National Dialogues

Second National Dialogues and Action draws experts on accessibility, ableism and inclusion from across Canada

lanthierj — Fri, 09 Dec 2022 12:09:50 +0000

Second National Dialogues and Action draws experts on accessibility, ableism and inclusion from across Canada

lanthierj Fri, 12/09/2022 - 07:09

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The second National Dialogues focused on ways to address ableism and make post-secondary education in Canada more accessible and inclusive (photo by Summer Leigh)

Don Campbell

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Our Community

National Dialogues

Diversity and Inclusion

Accessibility

U of T Scarborough

Cassandra Hartblay recalls a time in graduate school when a senior scholar in her field wasn’t able to give feedback on a research presentation she gave at an academic conference.

The scholar, it turned out, missed the session because a requested accommodation wasn’t available.

Not being able to receive feedback from a prominent scholar in her field was a stark reminder for Hartblay that failing to meet even basic standards of accessibility can interrupt teaching and learning on many levels — from the impact on the expert who has a disability, to the people who are deprived of their expertise.

“It was true for me as a disabilities studies researcher, but it may be true for someone working in a science lab that also isn’t accessible,” said Hartblay, an assistant professor and director of the Centre for Global Disability Studies at U of T Scarborough.

“When someone's access needs aren't being met, they're not able to get feedback to junior colleagues and students. It can affect the whole academic community.”

Looking at barriers to learning and working in the post-secondary sector was just one of several topics covered during the second National Dialogues and Action. The day-long virtual event brought together nearly 1,000 participants from across Canadian higher education and experts from outside the sector.

Conversations held during this year’s event focused on addressing structural ableism, developing inclusive curricula, learning design, work facilitation, and research supports, as well as inclusive infrastructure, design, and planning.

The consequences of not creating more accessible and inclusive post-secondary campuses couldn’t be starker, said Jay Dolmage, associate professor at University of Waterloo.

While 24 per cent of first-year university students self-declare as having a disability, only six to nine per cent of those students seek accommodation. The result is that fewer students with disabilities are finishing their degrees. He said while 27 per cent of Canadians have university degrees, only 17.6 per cent of Canadians with disabilities have one.

The problem is not specific to students. Only 42 per cent of Canadian universities have a written accommodation policy for faculty, Dolmage said.

“We do not have a system that's sustainable for disabled students, staff or faculty,” he said. “The only thing for certain is that if we continue doing things the way that we've been doing them, then we'll continue to lose disabled staff, faculty and students.”

Those in attendance argued that for education to become more inclusive, it may require larger structural changes.

Olga Dosis, a professor at George Brown College, said while a lot of work has been done on accessibility, there continue to be systemic barriers to full inclusion across Canadian post-secondary institutions. For example, she said that accommodations are a kind of “retrofit solution” that attempt to fit students into a system that isn’t inclusive to begin with. Another major hurdle is that accessibility policies and practices differ from one institution to the next.

“Over time we’ve normalized ableist attitudes within our institutions,” she said, alluding to the fact that barriers are often left to individual students to overcome on their own.

Even attempting to adopt universal design principles can be a major challenge for post-secondary institutions given their size, said Frederic Fovet, an assistant professor at Thompson Rivers University.

He said while there is a lot of research on the benefits of universal design, there is very little research on how to implement it, especially at large bureaucratic institutions that can be slow to change.

The afternoon sessions included conversations about inclusive infrastructure and design, which includes physical and virtual spaces on campus, and how equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) researchers can collaborate more often with accessibility researchers.

Mahadeo Sukhai, vice-president of research and international affairs and chief accessibility officer for CNIB, urged those in attendance to adopt an accessible procurement policy if they haven’t already, especially for learning management systems. He added that these systems also need to be tested rigorously by staff and faculty with expertise before being rolled out to students.

Technology has also evolved in recent years to become a powerful accessibility tool, said Catherine Fichten, an associate professor in the department of psychiatry at McGill University.

She singled out recent developments in AI-based software such as video captioning software, voice activation technology, improved computer and mobile phone operating systems as being very beneficial for students, faculty and staff with disabilities. Despite the advancements, she noted barriers remain such as the high cost of software and availability of accessible textbooks, and the design of academic evaluations and inaccessible documents, to name a few. And most importantly, she said people with disabilities need to be involved in training AI systems.

This was the second National Dialogues hosted by the University of Toronto Scarborough. The first one, held in 2020, explored anti-Black racism and promoting Black inclusion and resulted in the co-creation of the Scarborough Charter.

The organizers plan to publish a report in 2023 detailing the conversations that took place during this year’s National Dialogues, which will help institutions chart a path forward in addressing ableism and inclusivity on their own campuses.

'A historic moment': National charter on anti-Black racism, Black inclusion in higher ed moves forward

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 16:15:41 +0000

'A historic moment': National charter on anti-Black racism, Black inclusion in higher ed moves forward

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 03/22/2021 - 12:15

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(Photo by UTSC Communications & Public Affairs)

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Canadian universities and colleges are moving closer to creating a national charter aimed at dismantling anti-Black racism and fostering Black inclusion in the post-secondary sector.

The charter is an outcome of the first National Dialogues and Action for Inclusive Higher Education and Communities held in October 2020. More than 3,000 members of the higher education community – and more than 60 partner institutions across Canada – came together for two days of conversation focused specifically on anti-Black racism and Black inclusion.

The charter document, called the Scarborough National Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion in Canadian Higher Education: Principles, Actions and Accountabilities, will be a national plan of action that participants agreed was an important step to fight structural racism, according to Kelly Hannah-Moffat, the University of Toronto’s vice-president, human resources and equity.

“It’s been a privilege to work alongside post-secondary partners from across Canada on this important document,” Hannah-Moffat says.

“Addressing something as complex as systemic racism requires insight from a diversity of voices, and we’re proud that’s been the case in drafting this charter. The charter will inform our ongoing work on inclusion and inspire new initiatives at the university.”

The charter co-creation process included input from people in the post-secondary sector and other partners across Canada. Drawing from participants’ perspectives, insights and ideas, the national dialogues advisory committee, consisting of members from the post-secondary sector across Canada, drafted a charter that is currently being reviewed by partner institutions for their feedback.

Members of the U of T community can provide feedback on this form.

Once the charter is finalized, there are plans to establish an association of institutions that will meet on an ongoing basis to sustain the commitments made in the charter.

“There’s been good discussion and debate about the charter’s contents, but it’s been done in a spirit of co-operation and working towards a collective goal,” says Robert Summerby-Murray, president and vice-chancellor of Saint Mary’s University in Halifax.

One important lesson Summerby-Murray says he has taken away from the National Dialogues is the need to shift the conversation away from “equity-seeking” to “equity-deserving” – a phrase now being used at Saint Mary’s.

“Understanding that distinction is a recognition that equity is something individuals deserve,” he says. “We all have a role to play to step away from being equity gatekeepers and instead focus on what it means for people to deserve it.”

Annette Trimbee, president and vice-chancellor of MacEwan University in Edmonton, hopes the charter can be a guidepost to help institutions work towards their own equity, diversity and inclusion goals, and help them to be held accountable for the goals they have set.

She says local context and place matter, and that some institutions are further along in advancing the goals of the charter.

“I think the charter can serve as a North Star in guiding policies and strategies at universities and colleges across Canada,” Trimbee says.

She adds that both MacEwan and the University of Winnipeg, which she previously led, have made reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a priority. However, she stressed that the National Charter is something that should work together with those efforts.

“These pieces work together. Inclusion is inclusion, and racism is racism – whether it’s anti-Black or anti-Indigenous racism. It’s important to be mindful that this charter will only add to the work being done on reconciliation.”

Barrington Walker, associate vice-president, equity, diversity and inclusion at Wilfrid Laurier University, hopes the national charter can inspire positive change in a similar vein as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action, which seeks to address Canada’s past wrongdoings and conflict with Indigenous Peoples.

He says the charter should provide a blueprint for addressing anti-Black racism in the Canadian post-secondary sector.

“I hope that universities and colleges will no longer be in a position where they can throw up their arms and claim they have no idea how to address these issues on their campuses,” he says.

He’s also optimistic that other non-partner institutions that didn’t take part in the National Dialogues can use it as inspiration for work on their own campuses.

“This experience has been unparalleled in my personal and professional life, and it’s been an absolute privilege to take part,” he says. “I also think it’s a historic moment for Canadian post-secondary education, and one that I hope will leave a lasting impact.”