Faculty attitudes towards students with disabilities Essay

There perk up been an increasing topic of disenable scholars who ar move from high school to post-secondary study over the last few decades. The transition of the several laws addressing the study of school-age childs with disabilities such as the Individuals with Disabilities be active ( estimate) of 1990 and American with Disabilities twist (adenosine deaminase) of 1990 instigated the rise in incapacitate students in high education (Rao, 2004).The IDEA recognizes postsecondary education as one of the aspects in which the education system should filter to achieve. This means that even the disable mortals have a right to come up postsecondary education. On the other hand, the ADA requires that students with disabilities be given advance to postsecondary education just as whatsoever other member of the society. Inclusion of the incision 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act is as well as an emphasis on the right for the alter to entree high education (Riddell, T inklin & Wilson, 2005).Students with stultification increased in institutions of higher education since the preceding(prenominal) Acts created favorable takes characterized by equity in accessing education. check to Eckes and Ochoa (2005) thither was an increase in handicapped freshmen by much than cardinal percent as from 1991 to 1996. A significant growth in the trope of change students accessing post-secondary education is also noned by Rao (2004). Rao (2004) indicates that there was a 16 percent increase in the number of disabled persons who had acquire at least college education as from 1986 to 1994. In 1996 alone, approximately six-spot percent of the undergraduate population was composed of persons with disabilities.Increase in college enrollment for disabled persons has been recorded in virtually all forms of disabilities. Mull, Sitlington and Alper (2001) for instance root that as from 1976, there has been a tenfold increase in the number of persons with trai ning disabilities explanationing to college. This is also reported as the fastest ontogeny category of disabled college freshmen.In 1996 for instance, learning disabilities constituted 29 to 35 percent of all disabilities recorded in disabled persons enrolling into colleges. Eckes and Ochoa (2005) highlight few of the disabilities that were recorded amongst freshmen in 1994. These include health impairments, impairments in seeing and earreach as well as learning disabilities.Despite the fact that there has been an increase in enrollment of disabled students in college, there has also been a concern about a good majority of these encountering difficulties in completing higher education. This is especially in comparison with students who do not have disabilities. agree to Mull, Sitlington and Alper (2001), the number of students with disabilities who attain their target degree is always lower comp atomic number 18d to students without disabilities.It is also notable that a grea ter number of disabled students versus students without disabilities spend more time in the postsecondary program. In one study, Mull, Sitlington and Alper (2001) report that while 80 percent of learning disablement students played out more than five years to graduate from postsecondary institutions, only 56 percent of those without disabilities spent such a time. These statistics indicate problems with outcome of higher education among students with disabilities. The experiences of disabled students in higher learning institutions then become worth exploring since they ar key to effective learning and desirable outcomes.Disability delineateWhen addressing the attitudes of qualification towards students with disabilities, it is worth considering and understanding the various disabilities encountered. A definition of disability is therefore an important understanding in this field since it helps in comprehending some of the attitudes that may be encountered in faculties. It is recognized that disability can be defined from a medical examination exam and social perspective or the International potpourri of Functioning as per the field Health Organization (Mitra, 2006).In this paper, the medical aspect of disability is considered with physical and mental disabilities taking preeminence. According to Mitra (2006) disability as per the medical model entails an individual having a problem resulting from any health condition (e.g. disease or injury). The disabling health condition is considered as unwanted since it places the individual into sick position which requires medical c ar. The medical model of disability emphasizes of the inability of the disabled person to function commonly. As such, rehabilitative efforts are mounted to ensure that the disabled person functions as close to normal as possible. For instance, a physically disabled individual may be depending on a wheelchair to move.According to World Health Organization (2007), disability is def ined under the International sort of Functioning (ICF). The ICF recognizes that some health conditions lead to impairments more so in the functioning of the body. As such, the individual gets resileed or restricted to insert in certain activities such as work and education.Lack of access to education for persons with impairments for instance may be considered as a hindered confederacy according to ICF. The International Classification of Functioning incorporates social and medical aspects of disability. In addition to identifying medical conditions as causes of impairment, the model also recognizes that the impairment limit an individuals participation in certain activities, thus transport in a social inequality (Woodcock, 2009).The restricted participation is considered as a contextual aspect whereby some factors such as individualized background, law and the attitudes of the community may determine the limitation to participate. As such, a disabled person may be limited in foothold of participating in education or accessing other social services. This is the spring why Mitra (2006) argues that disabled persons face certain disadvantages similar to those encountered by oppress minority groups. Among the experienced inequalities is school segregation.One may be natural with certain disabilities whereas others are acquired during day-to-day life for instance due to traumatizing event. or so of the disabilities that students who get enrolled to postsecondary learning institutions have include damage sight, impaired hearing, impaired speech, impaired health and learning disabilities as the most common impairment. The above impairments are considered as serious and common disabilities compared to mild forms of disabilities which are less(prenominal) common amongst students.Learning disabilities constitute a myriad of disabilities such as dyscalculia i.e. problems with resolving mathematical computations, dysgraphia i.e. writing difficulties, aphasia i. e. language use problems and dyslexia problem whereby the student experiences problems in reading (Walker & Heffne, 2006). Important to note is that the learning disabilities may be a bit difficult for college tutors and professors to identify in students as remote to physical disabilities such as a student using a wheelchair. Disabilities such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or dyslexia are particularly difficult to detect.Over sentiment of Americans with Disability Act involving higher education modify persons are part of the society and as much as they are grouped as part of the minority, they are also diversity in the society (Bryan, 2010). Being part of a minority in the American society, they are faced with the potential to be segregated. In response to the charter to protect the disabled Americans from discrimination and segregation in terms of access to social amenities, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was enacted in 1970. This is a law that has speci fically turn to the persons with special needs and the special education has been clearly intercommunicate more so in regard to institutions of higher education discriminating against disabled students. Students with disabilities have been advocated for in the ADA in terms of their access to higher education.The Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted in July 1990 to provide for the access of postsecondary education for students with disabilities (Bryan, 2010). There are several provisions in the ADA including instructions on try-on of students with disabilities.One important requirement of the ADA is that the student has the responsibility of the disclosing their disability to the institutions authorities for them to benefit from the Acts provisions. According to (Walker, 2006), institutions of higher education are prohibited from enquiring of the disability status of the student by the ADA.On the other hand, once a student has let on their disability status, the institutio n is supposed to handle the student as per ADAs provision. According to entitle II and triad of the ADA, disabled persons are not supposed to be denied access to facilities which are accessible to the state-supported including private facilities (Hernandez, Keys & Balcazar, 2004). As such public and private learning institutions are supposed to provide accommodation for disabled students indiscriminately.While Title II prohibits discrimination of the disable from accessing public entities, Title III of the same Act adds that disabled persons should not be denied accommodation in private places so long as those entities cab be accessed by the public. Specifically, Title III states that no individual shall be discriminated against on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations (Sullivan, Lantz & Zirkel, 2000, p 261).In view of the provisions in the Americans with Disabilities Act, the disabled stu dent is put into the mainstream higher education community. The ADA is highly hailed by the disabled postsecondary students since their concerns are highly addressed (Hernandez, Keys & Balcazar, 2004). The attitudes of the general public towards the inclusion of the concerns of the disabled as provided in Title II and III of ADA are particularly hailed. With ADA in place, postsecondary institutions of learning have been made to provide services that support the disabled students to have the best experience during their time in the institution.Bryan (2010) states that since the enactment of the ADA, postsecondary institutions have been forced to reevaluate their services so as to accommodate the disabled persons as per the requirements of ADA. Most institutions have specifically addressed changes in programs supply for individuals with learning disabilities. If a disabled person has complied with the requirements of the ADA and the institution of learning discriminates the individua l, the institution can be sued by such an individual. It is to be state that ADA is a reinforcement of Section 504 as explored below.