Introduction
In many poor communities, only a few children have access to secondary and higher education, i.e. education beyond the compulsory level, and students with disabilities are either totally excluded or face constant battles to prove their abilities.
The right to secondary and tertiary education for students with disabilities is highlighted in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 24, paragraphs 2(a), 2(b) and 5) (4). Secondary and higher education includes academic programmes and technical/vocational education. Despite difficulties and prejudice, there are now examples of students with disabilities, including intellectual impairments, engaging in higher education according to their interests and abilities.
The more disadvantaged a person is, the more they may actually need access to education beyond the basic level in order to find employment and full inclusion in society. This is because the most excluded and marginalized often need to demonstrate more skills, knowledge and qualifications than others in order to attain the same level of survival, employment and inclusion. For students with disabilities, secondary and higher education may be the most important gateway to a full and productive life.
In several countries, it is now a legal requirement for institutions to become accessible, to make “reasonable accommodations”, to offer support for learning, and to adapt the curriculum and assessment procedures to ensure that people with disabilities can access secondary and higher education.
BOX 34Rwanda
Lobbying for the right to higher education
Over a million people were murdered in the genocide in Rwanda in the 1990s. This left many orphans and huge economic and social challenges. In 1997, strenuous negotiations between the Rwanda Blind Union, Evariste Karangwa (the headteacher of Gahini secondary school) and the Ministry of Education resulted in the first visually impaired students being admitted to secondary school in Rwanda. Within the next five years, a total of 33 blind students were enrolled. A parents' fundraising committee was established to support the education of these students. This committee became an income-generation initiative, involving parliamentarians, religious leaders, local leaders, parents, teachers and students, which conducted charity walks, plays and dances and sold farm produce. Eventually funds enabled the creation of a resource room, housing for volunteer staff and a reading room.
Several years later, the students started lobbying for university admission. The pioneering headteacher, Evariste Karangwa, was now working at the Institute of Education and he was asked to lead a team of 12 educationalists and activists to promote the inclusion of these students. Local newspapers had already reported that it was now law that universities should include students with disabilities. The National Federation of the Disabled had compiled a list of over 250 students with disabilities who had qualifications but could not gain access to university.
A phased plan was produced, and over the following year, students with visual, hearing and mobility impairments were enrolled in university courses on law, languages, journalism, medical studies and education. Compulsory information and awareness-raising days were arranged for staff. A seminar was held on Braille. The Association of Disabled Students staged a play on “denial of our educational rights and its impact on our contributions to society”. The previous Minister of Education who had lobbied for inclusion attended. The whole audience was astounded at the depiction of students with disabilities working as lawyers, secretaries, computer operators and other professionals. People with disabilities in Rwanda continue to assert their permanent right to higher education.
Goal
Students with disabilities have opportunities to learn with others and gain qualifications, skills and experiences, facilitating their livelihood opportunities, empowerment, and inclusion.
The role of CBR
The role of CBR programmes in secondary and higher education is to facilitate inclusion with increased access, participation and achievement for students with disabilities, and to work with school authorities to make the environment accessible and the curriculum flexible.
Desirable outcomes
Increased enrolment, retention and completion in secondary and higher education by students with disabilities.
Students with disabilities access government grants, scholarships and other sources of funding, and parents and communities have knowledge and skills on how to access this support.
Communities support lobbying groups and campaigns for equal access to education.
Families and communities encourage their children, including children with disabilities, to pursue secondary and higher education.
Secondary and higher education programmes are accessible and inclusive in terms of environment, teaching methods, curricula, extracurricular activities (e.g. sports, recreation, music) and assessment and examination systems.
Secondary schools learn about diversity and inclusion from the experiences of people with disabilities, and develop skills needed for an inclusive society.
Specialist resources and support are used correctly to enhance the inclusion of students with disabilities.
Transitions between secondary/higher education programmes and into adult life are well supported and career guidance is accessible and inclusive.
Key concepts
Changing the system
As in the other education elements, the concept of working to change the system to fit the student is very important. However, secondary and higher education systems can be very rigid and controlled at the national government level, making it challenging for communities and CBR programmes to have any influence. The big and lasting changes that are needed cannot be achieved by CBR personnel alone, who instead need to build alliances, network and participate in lobbying to ensure benefits for individual students with disabilities. Increasingly, secondary and higher education is becoming privatized, creating an additional challenge for CBR programmes to ensure that education is accessible for students with disabilities who are poor.
The barrier of low expectations
A major barrier in further education for students with disabilities is the low and limited expectations of others in relation to their interests, abilities and ambitions. For example, CBR personnel often associate particular skills or employment activities with people with disabilities. This has been referred to by some in the CBR field as the “three Bs” – brushes, brooms and baskets – a perception that people with disabilities are only capable of making these items. So perceptions and expectations about people with disabilities need to change. Around the world, people with disabilities are today reaching the top of a very wide range of professions and gaining the highest qualifications.
BOX 35Chile
David's classmates
In Santiago, Chile, students without disabilities in some classes were overprotective of their classmates with disabilities, watching out for them and helping them with everything. Too much help for these students prevented them from developing their potential. In another class, David, a student with Down's syndrome, had classmates who were aware of his disability but did not overprotect him. When David started making progress in reading aloud, in spite of difficulties, his classmates began to demand more of him. So David loves attending school, and almost never misses a day. Three times a week, after completing the regular school day, he goes to a centre where he receives psychological support and participates in a workshop on social skills and vocational development (29).
Achievement and assessment
Achievement will have different meanings for each student, depending on his/her capabilities and potential. For example, for a student with an intellectual impairment, achievement may mean successfully developing skills for independent living, social skills and practical numeracy and literacy skills, while for others achievement may be related to academic tasks. Technical, vocational, artistic and creative skills should be valued as much as academic ability.
The rigidity and narrow focus of examination and assessment systems is often a significant barrier to the inclusion of people with disabilities in secondary and higher education. The real value of assessment is to help the student to identify their strengths and measure their own progress. A creative and flexible approach can help them to be motivated to reach their maximum potential and develop their talents and skills. CBR personnel can help keep the focus on the best interests and real capabilities of students with disabilities.
Learning at different ages
Secondary education corresponds with adolescence, a stage which is characterized by dramatic physical and emotional changes. Experiences of adolescence vary between cultures and contexts. For students with disabilities, there can be additional or different challenges during adolescence which can have a big effect on learning. CBR personnel need to be sensitive and aware of these challenges, and put students in contact with role-models and peers who also have disabilities. Higher education corresponds with a transition to adulthood. Students with disabilities may have support needs during this stage, but it is important to respect them as young adults and to encourage them to make decisions about their own learning.
Suggested activities
Involve the community
This can be challenging because often secondary and higher education facilities are a long distance from the community. CBR programmes can contribute by:
encouraging the community and school authorities to organize transport facilities – this may require requesting financial assistance from credit groups (see
Livelihood component) and practical support from self-help/self-advocacy groups;
mobilizing the community to raise finances for fees, uniforms, assistive devices and additional support, and encouraging them to recognize students with disabilities as a resource for the community;
gaining access to grants and government loans, and funding from donor agencies – often government resources remain untapped through lack of awareness and ability to access them;
facilitating lobbying and formation of advocacy groups together with the local disabled people's organizations to promote the rights of students with disabilities secondary and higher education.
BOX 36Nepal
Funding for inclusive education
To establish inclusive education in Nepal, funds were obtained to establish a resource class; buy resource materials, furniture and lodging; provide food expenses for students with disabilities; support one teacher with special education training; and support two other aides. The Special Education Council provides funds for five staff in the field. A private funding group and nongovernmental organizations sponsor the students with disabilities.
Support the family
Some families may be quite resistant to the idea of students with disabilities having access to secondary or higher education, owing to overprotection or lack of belief in their abilities, resentful siblings, and for females, lack of value placed on their education. There can be many doubts, difficulties and adjustments that families need to address. CBR personnel can educate and support families so that they offer support to students with disabilities, both during their education and in transitional periods.
BOX 37Ukraine
Involving parents
In Ukraine, parents are very involved in an inclusive secondary school for 1000 students. Their activities include clubs for parents of students with disabilities, which provide peer support for parents and produce booklets about the need for and benefit of education; a parents' day every month, which includes a drama programme; parents' meetings based in the inclusive classrooms; and team meetings, where parents meet rehabilitation professionals, school administrators and teachers to discuss the students' progress.
Help to create an inclusive learning environment
Many of the activities listed in the Primary education element are also common to secondary and higher education. There are also some specific things to consider in secondary and higher education.
The environment and location
Secondary and higher educational establishments are often bigger than primary schools and spread over large areas. Travel between classrooms can be an issue, as can accessibility within classrooms, e.g. laboratories or computer rooms. Therefore the following activities are suggested:
negotiate with school authorities to change the locations of classes, e.g. to the ground floor;
support students with disabilities in finding creative solutions to accessibility issues;
ensure girls and young women are able to access private and hygienic water and sanitation facilities.
Curriculum and teaching methods
Teachers need training and support, and an environment where they can discuss their successes and challenges about educating students with disabilities. CBR programmes need to worktogether with teachers and others in the education sector to provide advice and resource materials where possible. Some suggested activities are listed below.
Help to adapt and develop curricula to make them relevant and accessible.
Advise on classroom organization, including seating, lighting and positioning of students, and encourage group-work and team-teaching.
Help to create accessible formats and communication systems, and make sure that large-print, Braille, signboards, sign interpretation, tapes, audio facilities, scribes, and translation are available (see
Health component: Assistive devices).
Encourage flexible schedules e.g. allowing more time to complete activities, providing opportunities for learning at different times, and learning in modules, so that curricula can be completed over a longer duration.
Ensure students with disabilities are involved in discussions about their learning, support requirements and progress, including seeking and responding to their opinions about how and what they learn, and embracing the highest potential of each student through provision of counselling and careers advice.
Examination and assessment
Examination and assessment systems can be made more flexible and adapted to meet the needs of all students.
BOX 38Nepal
Ensuring flexible examination systems
A secondary school in Nepal includes students with visual impairments. These students take their examinations along with the other students. Exam papers are available in Braille, scribes are provided, and an extra half-hour is granted for completing the exams.
Information and communications technology
At the higher education level in particular, computer technology can offer a creative and effective means of learning and accessing the curriculum. CBR programmes can explore the possibility of grants or funding from local communities, businesses, government and international agencies, for providing computers, preferably with an Internet connection, for students with disabilities.
Peer support and role-models
Many students may not have studied alongside students with disabilities before. As a result, attitudes and reactions can vary – classmates can be helpful and mature, or they can behave in ways that exclude students with disabilities. The CBR programme can:
encourage schools to sensitize students, preferably with leadership from an adult with a disability;
encourage the development of policies and procedures to prevent discrimination, bullying and teasing by teachers and classmates;
encourage peer support and “buddy” systems;
encourage schools/colleges to recruit staff and teachers with disabilities – positive role-models are very important for young adults with disabilities.
BOX 39South Africa
Being a role model to students
A woman with a disability ran a disability support unit at a university in Cape Town. As she had a disability, she was easily able to understand the needs of students with disabilities, play an important advocacy role and become a role-model.
Encourage best use of specialist resources and support
CBR programmes can encourage schools and colleges to use specialist resources correctly, so increasing the inclusion of students with disabilities rather than increasing their stigmatization or segregation. They can encourage the use of:
personal assistants, e.g. guides, readers, writers, interpreters;
itinerant teachers, who make regular visits to schools to provide advice and support;
additional support outside the mainstream school, e.g. for acquiring computer skills or other vocational skills, or medical or rehabilitation support.
BOX 40Nepal
Preparing students for regular classes
When students with disabilities start at the Nepalese secondary school, they are first placed in a resource class. Here they receive training in mobility, and in the social and basic educational skills required to attend regular classes. They normally stay in this class for one year, depending on their speed of learning, after which they join their peers in mainstream classes with regular teachers. A specially trained teacher continues to help the students with disabilities to obtain the correct books, including translation into Braille, and, if applicable, logistical support, and assists in coaching them in their formal education. These teachers also coordinate with the regular classroom teachers to solve any problems faced by the students with disabilities.
Special schools
Special schools, e.g. schools for the visually impaired or deaf, need to be considered very carefully by students and their families. The education provided by these schools is not necessarily more appropriate or of higher quality. How special schools prepare students with disabilities for adult life, and for participation and employment in the community, needs to be considered. As special schools require high levels of resources, training and supportive infrastructure, they are often lacking in poorer countries. Where they do exist, however, the views of the students should be taken into account. CBR programmes can make use of these schools as a transitory or preparatory step until local schools are ready to offer quality education to students with disabilities; it is important to remember that the earlier the inclusion, the easier and better for a person in the long run.
Help to ease transitions
This is a key issue and often overlooked. Transitional periods during education include: primary to secondary, secondary to tertiary, and tertiary to a sustainable livelihood. Often, students with disabilities need to move away from their communities to complete higher education. This can make transitional periods more difficult, and many find it very challenging without the support of their families and communities.
BOX 41
Easing transitions to avoid dropouts
Due to poor transitions, research highlights that twice as many students with disabilities fail to pursue college as their peers (30).
CBR programmes can work with students, families, community members and educational institutions to ensure supportive links are created and maintained throughout transitional periods. The Rwanda case-study at the beginning of this element illustrates how collaboration and lobbying helped achieve successful transitions.
BOX 42Philippines
Cherry's resolve earns respect
Cherry was born with clubfoot deformities into a very poor farmer's family in the Philippines. With the help of a local philanthropist and CBR programme, she underwent surgery and received customized footwear. When she went to primary school, she was teased and excluded from participating in activities with the other students. With the help of her family, CBR personnel and her own determination, Cherry continued her studies despite the discrimination.
In high school, she was treated better, and a local nongovernmental organization – Simon of Cyrene – supported her higher education costs, including transportation, school supplies and even medical and health services. Following high school, she was given a scholarship to complete a two-year college course on computer applications. Like her peers, Cherry is now working on the open job market.
Cherry says: “Now I am very proud of reaping the fruits of my labour. I am helping my family financially and I can provide for my personal necessities. The people in our community who used to stare and laugh at me have changed their perception of me. Now I can see admiration in their eyes that even with disability I was able to attain the status where I am in now. My self-esteem and confidence have been enhanced, enough to give me strength to face the challenges that may come along.”
