Oxford Brookes Students Union Student Consultation: Disabled Student Voice
Executive Summary The University’s Disability Services department approached the Students’ Union to undertake a consultation with students with disabilities. A number of feedback areas were identified at a series of meetings, as outlined in the background section of this report. It was agreed that the activity would employ two consultation mechanisms. The preliminary activity would take the form of a survey, sent directly to a mailing list of students who had declared a disability via their UCAS application. This would be followed by focus groups, further exploring the results of the survey with students keen to share their experiences of the support they had received from the Disability Services department. The results of the survey included a good level of representation from different demographics; including students from all possible faculties, sites of study, disability classifications, etc. The results were, on the whole positive but also highlighted some clear opportunities for the development of the service, in such areas as communication, promotion and academic liaison. The recommendations from the activity, which can be found, in full, in the recommendations section of this report, are summarised as follows: 1.
For a joint communications campaign to be devised and delivered by the Students’ Union, Disability Services, and other relevant departments, to raise awareness of various support mechanisms available to 1st year students, struggling to settle in to life at university.
2.
For Disability Services to increase proactive communication to students declaring a disability via their UCAS application.
3.
For Disability Services to utilise their web presence to provide a comprehensive and accessible resource in supporting students with disabilities, and to use this resource as a key mechanism in inducting students newly registered to the service.
4.
For Disability Services to invest resource into the training of academic staff, to ensure that they are able to properly and appropriately support students with disabilities, and that they understand and are able to effectively implement the support mechanisms provided by Disability Services (e.g. blue card system, extra time for exams, etc.).
5.
For Disability Services to utilise the survey data provided by the Students’ Union, and the pool of students who have expressed an interest in attending focus groups, to continue to further explore the results of this activity, and to ensure that student opinion and experience is included in ongoing reviews of the service.
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1. Background The stated aim of this activity, as presented by the Disability Services department in their initial activity proposal was: “To engage with the Students’ Union as a partner in eliciting disabled students’ feedback about their experiences at the university and work with the Student Disability Service to develop the channelling of such information.” Initially, the objectives and outcomes of the activity, outlined in the proposal by the Disability Services Department were complex and various. At a meeting between the Students’ Union and the Disability Services department, it was agreed that many of the outcomes outlined in the activity proposal fell outside of the scope of this preliminary activity. It was agreed that the consultation activity by the Students’ Union would seek to obtain top line feedback in a number of areas, which would help to steer future consultation activity, to be conducted by Disability Services. To this end, the raw data from the survey will be supplied to the Disability Services department, to enable them to analyse it as they wish. To further assist this principle, it was agreed that this activity would seek to identify a number of students who would be happy to attend focus groups moving forward. These students could be contacted by Disability Services at a future time, should they wish to explore the activity’s findings in more detail, or to explore some of the areas of interest outlined in the initial activity proposal, which were not covered in the initial consultation activity. At this meeting, it was agreed that the activity objectives would be set as follows: Objective One: - To obtain feedback in order to assess the level of awareness of the support available to disabled students; Objective Two: - To obtain feedback about perceived development opportunities for the provision of support for disabled students; Objective Three: - To obtain feedback about the perceived positive aspects of the provision of support for disabled students; Objective Four: - To obtain top-line feedback about disabled students’ perception of inclusivity at Brookes. Objective Five: - To provide a list of students who may be willing to take part in focus group activity, outside of the scope of this consultation.
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2. Methodology The Students’ Union was given access a list of all current students who had declared a disability through their UCAS application. These 1,770 students were sent a direct email, encouraging them to complete an online survey about their experiences at Oxford Brookes. 245 students responded to this email correspondence; a response rate of 14%. It was agreed that a number of profiling questions would be included in the survey (see fig.1. Disability Survey Questions) to allow Disability Services to interrogate the survey data based on certain student demographics. The responses to the student profiling questions indicate a good level of representation from different demographics; including students from all possible faculties, sites of study, disability classifications, etc. As part of the survey, students were invited to put their names forward to attend focus groups, to further explore the results of the survey. 77 students expressed an interest in attending a group (although only 66 provided contact details to enable further contact) and 10 students responded to a subsequent invitation and attended one of two focus group sessions. The SU also received a report from a Brookes student, who completed a study, entitled ‘An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis of the Experiences of Disabled Students with Hidden Disabilities in Higher Education’. This study was undertaken as part of a course at Brookes and involved interviewing 8 Brookes students with disabilities about their experiences at university. The findings of this report are referenced here, where relevant, to support some of the data captured through our own consultation activity. The full report can also be found as an appendix to this report (see appendix 1). Fig.1. Disability Survey Questions Question
Available Options
Gender Radio buttons, single answer
Male / Female / Prefer not to disclose
Faculty Multiple choice
Faculty of Business / Faculty of Health & Life Sciences / Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences / Faculty of Technology, Design & Environment.
Main Site of Study Radio buttons, single answer
Ferndale / Gipsy Lane / Harcourt / Headington Hill / Marston Road / Wheatley
Study Profile Multiple choice (students encouraged to select 2 from a possible 4 options)
Full-time / Part-time / Postgraduate research / Postgraduate taught / Undergraduate
Disability Classification Multiple choice
Dyslexia/SPLD / Sensory impairment / Mental health issues / Medical health issues / Other (please specify)
At what point were you made aware of the provisions available to disabled students at Oxford Brookes? Radio buttons, single answer
Pre-arrival / At enrolment / On initially contacting the Student Disability/Dyslexia Service(s) / Other (please specify)
What prompted you to register with the Disability and/or Dyslexia Service(s)
Accessibility support / Course delivery adjustments / Exam adjustments / Health concerns / Other (please specify) 3
Multiple choice Preferred Assessment Method Radio buttons, single answer
Essay assignments / Examinations (unseen) / Examinations (open book, or seen) / Critical diaries, learning logs, journals / Oral examinations / Multiple choice testing / Student led seminars, Presentations and/or discussions / Practical examinations or tests / Other (please specify)
To what extent do you agree with the following statement? “The Disability and Dyslexia Service website is useful.” Radio buttons, single answer
Strongly agree / Agree / Disagree / Strongly disagree / I am unaware of the site
To what extent do you agree with the following statement? “I know where to find information about what I need to do at Oxford Brookes, to get the support I need.” Radio buttons, single answer
Strongly agree / Agree / Disagree / Strongly disagree
To what extent do you agree with the following statement? “I feel included in the student life of the University.” Radio buttons, single answer
Strongly agree / Agree / Disagree / Strongly disagree
What's the best thing about the disabilities services provision at Oxford Brookes and why? Free text field (paragraph)
N/A
If you could change one thing about the disabilities services provision at Oxford Brookes what would it be and why? Free text field (paragraph)
N/A
We would like to form a focus group, to gather ongoing student feedback about the provision of Disability Services at Oxford Brookes. Would you be interested in being a part of this group? Radio buttons, single answer
Yes / No
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3. Survey Results Student Profile Question #1 – Gender Count of Gender Gender Female Male Prefer not to disclose Grand Total
Total 66.5% 33.1% 0.4% 100.0%
Gender 66.5% 70.0% 60.0% 33.1%
50.0% 40.0%
Total
30.0% 20.0%
0.4%
10.0% 0.0% Female
Male
Prefer not to disclose
Student Profile Question #2 – Faculty of Study Which faculty does your course belong to? Health and Life Sciences Humanities and Social Sciences Technology, Design and Environment Business Grand Total
Total 31% 31% 20% 18% 100%
Faculty of Study 31% 35%
31%
30%
20%
25%
18%
20%
Total
15% 10% 5% 0% Health and Life Humanities and Sciences Social Sciences
Technology, Design and Environment
Business
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Student Profile Question #3 – Main Site of Study Main Site of Study Gipsy Lane Marston Road Wheatley Headington Hill Harcourt Ferndale Grand Total
Total 39% 18% 18% 13% 10% 2% 100%
Main Site of Study 39% 40% 35% 30% 25%
18%
18%
20%
Total
13% 10%
15% 10%
2%
5% 0% Gipsy Lane
Marston Road
Wheatley Headington Hill
Harcourt
Ferndale
Student Profile Question #4 – Mode of Study Study Mode Undergraduate Postgraduate Taught Postgraduate Research Grand Total
Total 80% 16% 4% 100%
Mode of Study 80% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
Total
16% 4%
Undergraduate
Postgraduate Taught
Postgraduate Research
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Student Profile Question #5 – Frequency of Study Full-time/Part-time Full-time Part-time Grand Total
Total 86% 14% 100%
Study Frequency 86% 90% 80% 70% 60%
Total
50% 40%
14%
30% 20% 10% 0% Full-time
Part-time
Student Profile Question #6 – Disability Category How would you categorise your disability? Dyslexia/SPLD Medical health issues Mobility impairment Mental health issues Sensory impairment Grand Total
Total 62% 18% 8% 7% 5% 100%
How would you categorise your disability? 70%
62%
60% 50% 40% 30%
Total 18%
20%
8%
7%
5%
10% 0% Dyslexia/SPLD Medical health issues
Mobility impairment
Mental health issues
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Sensory impairment
Disability Service Question #7 – Awareness of Service At what point were you made aware of the provisions available to disabled students at Oxford Brookes? Pre-Arrival On initially contacting the Student Disability/Dyslexia Service At Enrolment Other (please specify) Grand Total
Total 53% 29% 10% 8% 100%
At what point were you made aware of the provisions available to disabled students at Oxford Brookes? 60%
53%
50% 40%
29%
30%
Total 10%
20%
8%
10% 0% Pre-Arrival
On initially contacting the Student Disability/Dyslexia Service
At Enrolment
Other (please specify)
Other (please specify) I found out as I hit problems using facilities at Oxford Brookes When I was well over half way into my first year of a previous degree here and had been struggling a lot. AFTER THEY GAVE ME THE THINGS AND TOLD ME I WON'T PAY FOR THAT LIKE MY STUDENT LOAN Upon my own research year 2 Only after years of complaining and nobody knew where to go, or what to do. VERY POOR OBU COMMUNICATION! I completed my undergraduate degree here and received provision, unfortunately Brookes was the only University I applied to, for which the disability team never contacted me so I had to contact the disability team to see if they could match the provision that other universities were offering me. When I was diagnosed
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Disability Service Question #8 – Reason for Registering What prompted you to register with the Disability and/or Dyslexia Service? Exam adjustments Accessibility support Course delivery adjustments Health concerns Grand Total
Total 37% 30% 19% 14% 100%
What prompted you to register with the Disability and/or Dyslexia Service? 37% 40%
30%
35% 30%
19%
25%
14%
Total
20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Exam adjustments
Accessibility support
Course delivery adjustments
Health concerns
Other Reasons for Registering (please specify) 1-1 support A lecturer questioned whether I could be dyslexic Ability to meet deadlines Adjusting to doing a Masters course after 6 years out of an academic environment. Application form required honest completion and the information was picked up by the university. This was passed to the Disability Service who has kept in on file. Assignment help Automatically registered when declaring disability on application Because I have to coursework deadline ajustments Ensuring help would be available should it be necessary to seek it. finances, Funding general support and information. I am a mature student who struggled at school and initially I wanted to access my learning style and learn as much as I could about the way I absorb/process information I am deaf in one ear and was concerned about being able to hear lectures. I am studying Graphics and Design which requires an element of engineering drawing. The lecturer sent all students an email announcing a closed book test during one of the practical sessions. I was concerned that I may not be able to complete the drawings in the time allotted for the test and when I discussed this with the lecturer, he advised me to contact the Disability and Dyslexia Service. I did not qualify, I was said not to be a serious case.
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I had a previous dyslexia test at sixth form so I informed my university of this and then had the full test I just wanted to check in and see what services were offered. I learn well by seeing; like a presentation or demonstration. Taking notes of what’s important at the same time is near-impossible; so I am supplied with note takers for my modules. I was advised by a colleague and friend that I perhaps could have a test to see if I would need support during my time of study. I was assessed for dyslexia toward the end of my first year I was required to as part of application process I was under severe anxiety about changes in my writing. Supervisors, faculty admin and other students did know anything about your office. It is as if you expect people to come to you. We are the customer and you hide behind office doors with part time people, who do not answer the phone, do not answer emails and go on vacation without delegating tasks to a point of contact responsible! It is something I felt I should mention. It took a chance meeting with Hayley card for me to even learn it existed! I greatly need the service for catch up support, examination help and deadline extensions. It was a continuation from being registered at college. it was deemed suitable as part of my care package Just general help and so that the university know just in case I needed any help personal tutor for assignments Prelim discussions with Caroline Moughton were very informative and re-assuring Previous Higher Education experience Recommendation of my secondary school. The extra help provided. The form that came with the enrolment information...I wouldn't have done otherwise. University decided for me Useful accessories (laptop, keyboard, organisational tools ect...) was tested and received help at my college although i had to be tested again at Oxford Brookes Wasn't aware that I had We were encouraged to get assessed by our course. The fact the assessment was subsidised enabled me to get tested when i never have been able to afford it before. Disability Service Question #9 – Preferred method of assessment What is your preferred method of assessment? Essay assignments Multiple choice testing Practical examinations or tests Student led seminars, presentations and/or discussions Examinations (unseen) Other (please specify) Oral examinations Examinations (open book, or seen) Critical diaries, learning logs, journals Grand Total
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Total 42% 14% 13% 9% 6% 6% 5% 3% 2% 100%
What is your preferred assessment method? 45%
42%
40%
35%
30%
25%
Total
20% 14%
13%
15% 9% 10%
6%
6%
5% 3% 2%
5%
0% Essay assignments
Multiple choice testing
Practical examinations or tests
Student led seminars, presentations and/or discussions
Examinations (unseen)
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Other (please specify)
Oral examinations
Examinations (open book, or seen)
Critical diaries, learning logs, journals
Disability Service Question #10 – Usefulness of Website The student Disability and Dyslexia service website is useful Strongly agree Agree I am unaware of the site Disagree Strongly Disagree Grand Total
Total 6.9% 45.8% 44.4% 2.3% 0.5% 100.0%
The student Disability and Dyslexia Service website is useful 45.8% 50.0%
44.4%
45.0% 40.0% 35.0% 30.0% 25.0%
Total
20.0% 15.0%
6.9%
10.0%
2.3%
0.5%
5.0% 0.0% Strongly agree
Agree
I am unaware of the site
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Disability Service Question #11 – Awareness of Support Mechanisms I know where to find information about what I need to do at Oxford Brookes to get the support I need. Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree Grand Total
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Total 19% 59% 16% 6% 100%
I know where to find information about what I need to do at Oxford Brookes to get support 59% 60% 50% 40% 30%
Total
19% 16%
20% 6% 10% 0% Strongly agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Disability Service Question #12 – Feeling Included I feel included in the Student life of the University Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree Grand Total
Total 25% 52% 18% 6% 100%
I feel included in the Student life of the University 52%
60% 50% 40% 25%
Total
30%
18%
20% 6% 10% 0% Strongly Agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
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Disability Service Question #13 – Best thing about disability services provision What's the best thing about the disabilities services provision at Oxford Brookes and why? Staff attributes General support Academic support Mentoring (one to one) Accessible Equipment provision Blue card system Disability Assessment Financial support Grand Total
Total 36.6% 18.9% 16.3% 10.6% 8.4% 4.4% 3.5% 0.9% 0.4% 100.0%
Best thing about Disability Services provision 40.0%
36.6%
35.0% 30.0% 25.0% 18.9% 20.0% 15.0% 10.0%
16.3%
Total
10.6% 8.4% 4.4%
5.0%
3.5% 0.9%
0.0%
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0.4%
Disability Service Question #14 – One thing that could be changed to improve the provision If you could change one thing about the disabilities services provision at Oxford Brookes what would it be and why? Improved support Increased availability of staff Improved communications Better promotion of services Geographical location Improved academic support/liaison Improvements to dyslexia support Simplified registration process Staff attributes Improvements to site/facilities Changes to funding/financial support Website improvements Efficiency of the service Extracurricular activities Increased confidentiality Improved equipment provision Grand Total
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Total 16% 13% 12% 12% 10% 8% 7% 6% 6% 6% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 100%
One thing that could be improved 16%
14%
12%
10%
16%
13% 12%
12%
10% 8%
8%
7% 6% 6%
6%
6%
Total 4%
1%
2%
1% 0%
16
1%
1%
1%
1%
4. Conclusions Objective 1 To obtain feedback in order to assess the level of awareness of the support available to disabled students. The survey asked students when they were first made aware of the support available to them at Oxford Brookes. Over half (53%) of the respondents had been aware of the support available prior to enrolling at Brookes. This suggests a certain level of efficacy in terms of pre-arrivals communication by Disability Services. In focus groups, some students reported to have seen information about Disability Services in the offer pack. Others discussed the presence of information in prospectuses and whilst some students reported to have found information via this source, others did not remember having seen anything at this stage. One student suggested that there should be a small box dedicated to disability support located within each course section in prospectuses, as ‘most students just head straight for the section about their course’. The student in question had studied an Undergraduate degree at Reading University, prior to starting a Postgraduate course at Oxford Brookes and cited Reading’s approach to integrating disability support information into prospectuses as excellent. A further 10% of respondents suggested that they became aware of Disability Services support during enrolment. The inclusion of awareness raising activity at this time is, therefore, clearly important in communicating the message to those who may have missed a call to action pre-arrival. However, an improvement in pro-active communication with those declaring a disability via UCAS could also address this. Nearly one third (30%) of respondents indicated that they had not heard about the support mechanisms available until they had contacted Disability Services themselves. The reasons for this may be various. One possible cause of so many students only approaching Disability Services after enrolment is that some students may not feel they require support for their disability until they have started their course and experience issues with access, course delivery, etc. This could be more likely with disability such as Dyslexia, where the level of assisted teaching experienced in schools may have been manageable but the step change to university level learning may become unmanageable. This possibility is supported by the results of the question asking students what prompted them to register their disability, where the single most frequent driver (37%) was exam adjustments. This suggests that some students did not feel that they needed support until toward the end of their first semester at Oxford Brookes. This potential scenario has been discussed with the Students’ Union’s Disabled Students’ Officer, the Students’ Union Advice Centre, and Disability Services and has been given credence by all parties. In discussion at a meeting between the Students’ Union and Disability Services, it was suggested that this situation might be addressed by implementing a communications campaign 6 weeks into semester one. The aim of the campaign would be to address a number of areas where students might be struggling in their first few weeks at University (coping with a disability, finance, housing, studying, etc.) and would signpost to sources of support. All relevant departments felt that this was a good idea but further discussion is necessary to develop the scope of the campaign and assign responsibilities. It may also be prudent for Disability Services to carry out some targeted awareness-raising activity ahead of exams, taking into account the high percentage of students for whom this was the point at which they first required additional support from the University. Another potential cause is that there is a lot to do and huge amount of information for new students to digest pre-arrival and during enrolment. One student supported this view at a focus group, stating that ‘freshers’ is really busy, we need a reminder afterwards’. It may be that the message about available support was not one 17
that stood out. At focus groups, students were asked what they thought would have made this message stand out from the rest. Many of the participants felt that personalised email would be an effective communication mechanism. All students at focus groups reported to check their email. The efficacy of this channel is supported by an unconnected poll carried out on the Students’ Union Facebook page, where 85% of students reported to check their Brookes email account at least once every 6 hours. Focus group participants felt that it would help if the emails were personalised, from an expected source and opened with a synopsis of the important content of the email (as the first line of the email shows as a preview in Google Mail). Another suggested mechanism to promote the support available to disabled students was the website. However, it should be noted that 60% of the focus group participants, and nearly 45% of survey respondents were not aware of the existence of the website. This clearly suggests a need for more promotion of the site. Finally, some students at focus groups felt that posters would be useful in raising awareness of Disability Services, although it was suggested that these would need to be targeted to relevant locations, within faculties, in the library, etc. It was suggested that if posters were used, they should follow a standard format, colour, etc., so they were easily distinguishable from the plethora of posters around Brookes campuses. It should be noted that the survey was only sent to students who have registered as having a disability through their UCAS application and, therefore, the results of this question do not account for students who didn’t declare a disability at this stage, or who have developed disabilities since they started at Oxford Brookes. Focus group feedback also suggests that there may be scope for improvement to the processes around contacting students who declare a disability through their application. One student who took part in a focus group stated that she had applied to 5 universities through UCAS and Brookes was the only one not to proactively make contact, to follow up on the student’s disability declaration. Responses to a question asking students how strongly they agree that they know how to access support at Brookes were mixed. On a positive note, over ¾ of respondents (78%) felt that they knew how to access support. However, the remaining 22% disagreed that they knew how to access support. It would appear that there is some scope for improved communication to students who declare a disability via their application, to ensure that they know what support is available and how to access it. The combination of the lack of awareness of the Disability Services website, a lack of understanding of what support is available and how to access it, and the feedback from focus groups that web based communications might be effective, suggest that developing the Disability Services website to ensure that it contains clear and comprehensive information about support for disabled students and then using the website as a key mechanism for the induction of newly registered students into the service may be an effective approach.
Objective Two: To obtain feedback about perceived development opportunities for the provision of support for disabled students. Students were specifically asked what they would change, if they could change one thing to improve the provision of support to disabled students at Oxford Brookes. Feedback was very diverse but there were some key themes, which are detailed in fig.2.
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Fig.2. Feedback themes from Question #14 – One thing that could be changed to improve the provision Feedback Area Improved support
Increased availability of staff
Improved communications
Better promotion of services
Geographical location Improved academic support/liaison
Improvements to dyslexia support Simplified registration process Staff attributes
Specific Feedback More specialised staff (e.g. course specific note-takers) Better one to one study skills mentoring More regular support Faster appointment times Increased support with funding More support accessible remotely Drop in service Telephone appointments More staff Clearer information about processes More information about what support is available Regular email circulars More pre-arrivals information Better publicity during enrolment More general publicity around campus A presence at different sites Increased remote support (e.g. web based) Increasing the awareness of disabilities among academic staff Improving access to lecture notes Increasing deadline extensions
Increased flexibility Listening more Being more helpful
Improvements to site/facilities
Although it doesn’t appear in the top 3 areas of feedback from the survey, academic liaison was a strong theme in both the focus groups and in the report received from a student. Both activities highlighted issues with the understanding of disabilities among some academic staff. This ranged from insensitive communications, such as a lecturer introducing a note taker to the whole lecture group and a students’ ‘special needs support’, to academic staff not being aware of the mechanisms available to support students with disabilities, such as special exam arrangements. One focus group participant stated that he had been told that he could have extra time for an exam but that the rest of his group would need to stay behind until he was finished. The student felt that this would not engender a good feeling from the group, so declined the offer. One support mechanism that was mentioned repeatedly, as not working consistently, was the blue card system. Students fed back that some academic staff seem not to understand them, some seem to ignore them and others appear angered at having to ‘deal with them’. One student reported that a member of academic staff brought her blue card in to a lecture and handed it to her in front of the rest of the group, stating ‘you seem to have left something in my tray. Don’t do it again.’ Whilst the blue card system is clearly valued by students with disabilities and was raised as one of the best things about the available support, it serves as a good example of where the implementation of a system appears not to be of a consistent standard, across the organisation. 19
Objective Three: To obtain feedback about the perceived positive aspects of the provision of support for disabled students. Students were specifically asked what they felt was the best thing about the provision of support to disabled students at Oxford Brookes. Again, feedback was very diverse but there were some key themes, which are detailed in fig.3. Fig.3. Feedback themes from Question #14 – Best thing about disability services provision Feedback Area Staff attributes
General support
Academic support
Specific Feedback Understanding Caring Approachable Knowledgeable Professional Reliable Supportive Efficient Friendly Helpful Advice Someone to talk to Help to fill in forms Exam provision - extra time, etc. Coursework support Liaison with academic staff
Mentoring (one to one) Accessible Equipment provision Blue card system
The appearance of areas such as academic liaison & the blue card system in the responses to this question further reinforce the importance of these elements of support to disabled students.
Objective Four: To obtain top-line feedback about disabled students’ perception of inclusivity at Brookes. Of the 245 responses to the survey, 77% either agreed, or strongly agreed, that they felt included in the student life at Oxford Brookes. Of the 23% who disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement, 35% were part time students (see fig. 4.). This suggests that there is scope for further inclusivity promoting activity among part-time students. However, it could also be reflective of a general lack of a feeling of inclusivity among part-time students and not be endemic to students with disabilities.
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Fig. 4 – Split of students who indicated a lack of feeling of inclusivity by full-time/part-time
Full time/Part time 35% Full-time 65%
Part-time
Objective Five: To provide a list of students who may be willing to take part in focus group activity, outside of the scope of this consultation. Details students who expressed an interest in being part of a focus group have been provided to the Disability Services team, as part of the survey data. In line with data protection regulations, this data should only be used for the purpose of contacting these th students about future focus groups and the data should be destroyed by 14 November 2012. Students who have been contacted by this time and agreed to be contacted further may be kept on a separate list, in accordance with data protection regulations.
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5. Recommendations The following actions are recommended by the Students’ Union, as a consequence of this activity. 1. Discussion should continue between Disability Services, the Students’ Union, and other relevant departments, with a view to implementing a communications campaign, aimed at new students, in week 6 of st the 2012/13 academic year. The campaign’s objective should be to target 1 year students, to communicate a range of support mechanisms available to them, should they be experiencing issues settling at university. This might include (but may not be limited to): - referrals to Disability Services, for students who might be struggling due to challenges connected to a disability; - referrals to a source of dyslexia testing, for students who might be struggling with the step change in learning styles between school and university; - details of the support available through the Students’ Union Advice Centre, in such areas as finance and housing; - details of how students can access academic support through the Upgrade service; - links to a comprehensive list of the support available to students through the University’s Counselling Service. 2. Disability Services should increase proactive communication with both students with a disability, declared via UCAS; and with the student body in general. This proactive communication should promote the support available to students at Oxford Brookes who have disabilities and clearly explain how students can access this support. 3. Disability Services should develop their areas of the Brookes.ac.uk website, to create an accessible and comprehensive resource for disabled students at Oxford Brookes. This website should be used as a tool to help promote the available support and also to induct students newly registered with the service. 4. Disability Services should invest resource in to the education of academic staff in effectively supporting students with disabilities. For examples of issues in this area, please reference appendix 1. It would be beneficial if this included both training on soft skills and on understanding and effectively implementing the support mechanisms provided by Disability Services, such as the Blue Card Scheme, additional time for exams, etc. We recommend that Disability Services involve OCSLD in conversations around how this could best be developed and delivered. 5. Disability Services should contact the students who have expressed an interest in attending focus groups early in the 2012/13 academic year, with a view to setting up ongoing focus group activity, to explore the results of this activity in more detail and/or to seek ongoing feedback from users of the service.
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Appendix 1 Summary Report: An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis of the Experiences of Disabled Students with Hidden Disabilities in Higher Education For the submission of an undergraduate dissertation, 8 undergraduate students were interviewed regarding their experience of university with a disability, dyslexia or health condition during the academic year 2010-2011. Interviews were conducted in a semi-structured format and were analysed through Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). For the purpose of anonymity, pseudonyms have been used in place of names and all other identifying information has been removed including subjects studied and names of any staff. Whilst the main report focussed on psychological wellbeing and identity, employing a humanistic and existential framework, the following brief report focusses on the aspects of the students experience which may be of interest to the disability team. Out of the 8 students, two who had chronic health conditions are not included within this report as they were not registered with the disability service, however one did express some uncertainty about whether this was an option, what conditions the disability service really include and how they could be approached: “People say I could register with the disability team, and I guess I could register with them and maybe make life easier when I’m ill but I don’t really know if I’d be allowed, I mean what can I do? Just go and say to them I’ve got a problem? I don’t know if that’s what they cover” Ellie All were home students, and were within the average age of undergraduate students with the exception of one mature student. Out of the six students whose experiences are reported below, three were dyslexic students, one had mental health problems and two had chronic health conditions. Library: With regard to the library, two students’ noted concern about the level of support offered and the awareness of the librarians regarding the help they needed and the need to be discrete. “because um… I find it really hard to work out the number system… in fact I still can’t work it out today and I went up to one of the librarians in my first or second year and said look I’ve been looking for these books for over an hour I really don’t understand the library system I’m asking if I can have some help to find these books and she was like what do you think we’re here for, we don’t have time to find student’s books, I can put you into contact with someone who can give you a tour but apart from that I have to stay at this desk, I can’t help you look for your books but I said to her I have a disability I have dyslexia so I find it hard...I can’t really work out the number system but she didn’t want to help me” Claire “I don’t find the library the most accessible...when I asked for help once...they helped but the woman...she didn’t want too...she… and she made a huge issue of it, practically shouting to another librarian across the library “I have to help this disabled student”...she couldn’t have said the word ‘disabled’ any louder, it was so embarrassing, I didn’t even want the books anymore I just wanted to go” Jack
Academic Staff: Difference between departments: With regard to their interactions with academic staff, student’s on joint honours programmes noted discrepancies between the different departments they were studying within and the awareness and training of staff in relation to disability issues. “...I’ve noticed a difference between the two schools...I’ve noticed and I’m not sure if I’m allowed to say this but (school) have been slightly more understanding than some of the (other school)...so...the huge difference between both schools...I don’t know why that is… don’t know...now I’m majoring in (one field) I still go and see (other field’s) support coordinators” Jennifer “it depends on the training they have as well....it depends how informed the academic are about disability and how they view it...they’ve obviously got to see that there’s a fine line between constantly making you feel like a disabled student and constantly asking you what you need and then going the opposite way...the opposite extreme where they don’t offer you anything even though you’ve let them know” Jennifer “the (current field) department has been particularly difficult and inflexible when dealing with my disability, to the degree where virtually all of the (current field) staff I have encountered ignored my disability, penalising my grades to the degree where I would hand in a piece of work, and they would hand back the blue card” Claire “It has been a big mix of supportive, rude, kindness and uncaring attention…in my first year, one of my (subject) teachers was very rude when I asked for help, whilst an (other subject) lecturer didn't seem to care about students... other staff however have been exceptionally supportive and helpful, explaining concepts and ideas, taking time out to understand my disability when it was announced and so on” Karen “It’s mixed...it depends on the academic really...you never know what to expect...whether they will help you or not...” Jack Dyslexia support: Out of the three dyslexic students’, all three commented on the inconsistency in staff’s understanding of the role of the blue card and how this should be taken into consideration in their marking. “I’ve never had professors work with dyslexia, they’ve always got angry about it like ‘oh these blue little tickets, these um…these you know...’ like people maybe who don’t know anything about it say oh it’s not going to make a difference, it’s not fair...it’s not fair that they’re getting this… that you don’t get marked down for your grammar mistakes so yeah instead of getting helpful professors…they get annoyed” Gemma “the way they marked my work and stuff they didn’t kind of take a different approach to it compared to another persons and I feel that because they didn’t take on board the fact I was dyslexic… I remember one occasion it was the compulsory module and they... (lecturer) was
filling in for the module leader and we had a piece of work..the first assignment and I remember giving her the blue card and I attached it to the work and I remember getting the mark back...the grade back and although I got a 60 a lot of the comments on it were...a lot of the crosses were against it were for grammar and stuff and on the bottom she wrote ‘see upgrade’ and the thing that happened was she gave me back the work and said ‘oh yes and you left this blue card in my pigeon-hole’… and I said no ‘that’s for you’ but she walked off and it registered to me that she didn’t even read the blue card, she just thought I’d attached some blue card so the marks she’d given me… she hadn’t read the blue card that said this student is dyslexic ,don’t discount marks for grammar” Claire “one other module ...the first piece of work was a short interview and analyse it but I remember feeling this is weird the mark should be higher than this and she sat there and said you would have got higher but I had to deduct marks for the grammar and spelling…and this was even despite the blue card” Claire “so the blue card is there..I’m not sure how much lecturers follow it…I know there’s debate amongst the Uni…how much lecturers take notice of the blue card…I understand in coursework you might not need to look at it as much because you can read through it and have the help of your dyslexia tutor...but I think definitely exams they’re needed and lecturers need to take notice of them… the blue cards are good depending on how much lecturers listen to them… there’s a lot of you know…some lecturers don’t listen to them that much” Laurence Disability Team: The following comments were made about the disability team itself: “they have always been exceptionally helpful and have been excellent advocates on my behalf, especially when dealing with the (Current field) but I feel that in a way I kind of feel a bit angry with the disability team because I feel it’s their job to be educating the rest of the university…the staff and also the people in the library as well” Claire “I think the thing that people don’t realise that you...it’s like an extra thing to work with it’s not just like it makes working difficult there’s a whole extra pile of things that you have to work on because of your dyslexia or like...so you have a learning support person or something but that in itself is like taking a whole other module (laughs) so I don’t know for me it feels like I’m doing a whole other courses and things just because I’m dyslexic and I felt the dyslexia service didn’t understand that” Gemma “I think there is a gap…obviously each person is assessed dependent on their particular disability but I felt that there’s a generic thing that you go for and it’s not as flexible enough, as I say everyone’s disability affects them in different ways and they seem to have this standard package that they offer…and that’s the impression I got this is the standard package we offer and that’s what you’re going to get…I didn’t feel like they always listened to me…” Jennifer “In my first two years the support from my disability advisor was really good, she kept in regular contact and helped with problems but when I was struggling on my placement
abroad, I was struggling and there was no support, my disability advisor just seemed to try and placate me and the problems and after 4 months she’d only contacted me once... it was almost as if because I was not at Brookes this year I was no longer her problem” Karen Assessment of needs (DSA) Five of the six students’ commented on the length of time it took to receive their provision and the lack of support they felt during this time: “the process just seemed to take forever…it was…I was almost through the first year before I got any of the help that they said I could have…because you sort of go to the disability service and talk to them…then they refer you to a disability somebody…an assessor who’s at the um…Oxford college for further education…that’s where all of the assessment’s are done for oxford…so I had to wait and I think…I enrolled in the September and it wasn’t until I was almost at the end of the 2nd semester that I had my assessment” Jennifer “in my second year, in my second term of my second year I’ve only had one session of dyslexia help you know it’s taken a year and a half to kind of organise these things which is what I mean… it’s more like extra work because you know these people are here to support us and help us but in a way you know they...thy don’t communicate with each other, just like a normal beurocracy it’s just like impossible to kind of sort it out when you’re dyslexic and it’s like you’re making my life harder not easier... yeah they have given me the what do you call it?... equipment, but you think what’s the point if you can’t use anything (laughs)” Gemma “by the time they sorted it out, it was about week 10 or 11 or 12 or something and I was like what’s the point for this semester…exams are coming and I don’t have the time to sort it out……but then…of course it took me a while to get used to the equipment…the training wasn’t very good on the equipment at all… it’s not dyslexic people that are training…or people aware of dyslexia were training us on the equipment…they’re not exactly training us right because they don’t know how we work…” Laurence “it just took too long before the support arrived, you were already behind by that point” Karen “it was the waiting for the help...you’d asked for help, you needed help and they were going to help but it just took so long and there was no emails, nothing to make sure you were okay until the help arrived...” Jack One student suggested it would be helpful for the disability team to make students aware that they can access software through any pooled computers within Brookes and have had access to training on the software from the university: “I’d seen the disability support officer but I was still waiting for all of that package to come through...I didn’t even know you could access this stuff through the Brookes system which would have helped hugely...although I didn’t know how to use it then…which would have been useful” Jennifer Mitigating Circumstances:
A couple of students also commented on the new mitigating circumstances procedure and how they felt this made obtaining extensions more difficult for them: “…I needed to do the mitigating circumstances which was mega stressful and I was just getting more and more stressed with the new process...” Jennifer “It was easier when it was discretionary of the module leader but now it’s impossible, you waste the extensions time just trying to get the extension time” Claire Fellow Students: One of the other areas, the students commented on the awareness and understanding of other student’s in relation to their disability. “my housemate she always used to think I was a little bit stupid and always used to feel free to say it kind of like...kind of a joke...kind of a bit oh you know you’re hard to understand aren’t you” Gemma “they don’t understand how much harder I have to work and I remember one situation and it really made me angry it was with my housemates in my first year and I was getting a computer and they were like oh my god that’s not fair but why can’t we get that and I think that kind of sums up their attitude to it because like if they’re seeing it as an unfair situation” Claire “You get the ‘oh I wish I was dyslexic so I could have the free stuff’ and I’m like what? No! Why do you wish you were dyslexic so you could have free stuff? I would do anything…” Laurence “I think on the whole they do shy away from mature students as well as disabled students and it’s not until you get into study groups and they think oh you’re not so bad...now I’ll sit in the canteen and people will come up and chat to me...depending on where I am…but I still think there’s that stigma attached, rightly or wrongly...” Jennifer