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Despite research emphasis on university students' counselling needs and service benefits, barriers to counselling service participation for students have been less explored in Ghanaian higher education. Yet literature is replete with reports on high undergraduate student attrition and a low sense of belonging, stressing the severe need for increased counselling service participation among students in higher education. This article explored the barriers to increased counselling service participation faced by Ghanaian public university students. Our research engaged 13 counselled undergraduate students, purposively selected via snowball and convenience sampling techniques. We engaged study participants in in-depth interviews and a focus group discussion to gather appropriate data and further used the interpretive phenomenological approach to find meaning in the gathered data. Students revealed their perceptions on poor counsellors' sense of initiative, their low service awareness, and their misconceptions which seem to hinder students' counselling service participation. Our results underscore the need for more service advertising and possibly increased counsellor initiative to promote counselling service use among higher education students in Ghana. Daily service advertising with counsellors' reliance on text and WhatsApp messaging, still pictures and short videos on the various campuses (Amos et al., 2020) would considerably increase students' awareness of counselling services.

Implementing differentiated instruction (DI) in inclusive classrooms presents many challenges that often limit the teachers' ability to use the strategy. Research tends to indicate that, though DI is a viable approach to meeting the le individual learner's needs in mixed ability classrooms; it is poorly implemented in regular schools. This study sought to investigate the perspectives of primary school teachers on the use of DI in an inclusive classroom in Enugu state, Nigeria. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design using a sample of 382 primary school teachers in the study area. Data were collected using a validated researcher-developed Teachers' Use of Differentiated Instruction Questionnaire (TUDIQ). Percentages, pie-charts, and bar charts were used in analyzing and presentation of data collected for the study. Results indicated that the extent to which teachers implement DI was low, and time constraint limits the use of DI. The results further revealed that teachers need more information on how to develop rubrics; students' directed assessments; how to manage large class while implementing DI; how to use differentiated instruction without watering down the curriculum contents; the need for changes in classroom structure to accommodate small groups; and the need for more training on DI and the provision of diverse learning aids in schools. The implication for teacher education is that DI has to form critical curriculum content for colleges of education and faculties of Education in the Universities.

The inclusion of career guidance in the life orientation (LO) curriculum has posed a number of challenges for LO teachers in South Africa. LO teachers seem to experience confusion, feelings of incompetence, and insufficient training that points to a need for training and professional development. The purpose of this article is to explore the training needs of LO teachers in teaching career guidance at rural high schools in the Lephalale Municipality of the Waterberg District. A qualitative research approach was followed in this study. This study was a small investigation in which non-probability purposive sampling was used to select 2 secondary schools and 1 LO teacher per selected school. Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were used to elicit responses from a purposefully selected sample of 2 Further Education and Training (FET) LO teachers at 2 rural high schools in the Lephalale Municipality. FET LO teacher training needs in teaching career guidance emerged as a major theme and is discussed in this article.

The purpose of the current article was to compare the retrospective experiences of community partners with higher education (HE) qualifications, in community engagement (CE) in order to inform global citizenship as a HE agenda. Qualitative methodology was appropriate in this study as we were interested in gaining in-depth insight into the understanding of partners of HE-rural school CE-partnership. We conveniently selected an existing Flourishing Learning Youth intervention for the purpose of secondary data analysis of the retrospective experiences of several participant-groups. Researchers confirm that HE should promote social justice in development interventions. Insight generated by this study is the fact that community challenges are not confined to a lack of assets, but also include ignorance about the invaluable local resources.

This conceptual article is anchored on critical phenomenology to challenge the monopolisation of visual arts by the sense of vision, thus depriving visually impaired people of aesthetic value beyond ordinary cognitive faculties. In this study, we discuss the forms of painting, drawing and sculpting defined as Visual Arts referring to appreciation only by vision; thus, excluding the visually impaired as unable to appreciate or create by sight. This exclusiveness has dominated and directed art aesthetics and ethics, allowing aesthetic criteria research projects and educational curricula to be established and, conventionally, maintain their static existence unchallenged. Furthermore, vision exclusiveness limits creative thinking and artistic inspiration. This article demonstrates the need and importance of broadening students' artistic conceptualisation of inclusiveness in Visual Arts by exploring three fields of humanities education, i.e., academic, educational and sociocultural. The article challenges established stereotypes by introducing innovative approaches and opening alternative channels of creative and critical thinking in higher art education. From a sociocultural viewpoint in the South African context, the analysis questions the validity of certain firmly rooted stereotypical concepts about art values and standards by encountering the visually unimpeded and impaired. While the research broadens students' artistic conceptualisation of inclusiveness in Visual Arts, it simultaneously promotes the concept of hephapreneurship (hepha+preneurship), a neologism inspired by the Greek god, Hephaestus, protector of arts and crafts, himself handicapped. The term does not draw attention to the inabilities of persons with visual impairment, but their creative abilities through encouragement and motivation. By direct and open exposure to the problem, the research promotes the importance of arts education as a challenging platform for interaction between two, by definition, opposed realities.

The aim of this study was to explore career construction of a man with dysarthria and how he resiled to the golden age of 50 despite disability and illiteracy. Through a qualitative idiographic case study, three members of Seithati's family were interviewed: the mother, a sister and a brother. The interpretative phenomenological analysis was employed and three themes that emerged were: "Exclusion/inclusion dynamic," "Biopsychosocial model of support" and 'Informal/formal careers." The article concludes that informal careers are feasible alternatives for people with disabilities not in education, employment or training. Informal careers can assist them to develop skills to be employable.

Successful school transition is a basis for career development and eventual overall adult educational and socio-economic outcomes. Transitioning through primary school grades is a combination of relative academic and social skills acquired in each grade and forms the basis for subsequent academic and social success at ensuing educational pursuit and adult independent life. Evidence indicates that learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families experience limiting challenges in their school transition at different levels. There is a gap in the literature as to the specific factors that constitute school transition difficulties in primary school learners with ASD in the area of study. The purpose of this study was to investigate challenges that learners with ASD face as they transition through school grades. The study adopted a phenomenological design with 12 participants (6 parents and 6 teachers). Two focus group discussions were held to collect data analysed using inductive thematic analysis. The results revealed three main themes, which included poor academic achievement and skills development, social and economic challenges as well as behavioural problems. The findings of the study suggest an increased need for home-school collaboration during the early stages and throughout the school years for the effective transition of learners with ASD. Thus, providing learners with ASD and their families with academic, emotional and behavioural intervention and support can help learners with autism to develop personal resources that will encourage their educational success.

Objective: This study explores the role of sports psychology in managing concussion recovery and facilitating athletes' readiness to return to play. Methods and Materials: A qualitative research design was utilized, involving semi-structured online interviews with athletes who had experienced concussions, sports psychologists, and medical professionals. 36 Participants were recruited through purposeful sampling, and data collection continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using NVivo software through an inductive thematic approach, allowing for the emergence of key themes. Reflexivity and researcher triangulation were employed to ensure the rigor and reliability of the findings. Findings: Four main themes emerged: psychological interventions, mental barriers and facilitators in return to play, the role of support systems, and the long-term psychological impact of concussions. Psychological interventions, such as cognitive-behavioral techniques and mindfulness practices, were effective in reducing anxiety and enhancing resilience. Fear of re-injury and performance anxiety were significant barriers, while confidence restoration and motivation levels facilitated recovery. Social support from family, teammates, and coaches played a crucial role in alleviating psychological distress. The long-term impact included identity crises, chronic symptoms, and ongoing mental health concerns, emphasizing the need for holistic support. Conclusion: The findings underscore the importance of integrating psychological interventions in concussion recovery. Addressing fear, anxiety, and identity loss, while enhancing confidence and social support, is crucial for a successful return to play. This study highlights the necessity for comprehensive recovery protocols that consider both physical and psychological readiness. Practitioners should prioritize individualized psychological assessments and foster supportive environments to improve recovery outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an exemplary case study of an Independent Business Owner (IBO) from multiple case studies on narratives of differently abled persons. The aim of this article is to illustrate mainstreaming disability through an exemplary case of the IBO. The article is informed by the imperatives of critical theory to understand mainstreaming disability. I examine mainstreaming disability in reference to inclusive education and sustainable development via hephapreneurship (later described in the text). The purposively selected sample of the study was (n = 18) participants. The argument forwarded suggests hephapreneurship as one way of mainstreaming disability. Data were collected through interviews, observations and informal conversations. Results indicate the need to unlock entrepreneurial capacities of persons with disabilities such that they may contribute to sustainable development. The study concludes by showing that the participation of independent business owners in sustainable development activities could serve as an anchor for mainstreaming disability beyond 2015.

The purpose of this study is to inform global citizenship practice as a higher education agenda by comparing the retrospective experiences of a range of community engagement partners and including often silent voices of non-researcher partners. Higher education-community engagement aims to contribute to social justice as it constructs and transfers new knowledge from the perspectives of a wide range of community engagement partners. This qualitative secondary analysis study was framed theoretically by the transformative-emancipatory paradigm. Existing case data, generated on retrospective experiences of community engagement partners in a long-term community engagement partnership, were conveniently sampled to analyse and compare a range of community engagement experiences ("parents" of student clients (n = 12: females 10, males 2), "teachers" from the partner rural school (n = 18: females 12, males 6), "student-educational psychology clients" (n = 31: females 14, males 17), Academic Service-Learning ("ASL") "students" (n = 20: females 17, males 3) and "researchers" (n = 12: females 11, males 1). Following thematic in-case and cross-case analysis, it emerged that all higher education-community engagement partners experienced that socio-economic challenges (defined as rural school adversities, include financial, geographic and social challenges) are addressed when an higher education-community engagement partnership exists, but that particular operational challenges (communication barriers, time constraints, workload and unclear scope, inconsistent feedback, as well as conflicting expectations) hamper higher education-community engagement partnership. A significant insight from this study is that a range of community engagement partners experience similar challenges when a university and rural school partner. All community engagement partners experienced that higher education-community engagement is challenged by the structural disparity between the rural context and operational miscommunication.

This PRISMA scoping review identifies the emerging evidence on the relationship between the philosophy of ubuntu and the principles of inclusive education. The searches in this scoping review were conducted in AERD, Scopus, BASE EBSCO Host and Google Scholar to find the relationship between the philosophy of ubuntu as an African traditional knowledge system and the principles of inclusive education. Seven of the studies were included from a total of 134 articles published in Africa from January 2021 to December 2022 in English. Articles were excluded from review if they were published outside Africa, not in English, and from the period before January 2021. Data were thematically analysed following the thematic approach by Braun and Clarke (2021). Results organised by themes indicate that there is a very strong relationship between the philosophy of ubuntu and the principles of inclusive education. The thematic data analysis in this study indicated that both the philosophy of ubuntu and the principles of inclusive education are based on 1) equality, 2) unconditional acceptance, 3) enabling learning environment, and 4) respect for human diversity. The implication of this study is the recognition and adoption of the philosophy of ubuntu at inclusive education systems in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychological career assessment in South Africa is intrinsically laden with harmful beneficence that promotes social injustice and inequity. This article emerged from a finding of a desktop study that pointed toward harmful beneficence of career assessment as part of psychological assessment in South Africa. The article highlights that while psychological career assessments may appear as benevolent and protective of society, they also may promote inequity and injustice resulting in harmful beneficence. The article is a narrative review of selected literature not aiming at the empirical, generalizable results. The article attempts to answer the question: How can a narrative review of harmful beneficence of psychological career assessment tools help in bridging the gap between the Afro-Euro-Western worldviews for social justice and equity? The aim of the article is to increase understanding about bridging the gap of the AfroEuro-Western worldviews through suggesting ways in which harmful beneficence reduces and accommodates less resourced populations to access and benefit from psychological career assessment. Psychological career assessment is inaccessible to the marginalized of most South African populations. Methods: A narrative review followed the five steps by Arksey and O’Malley’s framework to guide the study. Harmful benevolence policy position emerged as one of the five themes and a serious gap in psychological career assessment. Results: This study only focuses on harmful benevolence of psychological career assessment tools from the lens of social injustice and inequity. Lack of non-psychological (culture-language sensitive) testing instruments, and the highly commercialized testing context continue to create a gap in the South African psychological testing context. The article concludes that expansion of participation in psychological career assessment may promote inclusive practices likely to address issues of social justice and equity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim/Purpose This article demonstrates how experiences of a supervisee can become foundational in carving a career identity of PhD supervisors. The purpose of the article is to analyze how South African emerging supervisors could carve a career identity as PhD supervisors. Background This article uses an autoethnographic case study to address the problem of experiences of poverty, marginalization and scarcity towards resilience in academia. Methodology The article followed a qualitative methodology anchored on the constructivistinterpretive paradigm. The design of the study was a single ethnographic case study. This was an autoethnographic non-traditional inquiry of the author's PhD journey. For a period of six years, the author used autoethnography to inquire about personal experience of PhD supervision. Central to the methods used were reflexive critical and narrative analysis, and observation as action research of the culture of PhD supervision. Contribution This article contributes insight into PhD supervision and carving a career by using real time experiences of a PhD Supervision journey as a student, as a supervisor and trainee in a formalized supervision program. Findings The article's major actual findings were: Need for training in philosophy and educational research and in-service PhD supervision training. Recommendations for Practitioners The study indicates that universities could examine whether they should intensify their efforts to train PhD supervisors towards developing supervision as a career. Emerging supervisors could be encouraged to consider engaging in training and carving careers out of PhD supervision. Recommendations for Researchers Autoethnographic research could be intensified as it is positioned to provide first-hand information and provide dialogic spaces for silenced voices in less transformed universities. Impact on Society PhD supervision is recommended to be geared towards developing homegrown models and theories for resolving teaching and learning problems as well as making in-roads into socio-economic development. Future Research This study demonstrates the usefulness of individual experiences in selecting benchmarks for context appropriate models. The study suggests that future research could rely more on qualitative methods in addition to the widely used quantitative ones. A mixed methods approach seems to be a promising direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Neurodiverse students frequently encounter distinct challenges that can adversely affect their mental well-being. This research aimed to investigate emotional distress, depression, and anxiety among neurodiverse students, examine the interrelationships among these factors, and assess the impact of participant characteristics., Aim: To address the problem of lack of data pointed out in the neurodiversity research in Nigeria, this study aims to examine the emotional distress, depression, and anxiety in neurodiverse students., Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out involving 200 neurodiverse students in Nigeria. Participants filled out self-report questionnaires that measured emotional distress (Brief Emotional Distress Scale for Youth), depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale Revised), and anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, Bayesian Mann-Whitney U tests, two-way ANOVAs, and Kruskal-Wallis tests., Results: Anxiety was found to have the highest prevalence (mean = 68.8), followed by depression (mean = 34.2) and emotional distress (mean = 26.3). Significant positive correlations were identified among all three mental health factors, with the strongest correlation observed between depression and anxiety (rho = 0.492, P < 0.001). Moderate evidence indicated gender differences in emotional distress (BF 10 = 2.448). The interaction between educational environment and diagnosis had a significant effect on emotional distress ( F = 3.106, P = 0.017). Kruskal-Wallis tests indicated significant variations in anxiety levels across different educational settings ( P = 0.002), although post-hoc comparisons did not reveal significant differences among specific settings., Conclusion: This research emphasizes the prevalence of mental health challenges among neurodiverse students, particularly concerning anxiety. The intricate relationships among emotional distress, depression, and anxiety highlight the necessity for thorough mental health support. The impact of educational settings and diagnoses on mental health outcomes stresses the importance of customized interventions. These findings are significant for educators, mental health professionals, and policymakers in formulating targeted support strategies for neurodiverse students., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article., (©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)