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Social, Emotional, and Academic Functioning of Children with SEN Integrated in Hong Kong Primary Schools

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Abstract

A core goal of inclusive education worldwide is to maximize the learning potential of students with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream educational settings. However, little research attention has been paid to SEN children’s social and emotional gains from inclusive education compared to their academic performance. This study included social, emotional, and academic variables in a single research design, not only to test their relationships but also to explore the predictive roles of social and emotional factors in academic performance for SEN students. Participants were 515 SEN students in grades 1–6 in mainstream primary schools in Hong Kong. The results showed that the social and emotional competences of children with SEN were significant predictors of their academic performance (p < .001), with emotional competence having the larger impact. Although SEN students’ relationships with peers and teachers were not found to be direct significant predictors of academic performance as reported in previous studies; they positively and significantly predicted emotional and social competences of SEN students (p < .001). Implications for establishing a caring campus, as well as developing educational interventions which will increase SEN students’ positive emotional experiences and foster and maintain their adaptive social and emotional competences are discussed.

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Notes

  1. So far, nine types of disabilities have been identified by Hong Kong schools; ADHD, Communication Difficulties (CD), Hearing Impairment (HI), Visual Impairment (VI), Physical Disabilities (PD), Intellectual Disabilities (ID), Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties (EBD), ASD, and Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) (Hong Kong Education Department, 2002). This study included children with all these commonly reported types of disabilities in order to present a broad picture of the influence of their social and emotional characteristics on academic performance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Education (CSENIE), The Hong Kong Institute of Education, D1-G/F-05, 10 Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong

    Lan Yang

  2. Department of Special Education and Counseling, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong

    Kuen-fung Sin

  3. Department of Education Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Ming Lui

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  1. Lan Yang
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Yang, L., Sin, Kf. & Lui, M. Social, Emotional, and Academic Functioning of Children with SEN Integrated in Hong Kong Primary Schools. Asia-Pacific Edu Res 24, 545–555 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-014-0198-x

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