Challenges and barriers to overcome as perceived by students with disabilities in higher education

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the perception of students with disabilities about the barriers to their inclusion in the university environment, using a qualitative methodology under a descriptive approach, which included semi-structured interviews to 6 students with disabilities enrolled within the campus, who agreed to participate voluntarily in the study, which allowed a deep immersion and the generation of a holistic analysis regarding their experiences in the educational process. The data analysis was carried out through the coding process following the principles of grounded theory proposed by Staruss and Corbin, in order to identify emerging themes and patterns from the data collected, ensuring ethical principles, including the anonymity of the information collected, to obtain the information a semi-structured interview script containing 15 open questions was designed, in order to identify recurring ideas, key concepts, coincidences, and underlying patterns, which allowed the generation and grouping of the emerging categories of the study, Subsequently, the data were interpreted and contrasted with the theoretical framework to be discussed in terms of meaning and relevance to the research. This research approach allowed for a richer, deeper and more detailed exploration of the participants' experiences, perspectives and emotions. Among the most significant findings found, the study revealed that the interviewed students with disabilities feel included and supported by their peers in classrooms in the university environment, valuing their contributions and perceiving empathy and respect from them. However, they express the lack of disposition of some professors, who hinder their academic processes, by not understanding the limitations or difficulties that they present, likewise the insufficient signage in the facilities is highlighted, the results found show progress in terms of accessibility and inclusion, but also highlight the need to address the barriers that still limit the full integration of these students in their educational process.