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The primary aim of the study is to investigate the effectiveness of professional teacher development for a group of teachers at full-service schools (FSSs), who are the implementers of inclusive education according to Education White Paper 6, the inclusive education policy in South Africa. The researcher used ontological and epistemological assumptions, as well as specific social research methodologies. This created a scientific grounding for the findings of the study. The methodology included a qualitative research approach and research design. Focus group interviews and observation were used for data collection. In this study purposive sampling was used. The participants in this study were chosen because of their teaching experience at full-service schools; sampling was therefore done with a purpose. Phenomenology is used in the study to decide what happens in the lived experiences of the focus group interviewees, who were teachers at full-service schools. This helped the researcher to better understand the needs and problems of the participants. During qualitative data analysis the information was organised, arranged and prepared systematically and classified into themes and categories and then coding followed. The analysis showed that in the absence of an appropriate model for professional teacher development for FSSs, the teachers at the schools were not in a position to implement inclusive education adequately. The researcher proposes a framework that is based on the ecological systems theory of Bronfenbrenner, taking the intervention collaborative framework designed by the researcher based on findings and recommendations into consideration. The collaboration among stakeholders in the different levels would encourage teamwork in the development of the FSS teacher. The full-service school teacher is influenced by various elements, the learner with diverse needs in the classroom, members of the management team, the school-based support team and colleagues at sch

English: Worldwide, governments and other interested parties in education advocate quality education as well as education for all. This implies that teaching cannot merely be seen as the teaching of subject content and the mastering of knowledge on a cognitive level. Other aspects, such as skills, values, attitudes, the diversity of learners, differentiation and inclusive teaching methods are also being emphasised. This can be seen in the changes that occurred in the South African education system during the last eleven years. The above mentioned implies that teachers need to apply inclusive teaching methods, which includes adaptive assessment. This research is a descriptive qualitative and quantitative study with the aim to determine to what extent adaptive and alternative methods of assessment are being used by teachers to accommodate learners with barriers to learning and development. The influences on, shortcomings and necessity of adaptive and alternative assessment methods, have also been investigated. In order to achieve the goal of the study, a literature overview and empirical research have been conducted. The literature overview focuses on assessment in an outcomes based/inclusive context. The purpose of the literature is twofold: 1) to provide the necessary background knowledge regarding the necessity of the use of adaptive and alternative assessment methods; and 2) to give suggested guidelines to teachers in the implementation of adaptive assessment methods in order to accommodate learners with barriers to learning and development. In order to successfully implement these methods of assessment, it is essential that teachers have knowledge of outcomes based assessment, multilevel teaching, barriers to learning and development and inclusive teaching methods, which includes adaptive assessment. The empirical research has been conducted by means of two sets of questionnaires. One set of questionnaires was given to selected primary schools in the Motheo distr, Afrikaans: Kwaliteitonderwys, asook onderwys vir almal, word regdeur die wêreld deur regerings en ander belanghebbendes in die onderwyssektor verkondig. Dit impliseer dat onderrig nie meer beskou kan word as bloot die onderrig van vakinhoud en die bemeestering van kennis op ʼn kognitiewe vlak nie. Ander aspekte soos vaardighede, waardes, gesindhede, diversiteit van leerders, differensiasie en inklusiewe onderrigmetodes word ook nou benadruk. Dit kan waargeneem word in die veranderings wat die afgelope elf jaar in die Suid- Afrikaanse onderwysstelsel plaasgevind het. Bogenoemde impliseer dus ook dat onderwysers inklusiewe onderrigmetodes, wat aangepaste assessering insluit, moet toepas. Hierdie navorsing is ʼn beskrywende kwalitatiewe en kwantitatiewe studie met die doel om te bepaal in watter mate aangepaste en alternatiewe assesseringsmetodes deur onderwysers gebruik word om leerders met hindernisse tot leer te akkommodeer. Die invloede op, tekortkominge en noodsaaklikheid van aangepaste en alternatiewe assesseringsmetodes is ook ondersoek. Ten einde die doel van die studie te bereik, is daar van ʼn literatuuroorsig en ʼn empiriese navorsing gebruik gemaak. Die literatuuroorsig fokus op assessering in ʼn uitkomsgebaseerde/inklusiewe konteks asook aangepaste assessering. Die doel van die literatuuroorsig is tweërlei van aard: 1) om die nodige agtergrondkennis te verskaf rakende die noodsaaklikheid van die gebruik van aangepaste en alternatiewe assesseringsmetodes; en 2) om voorgestelde riglyne aan onderwysers te gee met die implementering van aangepaste assesseringsmetodes om sodoende leerders met hindernisse tot leer en ontwikkeling te akkommodeer. Ten einde hierdie assesseringsmetodes suksesvol toe te pas, is dit essensieel dat onderwysers kennis dra van uitkomsgebaseerde assessering, multivlak-onderrig, hindernisse tot leer en ontwikkeling en inklusiewe onderrigmetodes, wat alternatiewe en aangepaste assessering insluit. Die empiriese navorsing is deur middel van twee