A communitarian theory of the education rights of students with disabilities

There is a lack of writing on the issue of the education rights of people with disabilities by authors of any theoretical persuasion. While the deficiency of theory may be explained by a variety of historical, philosophical and practical considerations, it is a deficiency which must be addressed. Otherwise, any statement of rights rings out as hollow rhetoric unsupported by sound reason and moral rectitude. This paper attempts to address this deficiency in education rights theory by postulating a communitarian theory of the education rights of people with disabilities. The theory is developed from communitarian writings on the role of education in democratic society. The communitarian school, like the community within which it nests, is inclusive. Schools both reflect and model the shape of communitarian society and have primary responsibility for teaching the knowledge and virtues which will allow citizens to belong to and function within society. Communitarians emphasise responsibilities, however, as the corollary of rights and require the individual good to yield to community good when the hard cases arise. The article not only explains the basis of the right to an inclusive education, therefore, but also engages with the difficult issue of when such a right may not be enforceable.

Reasonable adjustment and the assessment of students with disabilities: Australian legal issues and trends

Student assessment is particularly important, and particularly controversial, because it is the means by which student achievement is determined. Reasonable adjustment to student assessment is of equal importance as the means of ensuring the mitigation, or even elimination, of disability related barriers to the demonstration of student achievement. The significance of reasonable adjustment is obvious in the later years of secondary school, and in the tertiary sector, because failure to adjust assessment may be asserted as the reason a student did not achieve as well as anticipated or as the reason a student was excluded from a course and, as a result, from future study and employment opportunities. Even in the early years of schooling, however, assessment and its management are a critical issue for staff and students, especially in an education system like Australia’s with an ever increasing emphasis on national benchmarks testing. This paper will explain the legislation which underpins the right to reasonable adjustment in education in Australian schools. It will give examples of the kinds of adjustment which may be made to promote equality of opportunity in the area of assessment. It will also consider some of the controversies which have confronted, or which, it may be speculated, are likely to confront Australian education institutions as they work towards compliance with reasonable adjustment laws.

The assessment of students with disabilities : the Australian law as to reasonable adjustment and academic integrity

This paper explains the legislation which underpins the right to reasonable adjustment in education for students with disabilities in Australian schools. It gives examples of the kinds of adjustment which may be made to promote equality of opportunity in the area of assessment. It also considers how the law has constructed the border between reasonable adjustment and academic integrity.

Development of a new index of balance in adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Purposes: The first objective was to propose a new model representing the balance level of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) using Principal Components Analysis (PCA); and the second objective was to use the results from the PCA recorded by regression method to construct and validate summative scales of the standardized values of the index, which may be useful to facilitate a balance assessment in adults with IDD. Methods: A total of 801 individuals with IDD (509 males) mean 33.1±8.5 years old, were recruited from Special Olympic Games in Spain 2009 to 2012. The participants performed the following tests: the timed-stand test, the single leg stance test with open and closed eyes, the Functional Reach Test, the Expanded Timed-Get-up-and-Go Test. Data was analyzed using principal components analysis (PCA) with Oblimin rotation and Kaiser normalization. We examined the construct validity of our proposed two-factor model underlying balance for adults with IDD. The scores from PCA were recorded by regression method and were standardized. Results: The Component Plot and Rotated Space indicated that a two-factor solution (Dynamic and Static Balance components) was optimal. The PCA with direct Oblimin rotation revealed a satisfactory percentage of total variance explained by the two factors: 51.6 and 21.4%, respectively. The median score standardized for component dynamic and static of the balance index for adults with IDD is shown how references values. Conclusions: Our study may lead to improvements in the understanding and assessment of balance in adults with IDD. First, it confirms that a two-factor model may underlie the balance construct, and second, it provides an index that may be useful for identifying the balance level for adults with IDD.

University students with disabilities in Universities. A study of their inclusion

Access to higher education has increased among students with disabilities, and universities are adopting different alternatives which must be assessed. The purpose of this study was to identify the situation of a sample of students with disabilities (n=91) who attend a university in Spain, through the design and validation of the “CUNIDIS-d” scale, with satisfactory psychometric properties. The results show the importance of making reasoned curriculum adaptations, adapting teacher training, improving accessibility and involving all the university community. Different proposals were provided which support the social dimension of the EHEA.

Predictors of attitudes toward inclusion of students with special educational needs in future education professionals

One of the main pillars in the development of inclusive schools is the initial teacher training. Before determining if it is necessary to make changes (and of what type) in training programs or curriculum guides related to the attention to diversity and inclusive education, the attitudes of future education professionals in this area should be analyzed. This includes the identification of the relevant predictors of inclusive attitudes. The research reported in this article pursued this objective, doing so with a quantitative survey methodology based on the use of cross-sectional structured data collection and statistical analyses related to the quality of the attitude questionnaire (factor analysis and Cronbach's alpha), descriptive statistics, correlations, hypothesis tests for difference of means, and regression analysis in order to predict attitudes towards inclusion in education. Firstly, the results show that the participants held very positive attitudes toward the inclusion of students with special educational needs. Particularly, older respondents, those with a longer training and, to a lesser extent, women and those who had been in touch with disabled people stood out within this attitude. Secondly, it is evidenced that self-transcendence values ​and, more weakly, contact, function as robust predictors of attitudes of future practitioners towards the inclusion of students with special needs. Some applications for the initial professionalization of educators are suggested in the discussion.

Students with disabilities in a Chilean university

The purpose of this article is to give a report about a research related with the conditions of inclusion of students with disability in a Chilean university. This research is a quantitative, descriptive and cross-sectional study. To collect the data required, a survey was developed, which was applied to 38 students with disability. The main results reveal a high retention rate of students, who exhibit a positive perception of their inclusion in their university life and also a high level of satisfaction with most of the services provided. Seven out of ten students surveyed recognize having received some sort of education care from their programs to pursue their studies. However, there still exists a lack of connection between the current initiatives developed at the university to support the enrollment and permanence of students. Added to this fact, there is a lack of protocols and training for teachers and staff. In this study it is proposed that the university must establish a management system that defines objectives, strategies and actions that contribute to improve inclusion of people with disabilities.

Bridging the gap between post-secondary students with disabilities and faculty members with their perceptions of access and accommodation

The purpose of this study was to identify factors related to successful university course completion for students with disAbilities including the knowledge that faculty members and students with disAbilities have about accommodation issues; the accommodations that students with disAbilities and faculty use and find effective in the university setting; faculty members' perceptions of and attitudes toward students with disAbilities; and the attitudes that students with disAbilities have toward faculty. Fiftyseven participants were involved in the research, eight students with disabilities and forty-nine faculty members. The main objective of the research was to describe how the skills, knowledge, and attitudes of students and faculty members, and organizational supports interact to support students' academic success. The utilization and effectiveness of accommodations to overcome barriers associated with disAbility in a post-secondary setting are described in relation to students' and faculty members' perceptions of academic success.

Social skills of children with different disabilities: Assessment and implications for interventions

This study characterizes the differences and similarities in the repertoire of social skills of children from 12 different categories of special educational needs: autism, hearing impairment, mild intellectual disabilities, moderate intellectual disabilities, visual impairment, phonological disorder, learning disabilities, giftedness and talent, externalizing behavior problems, internalizing behavior problems, internalizing and externalizing behavior problems and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Teachers of 120 students in regular and special schools, aged between 6 and 14 years old, from four Brazilian states, responded to the Social Skills Rating System. Children with ADHD, autism, internalizing and externalizing behavior problems and externalizing behavior problems presented comparatively lower frequency of social skills. The intervention needs of each evaluated category are discussed.

Simple strategies that work! : helpful hints for all educators of students with Asperger syndrome, high-functioning autism, and relates disabilities.

Recurso que ofrece enfoques y estrategias que los profesores pueden utilizar para ayudar a sus estudiantes con síndrome de Asperger y autismo en el camino hacia el éxito. Analiza los problemas que pueden surgir en el aula de inclusión y cómo los educadores pueden hacer adaptaciones para atender a sus alumnos con autismo sin interferir en las rutinas del aula estándar. Incluye información sobre lo que puede causar ansiedad en el estudiante con estas discapacidades, los posibles incrementos en los problemas de comportamiento, y lo que el profesor puede hacer para ayudar. Cuenta con diez estrategias acompañadas de ejemplos y razones por las que son importantes usarlas.

La inclusión social y laboral de las personas con discapacidad intelectual mediante los programas de empleo con apoyo : un reto para la Orientación. 'Social and labour inclusion of people with intellectual disability through supported employment programs : a challenge for guidance'.

Resumen tomado de la publicación. Con el apoyo económico del departamento MIDE de la UNED

Some indicators of satisfaction with the support system for students with disabilities in Secondary Education in Croatia

Resumen basado en el de la publicaci??n