What is it about?

This study centres the voices of 50 disabled students in higher education institutions in North America, to unpack systemic ableism and its manifestation in misconceptions toward them. Drawing on the field of critical disabilities studies the paper discusses overt and subtle manifestations of ableism in higher education by challenging prevalent misconceptions toward disabled students. These include disabled students as absent, deficient, burden/lazy, and tokens. The students’ counter-narratives call higher education institutions to move away from individual accommodations, toward addressing systemic barriers and creating inclusive environments that recognize and value the diversity of experiences and positioning. They suggest an inclusive epistemology of education that stretches the norm to the margins.

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Why is it important?

Disabled students, and students who do not fit the image of a "normate," must work considerably harder to overcome a wide range of physical, attitudinal, social, cultural, and political barriers. Yet universities fail to acknowledge the full humanity of disabled students and the contributions they bring to higher education. The participants in this study wanted to be acknowledged as fully human and engaged in reciprocal relations: being supported when they needed help and offering their strengths and insights to others. They imagined higher education institutions in which their experiences are welcomed as part of the wide spectrum of human experiences without being stigmatized. The students voices invite us to acknowledge that all humans are interdependent, and to envision an academic culture in which excellence is grounded in inclusion.

Perspectives

This project was the brainchild of Arley McNeney, a colleague at my former institution, a disabled scholar, para-Olympian, and disability advocate. After Arley’s sudden, tragic passing in March 2023 at the data analysis stage of the project, I have committed to see this project to the end. This took a leap of faith (and a lot of reading) since I have not written on disability issues before. I feel incredibly grateful to Arley for taking me on this journey, as it has revealed a blind spot in my research questions and my teaching and pedagogy. While conducting the interviews with students, I was struck (too many times) when students described barriers to accessibility, often created by well-meaning, critical professors. I could see myself reflected in these stories. I carry these voices with me when I think about my teaching and the ways I approach accessibility in my classrooms.

Lilach Marom
Simon Fraser University

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Common misconceptions of disabled students: The construction of ableism in higher education., Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, September 2024, American Psychological Association (APA),
DOI: 10.1037/dhe0000615.
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