Technology inclusion for students living with disabilities through collaborative online learning during and beyond a pandemic

Abstract

Technology-based platforms in higher education institutions (HEIs), including online learning, require innovative approaches to ensure inclusive and transformative educational spaces for students living with disabilities. Achieving social equality, technology access and inclusion may contribute to ensuring a seamless instructional design for students living with disabilities in HEIs amid and beyond COVID-19. COVID-19 has obliged HEIs to adopt alternatives to learning and teaching, making the use of open distance learning (ODL) amid the pandemic more relevant. This theoretical paper considers the significance of ODL by demonstrating how to achieve technology inclusion for students living with disabilities through collaborative online international learning (COIL). Situated within the collaborative learning theory, this paper offers a disability perspective to learning in HEIs, through an analysis of stipulations in the Strategic Policy Framework on Disability for the Post-School Education and Training System (2018). The findings indicate that the application of COIL for students living with disabilities may transform their learning experiences and unlock new pathways for their development. The paper recommends that COIL may be used as a response to ensuring access and inclusive education provision for students living with disabilities in HEIs.

Future Potentials for International Virtual Exchange in Higher Education Post COVID-19: A Scoping Review

“…Various article types were considered in this review, as shown in Table 2. Five of the twenty-one were theoretical or conceptual articles [8][9][10][11][12]. The majority of the articles, 13, were peer-reviewed research studies [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25].…”

“…Of the twenty-one studies considered in this review, six were published in 2021 [11,16,21,26,27]. Thirteen articles were published in 2022 [8][9][10]14,15,17,18,20,[22][23][24][25]28]. Two articles reviewed were published in 2023 [12,13].…”

El uso de la tecnología de apoyo (T.A.) en la enseñanza del inglés al alumnado con necesidad específica de apoyo educativo (NEAE) en tiempos de Covid-19

“…Ante estos desafíos, sería conveniente una actualización y revisión del plan de estudios en los programas de formación docente, poniendo especial énfasis en la formación en T.A. para el alumnado NEAE, garantizando una distribución justa de recursos tecnológicos en todas las escuelas y fomentando la colaboración entre profesores, centros educativos y familias (De Klerk, 2022). Estas medidas no solo mejorarían la calidad de la educación, sino que también enriquecerían el ambiente en su totalidad, promoviendo prácticas inclusivas, como señalan Stenhoff et al (2020) y Steed et al (2022 en sus respectivos estudios.…”

Collaborative online international learning between Spain and Mexico: a microlearning experience to enhance creativity in complexity

“…Teaching strategies in COIL environments are a way to provide collaborative and inclusive learning pathways. Klerk and Palmer (2022) provide a perspective with the application of COIL for students living with disabilities to transform their learning experiences and unlock new pathways for their development. In turn, Alvarez-Barreto et al (2022) constructed a COIL experience between Mexico and Ecuador where they supported project-based learning, with continuous evaluation of student satisfaction and skills developed, leading to increased engagement through greater social interaction and collaboration.…”

“…Teaching strategies in COIL environments are a way to provide collaborative and inclusive learning pathways. Klerk and Palmer (2022) provide a perspective with the application of COIL for students living with disabilities to transform their learning experiences and unlock new pathways for their development. In turn, Álvarez-Barreto et al.…”