new teachers to
“reflect on their personal qualities” (p. 240). Conderman and Johnson-Rodriguez (2009) went on to discuss the
more global issues presented in the data, including the difficulty novice teachers had when it came to
collaborative engagements with their peers. They also stated that new teachers were more successful, if
properly supported in the context of a collaborative culture. They concluded their discussion recommending
additional inquiry into the motivations of personnel education, when it comes to their engagement in
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collaborative relationships.
In 2005, Robinson and Sado detailed the PFL (person-focused learning) teaching approach to prepare
future professionals in augmentative and alternative communication in the dynamics of teamwork and
collaborative relationships with families. The authors saw the critical need for special educators, speech
language pathologists, psychologists, and other professionals to work collaboratively in the implementation of
augmentative and alternative communication services in educational settings. Including 71 undergraduates and
graduate students from three universities in the western United States, as well as seven individuals with
significant communication needs and their families, the authors collected data through the use of interviews,
questionnaires, self-reflective reporting, and the review of reports and assessments written by the students with
commentary by the service recipients and/or their families. As a result, they created the PFL to promote
collaborative, applied interactions with family members and those with disabilities. PFL incorporated teaching
and learning methods, such as critical thinking and problem-solving skills in order to work more effectively
with individuals with disabilities and their families. It also provided pre-service training with emphasis on the
need for sensitivity to family perspectives as the future professionals also learn about and practice effective
family collaboration. PFL was incorporated into three courses designed for the mixed group of future
professionals at three different universities. With the incorporation of reflective practice, the authors noted the
enhanced recognition by the students in several areas, including positive attitudinal change towards
collaboration as well as enhanced sensitivity to families and individuals with disabilities.
In comparison to the above studies, Bruder and Dunst (2005) noted the lack of adequate training of
professionals to work collaboratively with each other. Their study was based on a national survey of
pre-professional training of early childhood educators, occupational therapists, physical therapists as well as
speech/language pathologists in various practices necessary for effective professional development and service
provision, including teaming practices. In their study, Bruder and Dunst (2005) distributed a comprehensive
survey of 449 undergraduate and graduate programs (237 and 212 respectfully) involved in the training of
future early intervention professionals. Their results found that none of the pre-professional training programs
felt that they did sufficient work in preparing their students to enter the field and have the skills necessary to
collaborate effectively. On the other hand, the survey did show variation in the success of these programs to
train particular disciplines. Specifically, programs in early childhood special education and multidisciplinary
training showed moderate to above moderate training in teaming practices while all of the related service
disciplines (OT (Occupational Therapy), PT (Physical Therapy), and SLP (Speech-Language Pathology))
provided below moderate training. Team training in physical therapy was even more dearth than that of the
other disciplines, showing almost little or no training in teaming.
Rainforth and England (1997) noted that even before collaboration can be successfully implemented, the
process required prospective team members to exchange knowledge and insight into each other’s professional
storehouse of expertise. One must note though that teachers and other professionals are expected to enter the
educational venue with all they need to know in order to be good practitioners (Tren & Boles, 2011) but in fact,
“most educators have not received training to work collaboratively, and therefore, are learning to work as a
team at the same time they must operate as a team” (Snell & Janney, 2005, p. 25). These conflicting
expectations create that much more of a challenge for teachers and therapists. In addition, special education
staff are likely to engage in a collaborative setting that emphasizes communication and cross discipline training
and intervention strategies (Carpenter, King-Sears, & Keys, 1998; Downing & Baily, 1990; Stepans et al.,
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2002).
Professional Efficacy
Ritzman et al. (2006) stated that a key principle to effective collaboration was having “professionals
within a school combine their expertise to create a multitude of options for students with special needs” (p.
221). Theunderstanding added to the perspectives of a number of researchers (Hantizidimantis, 2011; Damore
& Murray, 2009; Brownell et al., 2006; Butera, 2005; Harn, Bradshaw, & Ogletree, 1999; Kurjan, 2000;
Prelock et al., 1995) who identified the role of perceived professional competency and confidence in the
development of collaborative relationships.
Butera (2005) identified the role of professional competence and interpersonal skill capability in a case
study involving organizational providers (special educators, social workers, administrators, and nurses)
engaged in service to a young child with special needs in rural Appalachia named Cassie. The case study
sought to understand the contextual setting of Cassie and the role of collaborative service delivery. The author
emphasized the transactional nature of relationships and its key to understanding how multidisciplinary service
systems work by showing how Cassie influenced the relationships that participated in the collaborative
environment and the interactions of individuals designed to serve her. As noted by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological
model, relationships benefit from the continual exchange of ideas and actions between individuals interacting
with each other. Recognizing the reciprocal role interpersonal interactions have was critical to understand how
a collaborative environment should work. Results provided insight into the critical factors that contribute to
effectiveness, specifically the role of status barriers, or when individuals use differences in professional
position as the reason to limit engagement, as well as the perceptions of professional competence and
interpersonal skill capability along with professional practice and service implementation.
Brownell et al. (2006) examined how teachers from two elementary schools accepted and integrated
information learned from others into their own instructional repertoire. The findings provided an understanding
of those “high adopter” teachers who were most inclined to incorporate strategies learned in collaborative
professional development. Their inclination to modify and adopt was noticeably in contrast to those teachers
identified as moderate or low adopters of collaborative strategies. Other findings noted that high adopters had
more knowledge regarding curriculum and pedagogy, an understanding of student behavior and how to manage
it as well as greater insight and ability to individualize student instruction. They concluded that professional
confidence and open mindedness played a role in the development of collaborative relationships and integrated
therapy provision amongst special educators.
The need for professional efficacy was also evident in Prelock et al. (1995). This study described key
components for establishing collaborative partnerships for delivering services to children with communication
disorders, including establishing a transdisciplinary approach, marketing the collaborative concept, and
providing collaborative in-service training. The study emphasized the need to have staff involved in
collaborative engagement go through a process in order to achieve a successful level of service integration. The
study centered on the task of “role release” (Prelock et al., 1995, p. 293), or the elimination of professional
barriers to engagement, in order to achieve successful service integration. The researchers emphasized the
process involved in role release and reiterated the critical part it has in the push-in therapy model.
In a similar study, Spann-Hite, Picklesimer, and Hamilton (1999) studied the willingness of teachers to
allow speech-language pathologists to participate in classroom activities. The study surveyed 37 employees of
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28 schools located in the southeastern United States. The participants included general education teachers,
special educators as well as a speech-language pathologist serving students with and without special needs in
kindergarten through eighth grade. The researchers asked the participants to respond to 20 items designed to
disclose their opinions regarding inclusion and the interdisciplinary approach. A Likert scale was used with
scores ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The findings of the study found that a majority of the
participants believed that an effective inclusionary classroom could benefited from having a special educator
and speech-language pathologist as “collaborative partners” (Spann-Hite, Picklesimer, & Hamiltion, 1999, p.
12) in the classroom with the regular education teacher. In addition, the authors found that the participants’
willingness to collaborate was highly dependent on their sense of efficacy and self-confidence.
Sileo (2011) cited the importance of confidence in one’s skills as a professional, noting that “special
educators often assume more participatory roles when they feel confident with curricular content” (p. 35) while
O’Toole and Kirkpatrick (2007) documented the need for “mutual respect for each person’s skills and
individual contributions” (p. 326). Conversely, McCartney (1999, as cited in O’Toole & Kirpatrick, 2007),
described how some teachers and speech therapists note “feeling vulnerable and deskilled” when it comes to
collaborative teamwork. Finally, Walker, Shea, and Bauer (2004) noted that effective teachers were “authentic
teachers, exhibiting self-insight, self-acceptance, self-appraisal, and realistic self-confidence” (p. 48).
As discussed with regard to the definition of collaboration, Wade et al. (1994) reinforced the importance
of these aspects of collaboration with the identification of several variables, specifically the attitudinal and
experiential compatibility of potential team members. In their study, regular education teachers and special
educators were surveyed regarding their concerns, needs, beliefs, and attitudes regarding collaboration designed
to promote inclusion. The study showed that teachers whose values, attitudes, and experiences conflict with
those being expressed as part of the collaborative process are less likely to adopt collaborative initiatives. The
author noted that teachers ready to collaborate were generally more self-confident in their ability to acquire
collaborative skills, such as role sharing.
Possessing a modicum of professional efficacy and a sense of competency was critical in overcoming any
hesitancy associated with collaboration. As referenced earlier, Spann-Hite et al. (1999) noted the willingness of
teachers to allow speech language pathologists to participate in classroom activities was highly dependent on
their own sense of efficacy as a teacher and their ability to manage students with behavioral disabilities.
Trimble and Peterson (1999) noted the enhanced sense of efficacy teachers felt when administrators eliminated
the need for individual lesson plans. The study also showed heightened collaborative effectiveness by team
members along with improved student outcomes as a result of the administrative support associated with the
collaborative undertaking. Hartas (2004, as citted in O’Toole & Kirpatrick, 2007) believed that “senior staff
need to recognize the benefits of collaboration and allocate appropriate time, and that there should be a clear
objective and a clear sense of direction about what is important in therapy and education for children with
special needs if collaboration is to be successful” (p. 346).
As noted above, the importance of one’s sense of professional capability and efficacy as a component in
the milieu of ingredients necessary for an individual to effectively collaborate cannot be underestimated. A
number of researchers, including Prelock et al. (1995), Harn, Bradshaw, and Ogletree (1999), and
Hantizidimantis (2011), identified one’s sense of competency and confidence as critical in the development of
their collaborative ethic. But as noted by Butera (2005), participants in the collaborative process are
components in a transactional relationship and as noted below; their collaborative capabilities are also
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influenced by interpersonal skill capacities.
Interpersonal Skill Capacity
Successful interpersonal relationships, one’s attitudinal perspective and how they influence team cohesion
and collaborative engagement was the subject of research by a number of researchers (Butera, 2005; Harn et al.,
1999; Lim & Adelman, 1997; Niles & Marcellino, 2004; Pena & Quinn, 2003; Wiggins & Damore, 2006).
Butera (2005) applied an ecological model of development to how interpersonal skills play a major role in the
perspective one has towards other staff and administration. Conversely, Harn et al. (1999) discussed how
characteristics, such as trust and open communication aid in developing a collaborative climate within an
organization. Researchers, such as Lim and Adelman (1997), Niles and Marcellino (2004), Pena and Quinn
(2003), and Wiggins and Damore (2006), all touched upon the need for teams to develop relationships amongst
individuals, commit to collaboration and engage in a psychology of collaboration or role release. Lim and
Adelman (1997) correlated the intensity of staff commitment to collaboration to the success those teams
achieve. Niles and Marcellino (2004) discussed the issues surrounding team work and collaboration while
noting the need for the establishment and maintenance of trust, respect, and communication.
Wiggins and Damore (2006) discussed the need for individuals to have a positive attitude and a shared
philosophy as well as the critical nature of communication and cooperation for effective collaboration while
Kritikos, LeDosquet, and Melton (2010) emphasized the “attributes of friendliness, ability to listen, clarity and
honesty… in the establishment of a… communicative pathway” (p. 60) that lends itself to an atmosphere
fostering engagement and collaboration. In addition, Welch and Tulbert (2000) noted in their factor analysis of
special educators, general education teachers, administrators and related service providers the need for future
professionals to recognize and understand the “cultural, systemic, philosophical dimensions of collaboration…
and the interpersonal dynamics of the collaborative relationship” (Welch & Tulbert, 2000, p. 374). In addition,
others, such as Scruggs (2007, as cited in Sileo, 2011), discussed the need for relationship building by team
members and the critical aspect of personal compatibility of the participants. Finally, these findings were
supported by Damore and Murray (2008) in their study about urban elementary school teachers engaged in
collaborative instruction. In this study, 118 general and special educators from 20 urban elementary schools
were surveyed using the “Collaborative Teaching Survey” as designed by the authors. This instrument elicited
the participants “perceptions about collaboration, their views regarding inclusion, and what is needed to ensure
effective collaborative teaching” (Damore & Murray, 2008, p. 234). The authors noted the high value placed by
respondents on the “interpersonal constructs of positive attitudes” (Damore & Murray, 2008, p. 243) and
believed that additional research was needed in order to more fully understand this connection to successful
collaboration in the classroom setting.
Contextual Setting and Organizational Capacity
In addition to the attitudes, beliefs and values that individuals have towards collaboration, organizations as
a whole and groups within larger organizations may substantially influence collaborative development through
several other variables. These include the openness versus restrictiveness of the relationships within the group.
Groups with restricted or closed relationships have barriers which prevent external stimuli from influencing the
functioning of the group (Wade et al., 1994). An unproductive relationship can, therefore, produce far reaching
and long term consequences.
Sileo (2011) noted the need for parity amongst team members and the importance of discussing with your
493
team members the “nitty-gritty details” (p. 34), including such things as intervention approaches, daily chores
and shared space. Even those who are supportive of the collaborative and integrated service processes can find
themselves overwhelmed. Just the need for regular communication can be a challenge and burden. A study by
Hartas (2004) as noted in O’Toole and Kirpatrick (2007) involving 25 educators and 17 speech therapists
reinforced the findings in Sileo (2011), noting that 79%-82% of the participants saw time commitments and
constraints as the sacrifices they needed to make in order for collaboration to work with each other. In addition,
the participants cited the lack of time and organizational structure in support of collaboration as “serious
concerns” (Sileo, 2011, p.14).
These issues were cited in a number of other studies, including Liu and Pearson (1999), Robbins-Etlen
(2009) and Gallagher, Malone, and Ladner (2009) in studies involving general education teachers and special
educators collaborating in an effort to serve students with developmental disabilities in inclusive settings.
Gallagher et al. (2009) found time constraints and lack of commitment by school staff as hindrances to
collaborative engagements amongst psychologists and other psycho-social support personnel in support to
school-based support teams serving students with disabilities. These hindrances point to the need for education
and training (Welch, 1998b) and administrative support (Moore-Brown, 1991) in the continued development of
collaborative and integrated service delivery systems. In fact, while Mastropieri (2001; as cited in Bauer et al.,
2012) noted that the time constraints often limit collaboration, others noted that additional time in the
collaborative process sometimes results in less time for engagement in the actual work needed to accomplish
the mutually agreed upon goals (Dule, Korner, Williams, & Carter, 1999).
Highlighting the organizational impact on collaboration, Trimble and Peterson (1999) illustrated the
institutional, administrative and/or organizational support necessary for collaboration to be successful. In an
in-depth study utilizing multiple sources of data gathered through inventories, student performance data,
interviews and an examination of school documents, the authors found that administrative support enhanced
team processes and student performance. The study showed that certain administrative practices were
supportive of team engagement and the overall institutionalization of collaboration within the school. These
administrative practices included modeling of effective collaborative practices, commitment to collaboration as
an obligation by every professional, an interest in and dissemination of best practice research data, the training
of staff in team practices, and regular feedback regarding team planning. Lehr (1999) described that in a case
study particular areas of administrative support as essential to the degree of success teachers achieving
collaborative teaching including “voluntary participation, adequate planning time, and resources, collaborative
training and high visibility of collaboration” (Lehr, 1999, p. 28). These findings, in addition to the results found
in Dinnebeil, Hale, and Rule (1999), and the ecological perspective in Butera (2005), recognized the significant
direct and transactional influence administrators have in how they use their authority to establish organizational
constructs that are necessary for collaboration to succeed. In addition, Conderman and Johnson-Rodriguez
(2009), at the conclusion of their study, proposed that a culture supporting collaboration is more likely to result
in teachers, especially novice ones, taking on collaborative roles themselves. They also discussed the need for
collaboration to be taught in a fashion that goes beyond the constructs of legal and professional mandates and
more into the complexities of collaboration with its “contextual nuances” (Conderman & Johnons-Rodgriguez,
2009, p. 243).
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Obstacles to Collaboration
Although current practices, such as inclusion, has led to a partial dissolution of the cultural divide between
general and special education, there remains a host of issues that constrain the ability of professionals to
collaborate effectively (Bruder & Dunst, 2005; Harn et al., 1999; Friend, 2000; Rainforth & England, 1997;
Welch, 1998b). First, there have been a number of perspectives regarding the concept and process of
collaboration that need clarification (Downing & Baily, 1990; Welch, 1998b; Friend, 2000; Bauer et al., 2010).
To begin, Downing and Baily (1990) addressed those who were concerned with the shared responsibility
component of the process by assuring them that the collective nature of collaboration and its sense of mutual
responsibility are in fact, one of the most successful characteristics and leads to a variety of desired outcomes,
including enhanced acquisition of student skills. In addition, Welch (1998b) noted several other concerns
prevalent in the educational community with regard to collaboration and its intent. First, to coordinate or to be
cooperative does not equate to collaboration. Coordinating is a managerial process designed to accomplish
certain tasks while cooperation is a process where people may agree to certain activities, whether they are
mutually beneficial to all of the parties involved.
Friend (2000) highlighted a few of these added realities, including the belief that collaboration comes
naturally and is an easy process to engage in. Friend (2000) noted that it is not uncommon to hear how difficult
it is to collaborate, including the time and effort to implement and maintain collaboration. Collaboration is not
about liking someone or being liked, it is about trust, respect, and outcomes. Collaboration is not a stand-alone
process being employed for its own sake. It is a technique designed to accomplish a goal in a manner not
attainable by you alone (Bauer et al., 2010).
In addition, some in the field of special education as well as some in other professions have resisted efforts
to collaborate. Dule et al. (1999) identified the “ambivalence” (p. 259) and “significant difficulties” (p. 260)
therapists experience when involved in a collaborative team approach. Niles and Marcellino (2004) looked at
the bigger picture to explain how our society’s emphasis on individualism is behind the hesitation of many
participants when it comes to working together and collaboration in general. The study provided insight into the
concept of needs based negotiation as a means of creating and sustaining relationships and an effective
collaborative environment. Rainforth and England (1997) discussed why not all service providers are enamored
with collaboration. In fact, the field of speech language pathology has documented the field’s preference for
isolated service provision (Ritzman et al., 2006). This perspective is substantiated by Bundy (1995), as cited in
Weintraub and Kovshi (2004) who noted that a small percentage, less than 10%, of all occupational therapists
is trained to serve students in the classroom setting.
Others in education see collaborative engagements as contrary to their professional demeanor and express
preference to work independently. This includes teachers (Troen & Boles, 2011), speech language pathologist,
and occupational therapist (Ritzman et al., 2006). Even if the innate human impulse for autonomy was
overcome, and while team members may demonstrate a desire to collaborate, the fact remains that “team
members typically lack the skills, tools, and support structures that would allow them to orchestrate significant
pedagogical and curriculum changes through the collaborative work of the team” (Troen & Boles, 2011, p. 1).
In addition, it should not forget that just like any relationship, including a collaborative one, there are
conditions where the relationship flourishes as well as conditions where it will not. One condition includes the
privatization of practice or as Lortie (1975) noted, the cellular nature of teaching.
495
Besides the challenges collaboration faces due to the restrictions placed upon it by human interaction,
there are other aspects of special education that negatively impact on the ability of staff to collaboration
effectively. One factor included changes in how special education is funded. Every year there is a greater use of
Medicaid funds which creates additional growth of documentation requirements (Scalise, 2005). It is not
unusual for a therapy provider to have three or four documents to complete each time they serve a student
(Mintz, 2003). This is particularly true in the provision of early intervention for infants and toddlers as well as
related services for students through their school age years. These changes in the management of special
education and its funding have also led to mandated productivity levels for service providers (Hamel, 2003),
requiring therapists to provide therapy to more students and then documenting it, resulting in less time for
engaging for collaboration with other staff.
Lastly, one cannot underestimate the negative impact mandated testing and national standards have on
collaborative engagements amongst service providers. The resulting competiveness and high-stakes ranking
that occurs in this new era create a “climate of uncertainty” (Snell & Janney, 2005, p. 16) for collaborative
teams who now must work on enabling all students to meet mandated standards, not just provide stimulating
student instruction.
Conclusions
As detailed above, the development, acquisition, and maintenance of the skills needed to effectively
collaborate encompass a variety of ingredients. These components include the perspectives and attitudes
pre-service teachers have on collaboration along with the training and professional development they receive
before they enter the profession. Additional components of collaboration include the professional expertise and
efficacy of the collaborators as well as their interpersonal skills. Finally, the contextual setting in which
collaboration is occurring must be considered when attempting to understand the process. While the list of
characteristics is extensive, collaboration is not just a set of actions but “a way of being” (Pugach & Johnson,
2002). The collaborative process “reframes” (Dettmer et al., 2005, p. 14) how teachers and therapists engage
each other in educational contexts.
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