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This critical autoethnographic article with academic friends explores the complex territory of disability from a strengths-based, inclusive perspective. The article centres on the experiences of a mother and educator (the lead author), who continues to navigate the disability landscape, which is encumbered with deficit views. The curated narratives (or vignettes) presented hereafter, focus on specific educational experiences and challenges related to perceptions of disability and "othering" that threaten to exclude. Each narrative reveals the lead author's direct experiences of alienation and her need to develop a strong sense of fierceness to protect and secure the right to an equitable, inclusive education for her "othered" child. The authors analyse each story using emic and etic perspectives utilising ideas drawn from Lévinas' notion of alterity and his ethics of encounter, as well as critical discourse analysis to bring attention to the deficit language. Collectively, the narratives and the analyses aim to bring critical awareness to the lived experiences of this mother and educator and identify the deficit mindsets that affected her so profoundly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to explore student teachers' perceptions, experiences, and attitudes towards the inclusion of autistic learners within the post-compulsory sector. Adopting an ethics of care approach, this research was conducted with 10 student teachers in a large college in North-East England. Participants were student teachers enrolled in a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) for Further Education. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and thematically analysed. Student teachers reported various experiences of teaching autistic learners from no experience at all to placements in autism-specific provisions. The participants' understanding of autism was varied and based on both personal and professional experiences prior to starting the PGCE and whilst studying the programme. The analysis indicated that although student teachers were positive in their attitude towards inclusion, they had some concerns over their ability to include autistic learners. This study highlights the importance of care and relationships in supporting the inclusion of autistic learners. A caring pedagogy with a focus on inclusion could help to address inequalities of access to education and bring about fairer educational success for autistic learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People with disabilities have an inviolable right to equitable access and participation in tertiary education and support systems are known to be indispensable in making this right a reality. This article presents the voices of students with disabilities regarding aspects that influence their successful access and participation in tertiary education in Ghana. A qualitative approach was adopted for the study with data collected through interviews with 12 students with disabilities in three public universities. From the perspective of these students, successful inclusion of people with disabilities in tertiary education in Ghana is influenced by enrolment practices, the built environment, teaching and learning approaches, and assessment provisions. The context influenced provisions and support provided. Attitudes of the university community and lack of knowledge of inclusive practices such as Universal Design play a role in students' access and participation. Comprehensive awareness-raising on disability and inclusive practices is recommended to address this issue. This paper explores inclusion practices in three Ghanaian public universities focussing on the combined voices of students with disabilities. The context of the three universities influences the provisions and support available for people with disabilities. The students with disabilities involved in the study reported that access to the university environment and support for academic engagement impact their university experience. The attitude of the university community is a factor in ensuring access, participation and success of people with disabilities in higher education. Creating awareness of disability issues within the university community is pivotal in building and sustaining inclusive culture. The application of universal design principles is essential to improving access and participation of people with disabilities in higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review tracks the last 50 years of the journey towards the inclusion of disabled students in Higher Education (H.E.). It provides a critical overview of the impact of evolving U.K. policy aimed at widening participation for disabled H.E. students. The overview spotlights the historical, ideological and political influences on policy and practice and illuminates the underlying causes of the social injustices still experienced by disabled H.E. students. Despite a government commitment to inclusive practices, data reveals disabled H.E. students are among those most at risk of withdrawing from university and have lower degree outcomes than non-disabled students (OfS. 2021. Access and Participation Resources: Findings from the Data. , 19). The article illustrates how the prevailing models of disability have influenced definitions of disability and inclusion. It highlights tensions between the Government's accountability agenda and inclusive practice ideals. The paper reviews U.K. studies of inclusion of disabled H.E. students. It unearths barriers, particularly concerning stigma, disclosure, and social inclusion, rooted in historical misrepresentations of disability remaining intact in contemporary society. Implications for H.E. institutions and policymakers are highlighted. Recommendations for researchers include research aligned with disabled people's lived experiences and further investigation of barriers relating to attitudes of non-disabled students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the literature on inclusive service learning generally reports positive outcomes for students with disabilities, it provides little insight into the process of inclusion that occurs when students with and without disabilities meet within a service-learning framework. This distinction between students with and without disabilities became less clear, especially as all students began to see that they have disabilities or that they lack something that the other has or vice versa, experience themselves without disabilities even if others have defined them that way. In this paper, we address this issue through a case study of a service-learning course that brought together students with and without disabilities. The course was based on a five-facet model for inclusive service learning that comprised theory, experiential learning, community projects, dialogue, and reflection. A qualitative analysis of the course illustrates that both students with and without disabilities experienced significant changes in perception of disability such that they no longer saw themselves as two separate groups. The paper looks at the processes that produced this change and suggests the idea of 'continuous mutual learning' (CML) as an important component in education for inclusion, arguing that CML can deepen the inclusiveness of inclusive service learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peer-mediated interventions are an evidence-based practice for enhancing the social and learning outcomes of students with autism and other developmental disabilities. However, little is known about the peers who participate in these interventions or the ways they are impacted through their involvement. In this pilot study, we examined changes in academic and behavioral outcomes of 204 peers involved in a semester-long peer partners program at eight public high schools. Although the majority of peer partners were female, these volunteers varied widely in their academic and behavioral profiles the semester prior to their involvement in Peer to Peer. Overall, peer partners experienced increases in their overall GPAs (d = 0.34), and daily attendance (d = 0.56) after one semester of involvement. Modest decreases in behavioral referrals and suspensions were evident only among the subset of peer partners who previously had such infractions. After two semesters of involvement, improvements were evident in all four areas for the subset of students for whom these data were available: GPA (d = 0.42), absences (d = 0.26), behavior referrals (d = 0.46) and suspensions (d = 0.37). We discuss the importance of reciprocity within these widely advocated interventions and offer recommendations for research and practice. Impact Statement This study describes the characteristics and reciprocity of outcomes for high school peers who participate as peer partners alongside students with autism or other developmental disabilities. The majority of peer partners in this study experienced positive academic and behavioral outcomes when participating in these programs, with improved GPAs, increased attendance, decreased behavior referrals and decreased suspensions during the semester they provided peer support. This suggests that program coordinators, school psychologists, and other school staff should actively seek to involve diverse peer partners in their programs by including students with academic or behavioral challenges, rather than only high-achieving students. Peer-mediated interventions are not only beneficial for students with disabilities, but involvement can also impact outcomes for at-risk peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The education of students with disability has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Universal declarations and conventions have underpinned many of these changes at both an international level and within Australia. In the early 1970s, the philosophy of John Rawls provided a theory of justice to preserve social justice and individual liberty within communities. This mirrored attempts to advance education to ensure social justice, rights and access to education for learners with disability. This micro-historical ethnography provides a review spanning the past half century in Australia of changes to the education of students with disability. Underpinned by an ethnographic epistemology through interviews with the presentism of eight educators involved in Western Australian education for learners with disability, and viewed through an interpretivist lens, major elements of change are identified. An analytical framework deduced from the work of Rawls is used to reflect upon the changes and discuss the degree that Rawls' justice as fairness has been enacted in education for learners with disability from 1970 to 2021 in Australia. Key words: Australia, learners with disability, special education, inclusion, Rawls, equity, social justice [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Succeeding at university can be a complex matter, and the barriers are manifold for students with disabilities (SwDs). Accommodations are available for those with needs, but these alone do not meet the political goals of inclusive educations. Student ambassadors act as experienced representatives on campuses, supporting others and gaining individual benefits themselves. Approaches building on SwDs' experiences and capacities can be a means to overcome the complex barriers often faced throughout education. This scoping review aimed to map research on student ambassador interventions for SwDs in higher education and identify the interventions' key concepts. The result will inform an ambassador intervention in higher education. Six electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles of any design published between 2010 and December 2020. Six studies met the inclusion criteria. A thematic synthesis resulted in three key concepts: peer guidance and supportive relationships; building strategies and transferable skills; and advocating for change. However, no program utilises exclusively students with disabilities in ambassador roles. The results indicate a lack of research as well as awareness on the unexplored potential of actively involving SwDs in ambassador roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The salience of education for better life outcomes is well accepted, but people with disabilities continue to be underrepresented in higher education. Building on Weedon's approach to the intersection of impairment with socioeconomic factors, this paper identifies the facilitators and barriers encountered and/or experienced by young people with disabilities along their diverse pathways to and through higher education in Sweden. The data comes from longitudinal ethnographic case studies of persons with ADHD. While the findings show similarities in impairment-specific barriers, such as transition and inadequate support available at university, they make even more visible the existing heterogeneity among people with ADHD and the inadequacy of support structures at higher education institutions. Parents, economic security and individual factors, such as ease of learning and belief in one's own capacity, were found to be strong facilitators. ADHD and socioeconomic disadvantage together magnified vulnerabilities and hurdles faced while aspiring to and accessing higher education. The article concludes by highlighting the urgent need for universities to change entrenched structures that perceive students with disabilities as a homogeneous group and disability as an individual problem, in order to enable participation of all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities can prepare students for work, and universities can educate increasingly diverse student cohorts, but can they do both concurrently? This question of whether universities can offer equitable and inclusive careers education is increasingly under scrutiny. In this study, we address the largely under-theorised area of work-based placements from the perspective of career identity formation for diverse students. We do so through the adoption of Meijers and Lengelle’s theorisation of ‘career stories’ which position the narrative as the mechanism to understand how students’ have developed their career identities and future professional goals. Drawing on longitudinal interviews with disabled students, we explore university placements as ‘boundary experiences’ which can either enable, or disable, the formation of students’ professional selves. Our findings indicate a troubling amount of variability, and indeed, luck within the placement offering, often unsupported by intentional pedagogical design. This suggests that the current university placement experience does little to support the professional identity formation processes of diverse students. Through this study, we further translate a processual learning theory from career learning to support future intentional pedagogical placement design in the university context for diverse students. The article ends with a consideration of how placement experiences can better align to equity goals of the university, and provide scalable, high-quality learning experiences for all students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims to understand the ableism facing the presence of disabled students in physical education (PE) classes. Through a case study with an exploratory qualitative design, we captured the inclusion (or lack thereof) of disabled students through the perspectives of three PE teachers who participated in this study over one school year. The teachers completed a weekly reflective journal with field notes, and participated in two focus group interviews, which were assessed using the content analysis technique. The PE classes were immersed in ableism, which translates into a body-focused process of normalisation. Our findings underscore the difficulty encountered in the inclusion of disabled students because it is considered a counterpoint to what is believed to be PE. A comprehensive change in perspectives regarding the understanding of disability and normativity is required. This study is important to discuss how meaningful the physical education classes have been to the disabled student; The disabled students still feel excluded from Physical Education classes; Physical Education curriculum is mainly based on competitive sports practices raising questions about its meaning to the disabled student; Physical Education teachers do not change the traditional curriculum for the best learning opportunities to the disabled children; The inclusion of the disabled student calls for fundamental changes on what is assumed as Physical Education class at schools and for effective teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have investigated (pre-service) teachers' attitudes toward inclusion. However, most have focused on teachers' attitudes toward the inclusion of students with disabilities. The understanding of inclusive education has expanded to the provision of educational opportunities to all students, not only those with a disability. This study investigates the attitudes of 899 Austrian pre-service teachers towards inclusion using a revised version of the Attitudes to Inclusion Scale (AIS). The psychometric quality of the revised scale was examined. The results indicated a high reliability, and the two-dimensional factor structure was confirmed by a confirmatory factor analysis. Some evidence for convergent validity was found. More positive attitudes towards inclusive schooling were found among pre-service teachers focusing on inclusive education within their teacher training programme, female teachers, and pre-service teachers with a migration background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A variety of pedagogical practices have been proposed, described, and promoted by scholars in an effort to help enhance the experiences of visually impaired students in integrated physical education. Trained peer tutoring, where a nondisabled student is trained to serve as a peer tutor for a disabled student, is among them. However, little research has been done that engages directly with visually impaired students about their views and experiences with these pedagogical practices. Using belonging as a conceptual lens to guide and inform methodological and data interpretation decisions, our purpose was to elicit the views of visually impaired youth regarding the use of trained peer tutors in integrated physical education classes. Sixteen visually impaired youth completed two interviews about their views toward physical education generally and the concept of peer tutoring specifically. Interviews were conducted via video conference technology, and were recorded, transcribed, and subjected to thematic analysis. Three interrelated themes were constructed that depict the participants views toward the concept of peer tutoring: (a) peer tutoring might enhance belonging ... maybe, (b) shouldn't this just happen naturally?, and (c) this is not for me. The themes provide insights into the views of visually impaired youth toward peer tutoring as a strategy that may not be supportive of feelings of belonging within integrated physical education. Rather, participants were largely dismissive of the strategy, suggesting that any help needed within this context should be navigated outside of formal pedagogical strategies that may alienate visually impaired students by identifying them as 'needing help'. These findings support suggestions for physical educators to implement this practice only after first permitting students to engage with friends to navigate physical education spaces, and then only afterwards at the discretion of the student. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]