Exploring the use of digital technologies to tackle inequities in assessment at higher education institutions
Abstract
The intention of this article is to underscore the significance of using digital technologies to tackle inequities in assessment at higher education institutions. It is imperative to be mindful about the barriers that students with disabilities encounter when assessed and identify the potential of technology to overcome these barriers. This becomes an obstacle for safeguarding equal opportunities to access and gain from digital technologies. Furthermore, a qualitative approach, with key informant interviews prevailing as data instruments were employed. With its rapid succession of innovations, Information and Communication Technology, provides opportunities and brings comfort to students to be involved in assessment. The concern to ensure equity and equality in assessment is evidenced in the findings. Several noteworthy findings such as social exclusion, impairment issues and assistive educational technology were deliberated on. This was in response to the research questions posed. It is therefore, proposed that digital technology for students with disabilities needs to be addressed by policymakers and researchers. Students with disabilities should have the same rights to participate in assessment as other students.
Downloads
References
Ahmed, S. 2012. On being included: Racism and diversity in institutional life. Durham: Duke University Press.
Anttila, H., K. Samuelsson, A. L. Salminen, and A. Brandt. 2012. “Quality of evidence of assistive technology interventions for people with disability: An overview of systematic reviews.” Technology and Disability 24(1): 9–48.
Bakken, J. and O. Festus. 2008. Transition planning for students with disabilities: What educators and service providers can do. Springfield: Charles Thomas.
Bardin, J. and S. Lewis. 2008. “A Survey of the Academic Engagement of Students with Visual Impairments in General Education Classes.” Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness 102(8): 472–83.
Bartz, J. 2020. “All Inclusive? Empirical Insights into Individual Experiences of Students with Disabilities and Mental Disorders at German Universities and Implications for Inclusive Higher Education.” Education Science 10(5): 89–102.
Bausch, M. E. and M. J. Ault. 2015. “Assistive technology in schools: Lessons learned from the National Assistive Technology Research Institute.” In Advances in special education technology, volume 1: Efficacy of assistive technology interventions, edited by D. L. Edyburn, 13–50. Bingley, United Kingdom: Emerald Group.
Behling, K. 2020. “Finding a silver lining in the rapid movement to online learning: Considerations of access for all learners.” Pedagogy and the Human Sciences 7(1): 1–11.
Booth, T. 2018. “Mapping Inclusion and Exclusion: Concepts for all?” In Towards inclusive schools?, 96–108.
Brusling, C. and B. Pepin. 2003. “Inclusion in Schools: Who is in Need of What?” European Educational Research Journal 2(2).
Burkholder, A. R., R. N. Sims, and M. Killen. 2019. “Inclusion and Exclusion. Social Development in Adolescence Peer Relationships.” In The encyclopaedia of child and adolescent development, 1–9.
Cloudebate, U. J. 2019. Can technology create equality for the disabled? – Have your say. https://businesstech.co.za/news/industry-news/343269.
Crenshaw, K. 2017. Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. Chicago: University Chicago.
De Witte, L., E. Steel, S. Gupta, V. D. Ramos, and U. Roentgen. 2018. “Assistive technology provision: Towards an international framework for assuring availability and accessibility of affordable high-quality assistive technology.” Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 13(5): 467–472.
Desmond, D., N. Layton, J. Bentley, F. H. Boot, J. Borg, B. M. Dhungana, and K. Mavrou. 2018. “Assistive technology and people: A position paper from the first global research, innovation and education on assistive technology (GREAT) summit.” Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 13(5): 437–444.
Dikusar, A. 2018. The use of technology in special education. Harvard: Harvard Press.
Fernandez, S. 2021. “Making space in higher education: Disability, digital technology, and the inclusive prospect of digital collaborative making.” International Journal of Inclusive Education 25(12): 1375–1390.
Goodwin, A. L. 2012. Assessment for equity and inclusion: Embracing all our children. New York: Routledge.
Hauschildt, K., E. M. Vogtle, and C. Gwosć. 2018. Social and Economic Conditions of student Life in Europe. German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies. (DZHW), Germany.
Healey, M., A. Bradley, M. Fuller, and T. Hall. 2006. Listening to students: The experiences of disabled students of learning at university. Developing curricula for disabled students. London: Routledge.
Hoogerwerf, E., A. Solander-Gross, K. Mavrou, I. Traina, and M. Hersch. 2017. “A self-assessment framework for inclusive schools supporting assistive technology users.” Studies in Health Technology and Informatics 242: 820–827.
Kendall, L. 2016. “Higher Education and Disability: Exploring Student Experiences.” Cogent Education 3(1): 1–12.
Kent, M. 2015. “Disability and eLearning: Opportunities and Barriers.” Disability Studies Quarterly 35(1).
Korstjens, I. and A. Moser. 2018. “Series: Practical guide to qualitative research.” European Journal of General Practice 24(1): 120–124.
Louise, S., A. Allan, and D. Johnstone. 2017. “Negotiating Digital Divides: Perspectives from the New Zealand Schooling System.” Journal of Research on Technology in Education 49(1–2): 31–42.
Marquis, E., A. Schormans, B. Jung, C. Vietinghoff, R. Wilton, and S. Baptiste. 2016. “Charting the Landscape of Accessible Education for Post-secondary Students with Disabilities.” Canadian Journal of Disability Studies 5(2): 42–71.
Martinez, A. P., M. J. Scherer, and T. Tozser. 2018. “Traumatic brain injury (TBI) in school-based populations: Common sequelae and assistive technology interventions.” Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders 2(3): 310–321.
Medola, F. O., F. E. Sandnes, S. R. da Silva, and A. C. Rodrigues. 2018. “Improving assistive technology in practice: Contributions from interdisciplinary research and development collaboration.” Assistive Technology Outcomes and Benefits 12(1): 1–10.
Morin, K. L., J. B. Ganz, E. V. Gregori, M. J. Foster, S. L. Gerow, D. Genç-Tosun, and E. R. Hong. 2018. “A systematic quality review of high-tech AAC interventions as an evidence-based practice.” Augmentative and Alternative Communication 34(2): 104–117.
Muharib, R. and N. M. Alzrayer. 2018. “The use of high-tech speech-generating devices as an evidence-based practice for children with autism spectrum disorders: A meta-analysis.” Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 5(1): 43–57.
Neuman, W. L. 2018. Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. New York: Pearson.
Perelmutter, B., K. K. McGregor, and K. R. Gordon. 2017. “Assistive technology interventions for adolescents and adults with learning disabilities: An evidence-based systematic review and meta-analysis.” Computers & Education 114: 139–163.
Perfect, E., A. Jaiswal, and T. C. Davies. 2019. “Systematic review: Investigating the effectiveness of assistive technology to enable internet access for individuals with deaf blindness.” Assistive Technology 31(5): 276–285.
Seale, J. 2013. “When Digital Capital Is Not Enough: Reconsidering the Digital Lives of Disabled University Students.” Learning, Media and Technology 38(3): 256–69.
Sileyew, K. J. 2019. Research design and methodology. New York: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
Snyder, T. D., C. de Brey, and S. A. Dillow. 2019. Institute of Education Sciences, Washington DC: Department of Education.
Copyright (c) 2024 Mutendwahothe Walter Lumadi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
This journal is an open access journal, and the authors and journal should be properly acknowledged, when works are cited.
Authors, copyright holders, may use the publishers version for teaching purposes, in books, theses, dissertations, conferences and conference papers.
A copy of the authors' publishers version may also be hosted on the following websites:
- Non-commercial personal homepage or blog.
- Institutional webpage.
- Authors Institutional Repository.
The following notice should accompany such a posting on the website: This is an electronic version of an article published in SAJHE, Volume XXX, number XXX, pages XXX “XXX", DOI. Authors should also supply a hyperlink to the original paper or indicate where the original paper (http://www.journals.ac.za/index.php/SAJHE) may be found.
Authors publishers version, affiliated with the Stellenbosch University will be automatically deposited in the University Institutional Repository SUNScholar.
Articles as a whole, may not be re-published with another journal.
The following license applies:
Attribution CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
