An Examination of Faculty Attitudes and Willingness to Accommodate Students with Disabilities at the University of Saskatchewan
Date
2017-04-20
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
ORCID
Type
Thesis
Degree Level
Masters
Abstract
Despite evidence that post-secondary students with disabilities who access support services and accommodations have greater success, many of these students choose not to disclose to their institutions or utilize their accommodations. Many students cite negative faculty reactions and attitudes towards the accommodation process as an influential barrier (Marshak, Van Wieran, Raeke Ferrell, Swiss & Dugan, 2010). The purpose of the current study was to investigate the existing faculty attitudes and willingness to make accommodations for students with disabilities at the University of Saskatchewan. Participants included 229 students with disabilities and 137 faculty members from the participating colleges. A series of one-way between-group ANOVAs was performed on the online survey data to determine if faculty and student perceptions varied based on several factors. In addition, independent sample t-tests compared faculty and student responses to shared survey items. Overall, the majority of faculty and students with disabilities reported faculty willing to make accommodations. Significant differences were found in faculty attitudes and their corresponding willingness based on factors such as gender, age, and academic department. Significant differences were also found between faculty and student perceptions, and in student responses based on type of disability. Faculty and student responses indicated a need for greater education and awareness about the nature of disabilities, rationale behind accommodation, and the rights and responsibilities of parties involved in the accommodation process. Greater promotion of the available services and supports, and the need for additional resources to support reasonable accommodations were also identified as important objectives moving forward. In addition, the limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Description
Keywords
Accommodations
Post-secondary
Students with Disabilities
Faculty Willingness
University of Saskatchewan
Citation
Degree
Master of Education (M.Ed.)
Department
Educational Psychology and Special Education
Program
School and Counselling Psychology