Search results
1 – 10 of over 6000Emile Tompa, Amirabbas Mofidi, Arif Jetha, Pamela Lahey and Alexis Buettgen
To develop a framework for estimating the economic benefits of an accessible and inclusive society and implement it for the Canadian context. The framework measures the gap…
Abstract
Purpose
To develop a framework for estimating the economic benefits of an accessible and inclusive society and implement it for the Canadian context. The framework measures the gap between the current situation in terms of accessibility and inclusiveness, and a counterfactual scenario of a fully accessible and inclusive society.
Design/methodology/approach
The method consists of three steps. First, the conceptual framework was developed based on a literature review and expert knowledge. Second, the magnitudes for each domain of the framework was estimated for the reference year 2017 using data from various sources. Third, several sensitivity analyses were run using different assumptions and scenarios.
Findings
It was estimated that moving to a fully accessible and inclusive society would create a value of $337.7bn (with a range of $252.8–$422.7bn) for Canadian society in the reference year of 2017. This is a sizeable proportion of gross domestic product (17.6%, with a range of 13.1–22.0%) and is likely a conservative estimate of the potential benefits.
Originality/value
Understanding the magnitude of the economic benefits of an accessible and inclusive society can be extremely useful for governments, disability advocates and industry leaders as it provides invaluable information on the benefits of efforts, such as legislation, policies, programs and practices, to improve accessibility and inclusion of persons with disabilities. Furthermore, the total economic benefits and the benefits per person with a disability can serve as inputs in economic evaluations and impact assessments.
Details
Keywords
Adriano Stadler, Anete Alberton and Anne M.J. Smith
This paper examines entrepreneurship education (EE) in Brazil and Scotland and unpacks convergent and divergent practices in vocational education (VE). The authors evaluate access…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examines entrepreneurship education (EE) in Brazil and Scotland and unpacks convergent and divergent practices in vocational education (VE). The authors evaluate access to EE in VE and suggest and how it might be advanced in Brazil.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA); interpretative analysis of interviewee experiences with 12 educationalists, in management and academic roles, from two Brazilian and two Scottish VE institutions, contextual findings inform advances.
Findings
In Scotland, there is a well-defined entrepreneurial ecosystem where government policy and partners support and monitor provision of and accessibility to EE. In Brazil, government does not regulate policy provision of EE, and there is no defined entrepreneurial ecosystem of partners. IPA enabled the authors to examine divergent entrepreneurial education provision and evaluate accessibility to EE in Brazil.
Research limitations/implications
Implications include ways to advance educational inclusivity and accessibility for VE students in Brazil and a call to address availability through policy is underpinned by empirical data. Contextual characteristics of the study might be considered limiting but address a broad call to contribute to EE in VE settings.
Practical implications
The findings of this study equip educationalists with new knowledge about advancing EE provision and delivery in VE, which in turn supports inclusivity.
Originality/value
The authors contribute directly to an agenda that will create impact for young Brazilians through accessible EE models that place EE in VE at the forefront of social change in Brazil.
Details
Keywords
Chase Ochrach, Kathryn Thomas, Brian Phillips, Ngonidzashe Mpofu, Tim Tansey and Stacie Castillo
Employers increasingly seek a competitive advantage through inclusive hiring practices and recruitment of persons with disabilities. Early research indicates when employers…
Abstract
Purpose
Employers increasingly seek a competitive advantage through inclusive hiring practices and recruitment of persons with disabilities. Early research indicates when employers consider individuals for their strengths rather than solely for their needs, the organization prospers. However, details about how companies pursue a disability inclusive workplace and the effect of those efforts are poorly understood.
Design/methodology/approach
An inductive qualitative case study approach was utilized to understand one biotechnology corporation and their approach to recruiting, hiring, and retaining employees with disabilities. Individual and focus group interviews were conducted.
Findings
Results suggest that when the company lives its mission around wellness and inclusivity, they benefit from working with and learning from a range of perspectives, furthering their growth. Placing equal emphasis on hiring a diverse workforce and prioritizing supports and wellness practices lead to greater productivity and innovation.
Practical implications
This study illustrates how one company successfully recruits and hires persons with disabilities, resulting in benefits to their financial bottom line and to the organizational culture.
Originality/value
This paper offers insights for other companies intentionally hiring persons with disabilities, providing accommodations in the workplace, and creating an organizational culture where all employees feel valued and supported. These steps have a direct impact on employee engagement, productivity, and retention.
Details
Keywords
Uma Natarajan, Kenneth Y.T. Lim and Kumar Laxman
The purpose of this study is to examine the reform initiatives that began with a focus towards change in the teaching and learning in Singapore classrooms with technology…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the reform initiatives that began with a focus towards change in the teaching and learning in Singapore classrooms with technology integration.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology used in this study is review and descriptive narrative of educational technology polices, initiatives and projects.
Findings
The Ministry of Education, Singapore, has ensured that schools had infrastructure, leadership and necessary teacher training to successfully implement the initiatives.
Originality/value
The descriptions of the implementations are valuable lessons for other national systems in the region and beyond, seeking to integrate information and communications technology (ICT) in their education systems.
Details
Keywords
Marcella Turner-Cmuchal and Stuart Aitken
Within today’s information and knowledge society, learners with disabilities and/or special education needs (SEN) are among the groups most likely to encounter barriers to…
Abstract
Within today’s information and knowledge society, learners with disabilities and/or special education needs (SEN) are among the groups most likely to encounter barriers to accessing and using ICT, while at the same time the essential purpose of using ICT in education for learners with disabilities and/or SEN is to promote equity in educational opportunities.
This chapter considers two key issues:
Legislation and policy focussing upon rights and entitlements to ICT as an educational equity issue;
Access to appropriate ICTs within an accessible and sustainable ICT infrastructure for learners with disabilities and/or SEN.
Legislation and policy focussing upon rights and entitlements to ICT as an educational equity issue;
Access to appropriate ICTs within an accessible and sustainable ICT infrastructure for learners with disabilities and/or SEN.
In the chapter, how international and European level policy impacts upon the use of ICT in inclusive education will be discussed, followed by the presentation of a profile of a fictitious learner with disabilities who uses ICT as a key tool for accessing educational and inclusive learning opportunities. The case study will be used to exemplify the sorts of issues apparent in many different policy and practice situations across Europe.
Based on this discussion, a consideration of the use of ICT in inclusive education as a tool to enable all learners to be empowered in their learning is presented. This discussion leads to the identification of three potential policy levers that should be further exploited in attempts to address the digital divide and ensure all learners benefit from ICT as a tool for accessing inclusive learning opportunities:
Public procurement;
A widespread programme of training for all stakeholders;
School level policies and action plans for ICT.
Public procurement;
A widespread programme of training for all stakeholders;
School level policies and action plans for ICT.
Details
Keywords
Hector R. Amado-Salvatierra and Jose R. Hilera
This paper aims to present an approach to achieve accessible and inclusive Virtual Education for all, but especially intended for students with disabilities. This work proposes…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present an approach to achieve accessible and inclusive Virtual Education for all, but especially intended for students with disabilities. This work proposes main steps to take into consideration for stakeholders involved in the educational process related to an inclusive e-Learning.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper pays particular regard to accessibility in Virtual Education. This work is based on the activities prepared from years 2012 to 2015 within the initiative called ESVI-AL. This initiative was carried outin conjunction with Latin American and European Universities; for this paper, experiences and best practices from the initiative were used to prepare the proposed approach.
Findings
The aim of ESVI-AL initiative was to offer products that can help in the development of an accessible and inclusive e-Learning education. Among the main results were reports, case studies, practical guidelines, training courses and software to install virtual campuses with accessibility features.
Social implications
Nowadays, few countries have laws promoting and enforcing accessibility for e-Education and e-Society. This work aims to sensitize educators from different countries and raise awareness on the importance of working together toward an inclusive society based on accessible e-Learning.
Originality/value
Based on a literature review and ESVI-AL initiative results, a descriptive overview was prepared as a starting point for the four identified main actors of an educational project, namely, educators, technical staff, quality auditors and students, with special emphasis on students with disabilities.
Details
Keywords
Fahriye Altinay, Ebba Ossiannilsson, Zehra Altinay and Gokmen Dagli
This research study aims to evaluate the capacity and sustainability of an accessible society as a smart society and services with the help of MOOCs and assistive technologies…
Abstract
Purpose
This research study aims to evaluate the capacity and sustainability of an accessible society as a smart society and services with the help of MOOCs and assistive technologies within the learning analytics framework.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative research was employed in this research that interview forms were conducted to get data from 60 participants. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data.
Findings
Research results revealed that MOOCs and assertive technologies are crucial for smart society and opens a map for open pedagogy. Accessible media, services and applications in smart societies are key elements for disabled people lives.
Research limitations/implications
Research is limited to numbers of research participants in northern part of Cyprus.
Practical implications
Establishing strategies and policies for the smart and accessible society and services are intensified need for the disabled people within the framework of learning analytics.
Social implications
Assistive technologies become medium of facilitating accessible and smart society and services for everyone.
Originality/value
Education plays a great role to enrich services of societies in order to create inclusive efforts to the life of disabled people. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) underline the main theme of making inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. In this respect, accessibility, inclusiveness, equity, equality, quality for lifelong learning are main components to foster accessible and smart society for everyone. Integrating the importance of learning analytics creates a value for understanding of being smart society.
Details
Keywords
Ana Leiras and Iria Caamaño-Franco
Research concerning the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in tourism activities began long before this field of study was formally named. This has led scholars to use a…
Abstract
Purpose
Research concerning the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in tourism activities began long before this field of study was formally named. This has led scholars to use a variety of expressions to refer to what is now known as accessible tourism (AT). Given that this diversity of terms can complicate locating relevant publications, this paper aims to examine the terminology used in the context of AT.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducts an exhaustive literature review and a statistical analysis of 613 documents collected from Scopus, published between 1984 and 2022.
Findings
The results suggest that, despite the widespread use of “Accessible Tourism” in recent literature, most papers published before 2010 cannot be retrieved using this term. Additionally, the longitudinal analysis of scientific production revealed four distinct stages based on the number of annual publications.
Research limitations/implications
This paper has limitations that could inspire future studies, such as relying solely on Scopus for data collection, including only academic papers, limiting the number of references and narrowing the search to specific terms. Future investigations could compare these findings using a greater amount of data collected from other databases (e.g. Google Scholar), including non-academic writings (e.g. newspapers and Webpages), exploring the efficiency of different search strategies (e.g. silver market) and delving deeper into the evolution of the AT discourse in society.
Practical implications
Policymakers and tourism stakeholders can leverage the insights of this paper to standardise their vocabulary in communication and operational strategies. Scholars can enhance the efficiency of literature searches and develop new lines of knowledge inspired by terms traditionally used to refer to AT.
Social implications
This paper encourages continued investigation into AT and underscores the importance of language in developing a more inclusive society.
Originality/value
This research pioneers the analysis of the evolution of AT synonymy by years, nations and authors. It provides evidence of how linguistic choices reflect changes in the social understanding of disability. This study proposes a framework to distinguish AT from other tourism models, facilitating unified communication among stakeholders. It presents strategies to improve efficiency in locating studies in the AT area and advocates for an inclusive society that uses language respectful to all individuals.
设计/方法/方法
本研究对从Scopus收集的1984年至2022年间发表的613篇文献进行了详尽的文献回顾和统计分析。
目的
关于将残疾人纳入旅游活动的研究早在这一研究领域正式命名之前就开始了。这导致学者们使用各种各样的表达来指代现在被称为无障碍旅游(AT)的概念。鉴于这种术语的多样性会使相关出版物的定位复杂化, 本文旨在研究AT语境中使用的术语。
调查结果
结果表明, 尽管“无障碍旅游”在最近的文献中被广泛使用, 但2010年之前发表的大多数文章都无法使用该术语进行检索。此外, 科学产出的纵向分析显示, 基于年度出版物的数量, 有四个不同的阶段。
研究局限/启示
这篇论文有一些局限可启发未来的研究, 比如仅仅依靠Scopus进行数据收集, 只包括学术论文, 限制参考文献的数量, 将搜索范围缩小到特定的术语。未来的调查可以使用从其他数据库(如Google Scholar), 包括非学术著作(如报纸、网页), 收集的大量数据来比较这些发现, 探索不同搜索策略(如白银市场)的效率, 并更深入地研究AT话语在社会中的演变。
实际意义
政策制定者和旅游业利益相关者可以利用本文见解来标准化他们在表达和操作策略中的词汇。学者们可以提高文献检索的效率, 并从传统上用于指AT的术语启发中建立新的知识线。
社会影响
本文鼓励继续研究无障碍旅游, 并强调语言在发展更具包容性的社会中的重要性。
创意/价值
这项研究是对AT同义词的年代、国家和作者的演变进行分析的开创。它为语言选择如何反映社会对残疾理解的变化提供了证据。本研究提出了一个AT有别于与其他旅游模式的框架, 促进利益相关者之间的统一沟通。它提出了提高AT领域定位效率研究的策略, 并倡导建立一个尊重所有个人的语言的包容的社会。
Objetivo
La investigación relativa a la inclusión de las personas con discapacidad en las actividades turísticas comenzó mucho antes de que se diera un nombre formal a este campo de estudio. Esto ha llevado a los estudiosos a utilizar una gran variedad de expresiones para referirse a lo que ahora se conoce como Turismo Accesible (TA). Dado que esta diversidad de términos puede complicar la localización de publicaciones relevantes, este artículo pretende examinar la terminología utilizada en el contexto del TA.
Diseño/metodología/enfoqu
Este estudio realiza una revisión exhaustiva de la literatura y un análisis estadístico de 613 documentos recopilados de Scopus, publicados entre 1984 y 2022.
Resultados
Los resultados sugieren que, a pesar del uso generalizado de “Turismo Accesible” en la literatura reciente, la mayoría de los artículos publicados antes de 2010 no pueden recuperarse utilizando este término. Además, el análisis longitudinal de la producción científica reveló cuatro etapas distintas en función del número de publicaciones anuales.
Limitaciones/implicaciones de la investigación
Este trabajo tiene limitaciones que podrían inspirar futuros estudios, como basarse únicamente en Scopus para la recopilación de datos, incluir sólo artículos académicos, limitar el número de referencias y restringir la búsqueda a términos específicos. Futuras investigaciones podrían comparar estos Resultados utilizando una mayor cantidad de datos recogidos en otras bases de datos (por ejemplo, Google Scholar), incluyendo escritos no académicos (por ejemplo, periódicos, páginas web), explorando la eficacia de diferentes estrategias de búsqueda (por ejemplo, el mercado plateado) y profundizando en la evolución del discurso del TA en la sociedad.
Implicaciones prácticas
Los responsables políticos y las partes interesadas en el turismo pueden aprovechar las ideas de este documento para normalizar su vocabulario en las estrategias de comunicación y operativas. Los estudiosos pueden mejorar la eficacia de las búsquedas bibliográficas y desarrollar nuevas líneas de conocimiento inspiradas en los términos utilizados tradicionalmente para referirse al TA.
Implicaciones sociales
Este artículo anima a seguir investigando sobre el turismo accesible y subraya la importancia del lenguaje en el desarrollo de una sociedad más inclusiva.
Originalidad/valor
Esta investigación es pionera en el análisis de la evolución de la sinonimia del TA por años, naciones y autores. Aporta pruebas de cómo las elecciones lingüísticas reflejan los cambios en la comprensión social de la discapacidad. Este estudio propone un marco para distinguir la TA de otros modelos turísticos, facilitando la comunicación unificada entre las partes interesadas. Presenta estrategias para mejorar la eficacia en la localización de estudios en el ámbito de las TA y aboga por una sociedad inclusiva que utilice un lenguaje respetuoso con todas las personas.
Details
Keywords
Ruth V. Small, William N. Myhill and Lydia Herring-Harrington
Accessibility and inclusion are at the very core of what libraries are all about and libraries and librarians have an essential, catalytic role to play in facilitating the full…
Abstract
Purpose
Accessibility and inclusion are at the very core of what libraries are all about and libraries and librarians have an essential, catalytic role to play in facilitating the full participation of people with disabilities in society. Inclusive librarians ensure that their library’s facilities, services, programs, collections, and technology are designed in ways in which all people, regardless of their ability, have an opportunity to participate in and use them. The purpose of this chapter is to raise librarian awareness to the importance of providing effective, well-designed, inclusive programs and services to patrons with disabilities and ensuring that all libraries are physically and virtually accessible to everyone.
Methodology/approach
The chapter provides a brief review of the history and current state of accessible and inclusive libraries, including the laws and policies governing it and identifies some of the major barriers to successful accessibility and inclusion (including insufficient time and money, externally controlled decision-making, unawareness of existing services, and inadequate training).
Findings
The chapter offers a variety of practical strategies for overcoming those barriers, with potential or actual examples of how librarians have/can put them into action.
Originality/value
The chapter concludes with descriptions of special national, regional, and state initiatives, including Syracuse University’s Project ENABLE (Expanding Non-discriminatory Access By Librarians Everywhere), Florida State University’s Project PALS (Panhandle Autism Library Services), and the Illinois State Library’s Targeting Autism projects, all designed to help librarians ensure that their library’ facilities, programs, and services are accessible and inclusive.
Details