ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the impetus of guidance and counselling in empowering deaf people to make realistic hopes and aspirations for socio-economic sustainable development. The study employed the mixed approach where Becker’s Reading-Free Vocational Interest Inventory quantitatively analysed the consistency in vocational choices of the 50 purposively selected deaf students. A cross-tabulation of class subjects and vocational choices revealed participants’ vocational choices. Also, semi-structured in-depth interviews were administered with six experienced teachers selected from two Harare High Schools. The qualitative narrative experiences were thematically analysed to give insights and voice to the phenomena under study. The cross-tabulation findings were compared and contrasted with emerging patterns and themes from teachers’ voices to augment the findings. Deaf students’ responses reflect a high mismatch between pursued subjects and desired vocational interests. The findings further revealed that district career guidance days were of less help in informing deaf students to have realistic hopes and aspirations. Also, teachers’ voices proposed the need for robust and fully funded policies, which mandate positions of career guidance counsellors in secondary schools.