Improving inclusion of students with disabilities in Malaysian higher education

Abstract

Malaysia aims to increase the participation of students with disabilities in Higher Education. This study examines the experiences of students with disabilities in selected Malaysian universities. Interviews with 14 students and 5 administrators indicated that universities need to play more active roles to eliminate barriers to access and participation. Participants’ accounts showed that the central role of universities lies in providing services, access, organising logistics, creating awareness, ensuring disabled-friendly facilities and developing specific policies to address issues concerning disabilities. Suggestions included increasing funding allocations, having Offices of Disability, and incorporating Universal Design (UD) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to increase participation.

Keywords:

• Malaysia
• disability
• higher education
• inclusive education
• universal design
• universal design for learning

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Ministry of Education Malaysia for funding this project (FRGS: Code SO 12803), participating universities, participants, Universiti Utara Malaysia, especially to SAPSP and RIMC UUM. Gratitude also goes to the Department of Sociology (formerly known as School of Applied Social Science, SASS, Durham University) research writing groups, particularly to Mandy Powell and Vikki Boliver.

Notes

* The MOE recently launched “Garis Panduan Pelaksanaan Dasar Inklusif Orang Kurang Upaya di Institusi Pengajian Tinggi” (Guidance for Implementing PWD's Inclusive Policy in Higher Education Institutions) in September 2019.

Additional information

Funding

This research is funded by the Ministry of Education Malaysia under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS: Code SO 12803).