ETH306W/103/3/2012
Tutorial letter 103/3/2012
Inclusive Education
ETH306W
Semester 1 and 2
Department of Teacher Education
, Dear Student
This tutorial letter contains the following information:
1 General guidelines HIV/AIDS in our schools
2 Guidelines for examination preparation
1 HIV/AIDS in South Africa
1.1 Background
In your Study guide for Inclusive Education B there is no reference to HIV/AIDS. I’m sending you
the following information because learners with HIV/AIDS are also regarded as learners with
special needs in education system. The epidemic proportion into which AIDS/HIV is growing in
South Africa and in other countries, does not involve only the learners with HIV/AIDS but also their
families, friends, classmates and the whole education system. More information on HIV/AIDS is
not enough anymore because attention should be urgently paid to the emotional and financial
implications which HIV/AIDS has on the school system and the whole community.
Research indicates that South Africa has the fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in the world. It is
estimated that over four million people of South Africa’s population of 40.6 million are HIV positive.
About half of South Africa’s population are children and it is probable that 50-65% of South African
15-year-olds will die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses within the next thirty years. It is estimated that
by 2005 nearly one million children will have lost one or both parents and by 2015 ten percent of
the South African population - about 3.6 to 4.8 million children - will be orphans. It is therefore
clear that the traditional ways of childcare will be under pressure to accommodate large numbers
of children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
According to Coombe (2000, 3) the South African Governments new strategy concerning
HIV/AIDS is up to now strictly focussed on the predisposing factors of HIV/AIDS, preventing or
finding a cure and monitoring health interventions. It does not address the social, development,
human rights, economic and infrastructural consequences of the epidemic for vital sectors such as
labour, education, agriculture, the public service of the public sector. The Government has
therefore come under pressure to consider how HIV/AIDS will influence the country’s future.
2
Tutorial letter 103/3/2012
Inclusive Education
ETH306W
Semester 1 and 2
Department of Teacher Education
, Dear Student
This tutorial letter contains the following information:
1 General guidelines HIV/AIDS in our schools
2 Guidelines for examination preparation
1 HIV/AIDS in South Africa
1.1 Background
In your Study guide for Inclusive Education B there is no reference to HIV/AIDS. I’m sending you
the following information because learners with HIV/AIDS are also regarded as learners with
special needs in education system. The epidemic proportion into which AIDS/HIV is growing in
South Africa and in other countries, does not involve only the learners with HIV/AIDS but also their
families, friends, classmates and the whole education system. More information on HIV/AIDS is
not enough anymore because attention should be urgently paid to the emotional and financial
implications which HIV/AIDS has on the school system and the whole community.
Research indicates that South Africa has the fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in the world. It is
estimated that over four million people of South Africa’s population of 40.6 million are HIV positive.
About half of South Africa’s population are children and it is probable that 50-65% of South African
15-year-olds will die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses within the next thirty years. It is estimated that
by 2005 nearly one million children will have lost one or both parents and by 2015 ten percent of
the South African population - about 3.6 to 4.8 million children - will be orphans. It is therefore
clear that the traditional ways of childcare will be under pressure to accommodate large numbers
of children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
According to Coombe (2000, 3) the South African Governments new strategy concerning
HIV/AIDS is up to now strictly focussed on the predisposing factors of HIV/AIDS, preventing or
finding a cure and monitoring health interventions. It does not address the social, development,
human rights, economic and infrastructural consequences of the epidemic for vital sectors such as
labour, education, agriculture, the public service of the public sector. The Government has
therefore come under pressure to consider how HIV/AIDS will influence the country’s future.
2
