In this article, written by Dr. Mike Kent, it discusses how online students with learning disabilities can have potential issues of accessibility in higher education. Open Universities Australia (OUA) is a consortium of seven Australian universities and brings together 15 different institutions teaching higher education to students, online, across several different fields; graduate and postgraduate levels. Students at OUA are given the option is disclose that they have a disability as a part of the enrollment process, however this information is not passed to the specific institutions where that student(s) is studying.
A survey was conducted in 2014 to look into the attitudes and conditions of students with disabilities. The survey focused on two topics, the first focused on accessibility of the different online platforms used for teaching and learning. The second topic focused on a student’s level of disclosure; how forth coming would the student be with their disability and if an accommodation was made, was it affective.
After the study was conducted, it was found that only 15 percent of students reported having a mental illness. However, in the study conducted by Dr. Kent, 46.3 percent of students that took the survey, responded that they have a mental illness or other learning disability.
Mike, Kent. “Disability, Mental Illness, and ELearning: Invisible Behind the Screen?” The Journal of Interactive Technology and Pedagogy, 17 Dec. 2015, jitp.commons.gc.cuny.edu/disability-mental-illness-and-elearning-invisible-behind-the-screen/.