ERIC Number: EJ960035
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1360-3116
EISSN: N/A
"Measuring up"? Assessment and Students with Disabilities in the Modern University
Bessant, Judith
International Journal of Inclusive Education, v16 n3 p265-281 2012
In this article, I ask how university students with disabilities negotiate with staff arrangements for alternative assessment practices. I draw on three case studies using a personal pronoun perspective to challenge the conventional view that educational policy and teaching practice are forms of rational action. I demonstrate how the lives of students and staff are typically characterised by unexpected events, disorder, emotion and prejudice. The analytic perspective offered here establishes how meanings, intentions and different viewpoints and alliances emerge as social actors work to create specific faculty and institution cultures. The case studies also reveal what does and what does not work--some of the obstacles--and what needs to be done if we are serious about equity and inclusive education. They include practical assistance in recognising the specific requirements of students with disabilities and how to design alternative assessment for students with specific "conditions". I argue that professional development and specific techniques in curriculum design are needed. Some staff also require help in recognising their policy and legal obligations. A cultural change which identifies and challenges prejudice is a larger task if universities are to become places in which equal opportunity principles and inclusive education are present and actively practised. (Contains 1 note.)
Descriptors: Curriculum Design, Inclusion, Alternative Assessment, Disabilities, Case Studies, Student Evaluation, Evaluation Methods, College Students, Professional Development, Student Needs, Test Construction, Barriers, Educational Policy, Legal Responsibility, Teacher Role, Attitude Change, Attitudes toward Disabilities, Social Attitudes, Foreign Countries, Student Role
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A