A Teacher’s Strategies and Challenges to Teach Vocabulary to Students with Special Needs in an Inclusive Education Setting

Abstract

This study was framed by a case study design. It was conducted at a state junior high school in East Java, Indonesia. This school was chosen because it has 20-25 students in each class. In each class, there are one or two students with special needs who study with other regular students. In addition, I have also gained approval from the head teachers and the English teachers to conduct research in this school. Then, the participants were an experienced English teacher who had experience in teaching for several years. I collected the data through observations and interviews. I observed strategies and challenges that teachers use while teaching vocabulary to students with special needs in an inclusive class. For the interview, I asked several questions to confirm the results of observations and add information regarding what strategies the teacher or participant uses to teach vocabulary to students with special needs and the challenges that teacher face. Based on the data obtained, this research found three strategies that teacher applied such as customized instruction, multi-sensory teaching, and student encouragement. The customized instruction strategy is used by teachers to adapt learning materials for students with special needs. The multi-sensory teaching strategy is used by teachers to make learning for students with special needs more active by using all sensory organs when learning takes place. Student encouragement is used by teachers to organize learning so that it goes according to the learning plan and to regulate the mood of students with special needs during the learning process. Furthermore, there are two challenges found when teachers teach vocabulary in inclusive classes, such as time allocation constraints and student behavior.