Preparing students with intellectual disabilities to audit inclusive university courses

Abstract

There is a growing trend toward including adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) in further education. However, there is a lack of literature on the preparation of students with ID to attend further education. This article, by James Wintle of Queen's University, Ontario, describes how a non-profit organisation, CALC Prep, prepares adults with ID to audit university courses. Eighty hours of observations were conducted over the course of one term at this organisation. A grounded theory approach was used to identify themes within CALC Prep's curriculum. Themes within the curriculum that were considered most useful for students preparing to audit courses at the university included familiarising the students with the university, enhancing self-awareness, enhancing self-expression and building literacy skills. Additionally, recommendations for improving the transition of students with ID from the preparation programme to auditing university courses are offered.

Transition strategies and recommendations: perspectives of parents of young adults with disabilities

“…Postsecondary education programmes (PSEs) are college programmes designed to allow young adults with disabilities to gain academic, social, employment, self-determination and independent living skills and are growing in number across the world (Aylward & Bruce, 2012;Griffin et al, 2010;Lynch & Getzel, 2013;Moore & Schelling, 2015;Wintle, 2014). Postsecondary education programmes (PSEs) are college programmes designed to allow young adults with disabilities to gain academic, social, employment, self-determination and independent living skills and are growing in number across the world (Aylward & Bruce, 2012;Griffin et al, 2010;Lynch & Getzel, 2013;Moore & Schelling, 2015;Wintle, 2014).…”

“…The nature of students with disabilities attending college varies, including young adults with disabilities attending through postsecondary education programmes. Postsecondary education programmes (PSEs) are college programmes designed to allow young adults with disabilities to gain academic, social, employment, self-determination and independent living skills and are growing in number across the world (Aylward & Bruce, 2012;Griffin et al, 2010;Lynch & Getzel, 2013;Moore & Schelling, 2015;Wintle, 2014). Although PSEs range in size, requirements, policies and approaches to developing student skills (Plotner & Marshall, 2015), research indicates that young adults attending PSEs experience positive outcomes, including enhanced employment and independent living skills (Thoma et al, 2011).…”

Attitudes of University Members toward Accepting Students with Intellectual Disabilities: a systematic review study

“…Five of the nine studies focused on inclusive education, with an emphasis on students with disabilities. These included pre-service teachers' perceptions of inclusion and their attitudes towards inclusive education, disability and inclusion, and inclusive higher education (Forlin et al, 2011;Costello and Boyle, 2013; Cambbell, Gilmore, and Cuskelly, 2014; Zhang et al, 2018;Wintle, 2015). Two studies focused on the perspectives of university staff members towards students with ID (Fossey et al, 2017; Alqazlan, Alallawi, and Totsika, 2019), and two examined the perceptions of university students towards students with ID (Phillips, Fortney, and Swafford 2019; Alnahdi, Elhadi, and Schwab, 2020).…”

“…Phillips, Fortney, and Swafford (2019) do not explain any speci c requirements undertaken by the university for the acceptance of the students with disabilities. However, Wintle (2015) revealed that some universities focused on familiarising prep students with the university to ensure they were comfortable at the campus and happy with life at the campus. They also offered opportunities to promote self-awareness among students with ID through role playing, class discussions, and self-expression to promote participation of the students (Wintle, 2015).…”

Literacy Learning Outcomes in a Longitudinal Study of a Postschool Literacy Education Program for Young Adults With Intellectual Disabilities

“…However, many institutions run these programs as a series of separate courses that have limited connection with those of their peers, and the certificates students receive focus on completion rather than achievement (Cook, Hayden, Wilczenski, & Poynton, ). Furthermore, until recently, research about these programs has been descriptive and restricted to reporting students' profiles and transition programs (e.g., Wintle, ), levels of access to supported academic and social experiences, and the responses of lecturers and other students to the student with ID, rather than on outcomes. A recent study of the learning experiences of adults with intellectual disabilities attending an inclusive program in one Irish college, for example, reported that the learning experiences of the participants were as complex as those of their peers without intellectual disability (Kubiak, ), however, while students audited courses alongside their peers, the outcomes of their learning were not reported.…”