Research evidence suggests that disabled students are experiencing forms of exclusion from and within schools, however little is known of the nature of this phenomenon. This study investigated the nature of school exclusion in relation to disabled students. It sought to uncover the factors that exclude disabled students from and within schools, and make recommendations to reduce and eliminate these factors. Using a grounded theory methodology, this research investigated the nature of school exclusion. It explored parents of disabled student’s views about their children’s experiences of school exclusion both from school, and within school. The themes identified by parents were then further investigated with school principals, teachers, teacher aides and school students. This study revealed that disabled students are being excluded from and within school in New Zealand in a number of ways. These include being denied enrolment and/or fulltime attendance at school; being denied access to, and participation within the curriculum; being bullied; inappropriate teacher and/or principal beliefs and practices in relation to funding; a lack of caring, valuing and responsibility by school staff; limited teacher knowledge and understanding; poor relationships between parents and school staff; and exclusionary beliefs and practices in relation to teacher aides. Based on the findings of the study, four propositions were put forward to explain why disabled students are being excluded from and within school. These are that disabled students are considered to be less entitled to human rights than non-disabled students; that there is a lack of school accountability in relation to legal and human rights obligations to disabled students; that inclusive education is predicated on issues of funding and resourcing; and that there is prejudice towards disabled students. Based on the findings of how and why disabled students are excluded from and within school, prompts for classroom teachers and school principals/senior management staff were developed in seven areas shown to be important to this phenomenon. These areas are access, accountability, attitudes, knowledge, responsibility, and funding and resourcing. The prompts are intended to help guide attention and discussion to the issues that are important if exclusion is to be reduced and eliminated. As well as this, recommendations are made for government and government agencies outlining ways that they can contribute to the reduction and elimination of school exclusion for disabled students.

Since the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975, a number of common problems have emerged. Primarily they involve the difficulties both experienced and created by public schools attempting to fulfill the federal mandate to provide students with disabilities an appropriate public education. The purpose of this study is to examine the process of inclusion as implemented by teachers of students with learning disabilities. This study is a qualitative research project. A grounded theory approach, used to derive constructs and laws directly from the immediate data collected, rather than from prior research and theory was utilized. Three regular classroom teachers were selected for detailed investigation. The investigation focused on the usability of the Individualized Education Plans (IEP) and how well the regular education teacher implemented the interventions and accommodations specified in the IEP for students with learning disabilities in their class. To enhance the validity and generalizability of the findings, several methods of data collection were used: researching student files, interviews and observations. Upon analysis of the data, various themes emerged. The themes were grouped into three areas of focus: general classroom teachers, the IEP, and administrative focus. The data obtained in this study are characteristic of previous research findings; teachers typically provide whole-class, undifferentiated instruction and offer minimal adaptations for students with learning disabilities, the IEPs consistently lack usability and the language used in the IEP is confusing. This study indicates that focusing on the IEP itself can make a significant impact. By specifically defining terms used in the IEP and by soliciting the input from previous teachers to document specific teaching strategies for a student with a learning disability the IEP will evolve into a tool to be used by subsequent teachers. It is not a sufficient strategy simply to return students with disabilities to unchanged mainstream programs. Teacher education programs need to focus on the increasing diversity of the student population and emphasize techniques in modifying and differentiating curriculum. The regular school programs need to be re-created so that they can meet more effectively the diverse and individual needs of all students. / Graduation date: 2002

Was bedeutet Barrierefreiheit im Internet? Welche Elemente auf einer Website werden zur Barriere für Menschen mit Sehbehinderungen oder Blindheit? Was sind Barrieren für gehörlose Menschen und was sind Barrieren für körperlich eingeschränkte Menschen? Und wie können diese Barrieren erkannt und abgebaut werden? Welche Lösungsmöglichkeiten gibt es und mit welchem Aufwand sind diese umzusetzen? Die Arbeit zeigt am Beispiel einer Plattform für Studierende mit Behinderungen an der TU Dresden Barrieren im täglichen Umgang mit elektronischen Dienstleistungen für betroffene Nutzer auf. Dafür wird die Anwendung verschiedener anerkannter Evaluationsmethoden am Praxisobjekt demonstriert und mit echten Nutzer-Interviews ergänzt. Auf der Grundlage der erhobenen Daten wird das der Plattform zugrundeliegende Kontextszenario qualifiziert und erweitert und ein Redesign durchgeführt. Die erfolgreiche Anwendung und Umsetzung der Richtlinien für Barrierefreiheit und Gebrauchstauglichkeit wird anschließend dokumentiert und demonstriert.

Although higher education typically strengthens people with disabilities' chances to be in a competitive job market as a viable leverage to break away from poverty (Council of Canadians with Disabilities, 2014), the contemporary marketization of higher education within the era of neoliberalism has made degrees and diplomas increasingly unaffordable. The federal government responded to this predicament by increasing the Canada Social Transfer (CST) to offer up-front targeted funding to students with disabilities in 2008 (Kirby, 2011). However, virtually no literature has acknowledged whether financial grants meaningfully provide student with disabilities with an equitable opportunity to engage in post-secondary education (PSE). Using a critical discourse analysis (CDA) on government online materials that address federal and provincial disability grants for post-secondary students with disabilities in Alberta and Ontario, this thesis reveals how the neoliberal rhetoric of personal responsibility colonizes government disability grants and leaves students with "more responsibility" and "less control" over their finances in an already disabling world. / October 2015

M. Tech. Professional practice in Information Technology / Students with disabilities in South African higher institutions are facing debilitating quandaries, including physical, emotional and physiological degradation. As a result, empowering students with disabilities in South Africa to realize their self-esteem, as well as to enhance their skills and employability, represents an interesting and challenging task to South African government, industry, interest groups and individuals worldwide. The purpose of this research was to determine the impact of Assistive Technology on disabilities students studying at South African Higher Institutions, from a student's perspective.

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

People with disabilities including people with visual impairments experienced severe forms of discrimination, isolation and separation. They were perceived as people with deficits and in need of help. They were separated from the. society as they were considered to be inadequate people. The discriminative practices against people with disabilities and the doctrines of apartheid that contributed to discrimination and separation on racial differences resulted in black people with disabilities being doubly handicapped. The discrimination against people with disabilities is largely associated with the adherence to the medical model and deficit theory to disability. However the current trends which support the Social Rights model to disability which is consistent with the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and its Bill of Rights (Constitutional Court, 1996), adopts an inclusive approach and promotes equal rights and equal opportunity for all people, including people with disabilities. This commits the University to enrolling students with disabilities and providing equal education opportunities for them The late commitment, which was guided by the Constitution (Constitutional Court, 1996), resulted in the lack of resources. Lack of support services and stereotypical attitudes contributed to academic barriers to learning by students with visual impairment and students with disabilities. This study explores the barriers encountered by students with visual impairments studying at the University of Natal. A qualitative case study approach was adopted in this study, whereby eight subjects who were visually impaired at the University of Natal were interviewed using a semi structured questionnaire, exploring the barriers they encountered with their academic studies. The findings reveal that there are numerous barriers which students with visual impairments encountered with their studies at the University of Natal. However, acknowledgement is made on the commitment by the University to address these special needs of students with visual impairments. Recommendations are made to address the academic barriers encountered by visually impaired students. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

Research studies have indicated that people with disabilities in South Africa and across the world have difficulties in securing employment. The medical approach towards disability contributes to the negative attitudes, ignorance and stereotypes employers have about people with disabilities. The aim of the study was to explore the employment experiences of students with disabilities who have studied at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The lack of previous research on this issue at UKZN motivated the researcher to undertake this research. Furthermore, since the researcher is a disability officer at UKZN, a number of students with disabilities had raised their employment frustrations with her which gave further motivation to investigate the underlying reasons. A qualitative research method was used to undertake this study. The sample used was an availability sample, comprising 21 interview subjects with disabilities who had graduated from UKZN in the period 2001-2006. An ecosystem perspective was used as a framework to guide the study. The major conclusion of this study is that the majority of participants interviewed had difficulties in securing employment. Employers were reluctant to employ them, apparently fearing that they would not be able to cope on the job and because there might be additional costs incurred if they were employed. Visually disabled study participants also experienced difficulty accessing job advertisements. Inaccessibility of transport to access interviews and workplaces were a further obstacle for participants. The study also discovered that the limited number of subjects offered at high school impacted on the choice of tertiary courses participants wanted to take at the university as a result this caused dissatisfaction with degrees they obtained. The findings in this study are consistent with a number of similar studies which revealed that people with disabilities are confronted with challenges in obtaining work. Regardless of established policies and programmes, unemployment among people with disabilities still persists. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Students with visual impairments are often confronted with major challenges at tertiary institutions. This dissertation investigated how students with visual impairments interact in an educational environment that is not designed with their needs in mind. This study further highlighted some of the challenges faced by students with visual impairments at the University of Kwazulu-Natal (Westville Campus) from adequately achieving their academic goals. It also afforded the students with visual impairments an opportunity to become involved in the process of evaluating, planning and bringing about changes in the services that directly affected them. Further it is the intention that the findings of this study will increase the understanding of the university community of the needs of students with visual impairments. This study was exploratory in design as the purpose was to collect as much data as possible in this area of study. A qualitative method using the non probability sampling method was used. This method allowed for the use of the researcher's judgement in identifying and selecting the respondents for the sample group. The sample consisted of 16 students with visual impairments registered at the Westville Campus during the period 2003-2004. To ensure that the respondents understood the procedure of the investigation, the contents of the consent form was made available in alternate format. This is in keeping with the principles of consultation, negotiation, agreement and co- ownership of the research study. In the analysis of this study the information was gathered primarily from an in-depth interview with a schedule. The findings indicated some of the major challenges experienced by students with visual impairments. These were primarily access to academic material, limited human and technological resources, implementation of accommodations during examinations and negative attitude of some members of staff. Recommendations to meet the students' needs focused on university wide education and awareness programmes. Hence, faculties will have to play an important role in facilitating the entry and success of students with visual impairments by making a paradigm shift from the medical/individual explanation of visual disabilities to understanding systemic deficiencies located within the barriers to teaching, learning and support. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

This research study was designed to determine the attitudes, and perceptions of Indiana high school principals concerning implementation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The sample consisted of Indiana high school principals who held membership in the Indiana Association of School Principals. There were 222 high school principals who were requested to complete an on-line survey; 105 principals responded, which generated a response rate of 47 %.The Section 504 on-line survey was modified from an instrument in California in which the researcher studied the attitudes and perceptions of elementary school administrators (Williams, 2003).The data were analyzed, depending upon the variable, with a standard analysis of variance (ANOVA) or t-test design. Demographical data and survey responses were subjected to statistical analyses based upon the research hypothesis being examined. Demographical data collected from high school principals were degree earned, type of license, years of experience, gender, size of the school, whether the principal was responsible for implementing Section 504 plans, and if the principal categorized his school as rural, suburban, or urban.Results showed significance for high school size and whether the high school principal was responsible for implementing Section 504 plans. As high schools increased in the number of students, there was a need for principals to have additional training in implementing Section 504 plans. Another significant finding was that principals believe students with disabilities benefit educationally from having Section 504 plans at minimalcosts to their school corporations. However, principals also have a slightly negative attitude towards implementing Section 504 plans. Possible reasons for these results were discussed and a need for further research was offered. / Department of Educational Leadership