2019 Volume 37 Pages 19-26
Abstract
The number of disabled students in higher education institutions has dramatically increased since academic year 2017 compared to the numbers in previous fiscal years. In this study, we examined the challenges for assistance in higher education institutions that is needed for students with disabilities based upon existing documents and the literature. Three aspects were considered: Act for Eliminating Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities and reasonable accommodation, education for persons with disabilities and reasonable accommodation, and assistance to students with developmental disabilities in higher education institutions. As a result, one of the challenges for assistance to disabled students in higher education institutions is the provision of reasonable accommodation for all students as the parties concerned are not just students with disabilities, and improvement of their living environment. In addition, the results indicate other challenges in ensuring the continuity of education support programs for individual students with disabilities in secondary education, the planning of individual education support programs for the study periods of the disabled students who have not been assigned programs and for gray-area students, as well as the planning of transition support programs for individual students in anticipation of the life stage after their graduation, and the implementation of the assistance based on the programs.
