The present study provides partial findings from research currently underway at the University of Seville[1]. The project’s aim is to shed light on the barriers and aids—as perceived by the students themselves—affecting disabled students in areas such as access, academic progress and results. The first key question we ask ourselves is:

How does the university, as an institution, open doors and/or put hurdles in the way of students with special needs?

Secondly, to what extent do educational, attitudinal and relational processes in university classrooms affect participation and learning curves?

We aim to answer both questions using biographic-narrative research methods—and by giving disabled students a voice of their own. The following objectives provide scaffolding for our research:

1. Identify, describe and explain hurdles and help in areas such as access, academic progress and results as perceived by disabled university students;

2. Identify, describe and explain barriers and aids affecting students with disabilities in the university classroom setting;

Our study is rooted in the theoretical framework underpinning the social model of disability, inclusive education and higher education research. As Konur (2006) points out, a growing number of young men and women with disabilities aspire to join the university community; paradoxically, however, the university is one of the least inclusive of all educational environments—both in terms of disabled student access and long-term academic success (Holloway, 2001; Onofre, 2006, etc.). Borlan and James (1999) note that 3 types of barriers exist for university students with disabilities:

·         Physical access barriers (infrastructure & facilities);

·         Curricular access barriers (methodology, content, etc.);

·         Attitudinal barriers

Gitlow (2001) identifies attitudinal barriers as the most relevant of the three as they precede and often influence other types of hurdles and are generally the most difficult to change. Such obstacles fly in the face of a key quality indicator established by European higher education reform: guaranteed equal access for students with disabilities to higher education and opportunities for academic success.

            The social model of disability, which we endorse, conceives of the problem from a sociopolitical perspective (Barton, 1996; Oliver, 1990; Shakespeare & Watson, 1996). The social model considers practice, attitudes and policies within the social context as underpinnings for barriers and/or aids which either hinder or help disabled individuals to access and participate in education processes within different environments—social, economic, educational, etc. (Barton, 2006).

            Focusing our attention on the inclusive education model—another cornerstone of this paper—we can define inclusion as a process which fosters participation and a sense of belonging across student populations (Booth & Ainscow, 1998). Hence, social and educational inclusion can be seen as a way of life, a unique way of behaving and participating in society, of understanding others (Corbett, 2001; Parrilla, 2007; Sapon-Shevin, 2003; Slee, 2010).

[1]  “Hurdles & Help as Perceived by University Students Disabilities” (“Barreras y ayudas que los estudiantes con discapacidad identifican en la Universidad”). Directed by Dr. Anabel Moriña. Project funding: MICINN, I+D+I, ref. EDU 2010-16264.

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