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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Students with disabilities in higher education call for personal empowerment, equitable inclusive systems and individualized accommodations
AU - Bartolo, Paul
AU - Borg, Michelle
AU - Camilleri, Liberato
AU - Callus, Anne-Marie
AU - De Gaetano, Alistair
AU - Mangiafico, Marchita
AU - Mazzacano D'amato, Edward
AU - Sammut, Carmen
AU - Vincent, Jonathan
PY - 2025/2/3
Y1 - 2025/2/3
N2 - An increasing number of students with disability are attending higher education across the world. However, research shows that they still encounter an ableist system of teaching and learning that hinders their equitable participation. This study focuses on the student experience at one middle-sized university – the University of Malta - which has been developing accommodations for students with disability over the past three decades. The study applied a framework for understanding the aspirations and needs of students with disability in higher education that was developed through a systematic scoping review of recent research (Bartolo et al., 2023) comprising three dimensions: student self-identity development, universal design of higher education environments, and flexible individual accommodations. Data consisted of a quantitative survey with university students with disability as well as semi-structured interviews with autistic students. The findings provide important new insights relevant to the inclusion of students with disability in tertiary education, namely: the students’ struggle with developing a healthy self-identity, overcoming stigma, and building self-advocacy and self-management skills; a call for inclusive universal design of teaching and more understanding by lecturers; and finally a call for more tailored support for the design and implementation of accommodations involving the students themselves.
AB - An increasing number of students with disability are attending higher education across the world. However, research shows that they still encounter an ableist system of teaching and learning that hinders their equitable participation. This study focuses on the student experience at one middle-sized university – the University of Malta - which has been developing accommodations for students with disability over the past three decades. The study applied a framework for understanding the aspirations and needs of students with disability in higher education that was developed through a systematic scoping review of recent research (Bartolo et al., 2023) comprising three dimensions: student self-identity development, universal design of higher education environments, and flexible individual accommodations. Data consisted of a quantitative survey with university students with disability as well as semi-structured interviews with autistic students. The findings provide important new insights relevant to the inclusion of students with disability in tertiary education, namely: the students’ struggle with developing a healthy self-identity, overcoming stigma, and building self-advocacy and self-management skills; a call for inclusive universal design of teaching and more understanding by lecturers; and finally a call for more tailored support for the design and implementation of accommodations involving the students themselves.
U2 - 10.3389/feduc.2025.1432682
DO - 10.3389/feduc.2025.1432682
M3 - Journal article
VL - 1
JO - Frontiers in Education
JF - Frontiers in Education
SN - 2504-284X
IS - 1
M1 - 1432682
ER -