This proposal is subject to change as the project develops.
Research question is:
Can circles of Friends help children and young people with additional support needs achieve some of their outcomes (SHANARRI) in Scotlandās mainstream schools?
What experiences do parents have of āCircles of Friendsā as an approach in supporting their child to be fully included and develop friendships in the mainstream classroom?
Background
In my experience in working with people with the learning disability label over the past 26 years there has been a common issue of people having very little or no friends. This has become a lasting feature in the lives of many people with learning disabilities. In a recent survey carried out by Enable Scotland 113 people were asked 4 questions based on the key recommendations from the Keys to life. A conclusion from this engagement process was ā ā5.2 the striking theme of friendships and relationships was the āgolden threadā of the initial discussion groups, and this should direct early focus on implementing the Keys to Life.ā
It is highlighted in the āKeys to Lifeā that Isolation has a massive detrimental impact on quality of life, health and well being. Recommendation 34 of ‘The keys to life’ focuses on supporting people with learning disabilities to have more friends.
When I consider where I learned about relationships and friendship, how complex but natural a process this is, I often reflect on my school days. There has always been a great emphasis placed on the academic achievement but less on the social aspect of our learning. Learning about other people and their diversity, and beginning to understand by making mistakes about what works and what does not when we spend time with other people is a crucial aspect of our social development. āThere are those who argue that the school’s role is solely to instil learning in children, but Article 29 of the UN convention suggests a somewhat broader perspective. Education, it suggests, should be directed at developing the child’s personality and talents, and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential’ but should also be ‘fostering respect for basic human rights and developing respect for the child’s own cultural and national values and those of othersā (Wertheimer 1997)
We are in an āage of austerityā and that usually means a change to funding support for people with a learning disability. It can be argued that paid support has created unintentional barriers for people to develop relationships within their local communities. As a result people have very few friendships and relationships with people who are not paid to be there. The level of paid support can often mean in my experience that individuals have created an over dependence on the paid staff and often view them as friends.
Social isolation can be reinforced by social segregation. When a child is going to school there is often a choice of mainstream school, special needs classroom within a mainstream school, or special needs school. This research is concerned with the experiences parents and children have when they choose from their options and if the Circle of Friends approach would help them opt for mainstream school.
What is the Circles of Friends Approach?
āCircles of Friendsā is an approach to help children and/or young people at risk of segregation from their communities.
The idea is to build a team around the child or young person by inviting or asking their peers, who are participating in the child or young personās life, if they would want become part of the circle.
In schools, this approach is used to develop a circle filled with other children in the classroom. This helps everyone in the circle develop a better understanding of the child/ young person and to help think about what help the child or young person may need from their peers/circle, to be fully included in the classroom.
The first step is to develop some empathy for the child or young person with their peer group, to help others think about what life would be like with an absence of friends. This helps develop some understanding of what life may be like for that child or young person.
The guiding principles are that the answers to some of the personās problems lie within the circle. That messages previously sent out, would have said āthat itās no ones business. The circle approach means that itās āeveryoneās businessā and we all play our part in the solution.
Circles of friends is an approach that focuses on helping people who are finding it difficult to participate in mainstream situations. āThe approach promotes the inclusion of individuals who face the greatest risk of rejection or isolation from the community in which they live because of their disability, behaviour or differenceā Newton and Wilson 2003
My own work experience has highlighted a number of obvious differences in interests and hobbies between young people in mainstream and special education. This leads me to question, how can individuals who have a learning disability be treated equally and connect with other people if their interests are so far apart from other people their age, who have not attended a special needs school. Music, Pubs, clubs, holidays with friends, getting a job, Social media, the list of different experiences that children have as part of a particular school set up would appear endless.
Inclusive education has been promoted through the Journey of excellence ā Learning together: An Introduction to Inclusion which cites Professor Len Barton,
āInclusive education is concerned with the quest for equity, social justice and participation. It is about the removal of all forms of barriers of discrimination and oppression and it is about the well-being of all learners.ā
Professor Len Barton, Institute of Education, University of London
This research projectās underlying theme is around relationships and friendships of people with learning disabilities,
The aim is:
- To create a good resource for individuals, their parents and schools to use.
- To help raise awareness of how āCircles of Friendsā can help children and young people with learning disabilities and/or additional support needs move closer to achieving their outcomes (SHANIRRI) overcoming some of the barriers to attended Mainstream school
- Provide an alternative option to help meet the SHANIRRI outcomes for children and young people and support main stream education āget it right for every childā.
- Suggests helpful ways that can support true inclusion in the classroom and in the long term reduces the loneliness experiences buy young people with learning disabilities with a hope to have some influences that leads to an overall improvement in the quality of life of people with learning disabilities
- To help towards creating a society where we are all accepted and appreciated by others no matter our difference.
Research question
Can circles of Friends help children and young people with additional support needs achieve some of their outcomes (SHANARI) in Scotlandās mainstream schools?
Methods
My approach will focus on both quantitative and qualitative data; data gathered will focus on the following:
1. To Learn what schooling parents have opted for and their reasons for choosing a particular option
2. To learn what parents know about The āCircles of Friendsā Approach
3. To learn what experiences parents have of this approach
4. To establish if this is beneficial when used in schools and what the benefits are
5. To learn if this is an approach that would be consider by parents
6. To search for examples of Circles of Support being used in schools in Scotland and other countries
7. To learn of the impact on this approach on the children and young people.
To address each of these strands my methods of data collection will include:
ā¢ Develop a questionnaire with the help of the Enable Young Carers and Families Committee and send through the young families network (which includes 150 families from various local authority regions across Scotland ), this would reach a variety of different audiences possibly parents of have already gone through the process and they children have now left school to parents who have not yet decided on schooling for their child. I hope to raise awareness of the approach and also to learn from the experiences of those who have used the approach, following up with 4 interviews where āCircles of friendsā has been used as an approach.
ā¢ I will explore previous research within my own organisation and hopefully complement what already exists.
ā¢ Through reviewing literature and internet research I will look out globally to learn what has been successful in different parts of the country and beyond.
The data I collect will be both factual on peoplesā experiences and on ideas for improvement where this is identified
I intend to use the data to develop percentages of what people have responded to in a quantitative way using bar charts as a visual indicator for the data I collect.
I plan to read through all of the returned questionnaires establish what it is telling me highlighting common themes and messages and formulate a report based on what I have learned.
From the interviews I would plan to have them transcribed and also pull out the common themes and massages from them.
Ethics
My Ethics route will be through my organisation in alignment with Edinburgh University guidelines and that of Bera. My organisation has developed a process from which I have completed the level 1 form. I have sought and gained approval to proceed from my line manager. I will also seek approval on the questionnaires and the consent forms.
I have made adjustments to my data collection due to limited timescales. It is my intention to seek my data from parents of children with Learning disabilities only, I believe that they are the experts of their own experiences; my organisation has approximately 150 families who have already given their consent to be involved in any research projects.
ā¢ I would not expect that the research has potential to cause harm or offence or upset to people, however it may leave people questioning their decisions
ā¢ I plan to state from the onset that this research is a fact finding exercise which may help improve the experience of families in the future. That it is in no way judging or criticising families or professionals but seeking to understand experiences and making recommendations for making things even better from what we hear people say. There may be some learning from different parts of Scotland and the rest of the world which can inform any positive recommendations for change for the future, whether through contributing to discipline based knowledge, informing policy or informing practice.
ā¢ I plan to use consent forms that everyone involved would sign giving their permission for their information to be shared and where the individual does not have the capacity to sign this to seek permission from their parent or guardian. If it becomes apparent the sharing information is uncomfortable for any individual I will respect that they may not wish to continue or opt out from the process.
ā¢ I have many years experience working with people and my approach is very respectful, I would ensure that if there is any follow up support for what people share that I have the resources to signpost to an appropriate service.
ā¢ I have very good listening skills and have many years of experience working with people who use non traditional ways to communicate or who do not use traditional speech. I may have in some situations to find out what preferred communication each individual uses to fully hear what they have to say. I would enlist the support of the organisationās accessible communications worker to help make the information gathering process accessible for each individual involved.
ā¢ I have a duty to raise any concerns that I have in the appropriate ways where there is any harm or potential for harm disclosed to me. I will explain the confidential agreement and where this would be compromised in any particular situation.
ā¢ My project has considered any ethical issues and legal requirement. It is not likely to have any legal ramifications. I would intend to store information in line with my organisations data protection policy.
Knowledge exhange
I intend to produce a written report which will provide feedback on the research and any recommendations, everyone involved in the research will receive a copy of this report.
The report or feed back may take on different formats depending what ideas the participants come up with, I would at the very least plan to have a leaflet produced with frequently asked questions with responses on āCircles of Friendsā.
I would hope that there are individual stories to be shared which can provide a link to the initial theme of the research around avoiding social isolation, being present, connected, valued and a contributing citizen.
I will also make use of the networks at IRISS and the University of Edinburgh (as well as the other partners on the project) to communicate and tailor my work to different interested audiences.