International

In 2014, Switzerland ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with

Disabilities, which establishes as one of its guiding principles the full and effective
participation and inclusion of persons with disabilities in society. The present study
examines the lived experience and agency of disabled people living in Switzerland with
regard to the coping strategies they resorted to in response to barriers to their
participation in life domains such as education, vocational training and employment.
Twenty-six people representing four impairment groups (mobility, visual, psychosocial,
intellectual and developmental difficulties) and three age cohorts (born around 1950,
1970 or 1990) participated in semi-structured life course interviews. The narratives
show how people have dealt with the structural constraints on their participation in
different ways and according to their individual circumstances. However, the coping
strategies identified can broadly be assigned to three general types (adapting, avoiding,
and confronting), which represent different forms of agency with varying prospects for
dismantling structural constraints. The paper discusses theoretical and practical
implications with regard to overcoming structural constraints and improving the agency
and freedom of choice of people with disabilities.

This study attempts to understand social and educational experiences of students with
disabilities in institutions of higher education and is exploratory in nature. To understand
the educational experiences of these students, it is not enough to know only the
availability of services and resources. It is also necessary to understand the students
personally, and the circumstances in which they live. To answer the research questions
posed in this study, the researcher has used mixed methods and three universities were
selected through purposive sampling in so as to gain maximum diverse variation. For
this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with hundred students with disabilities in
selected universities in Andhra Pradesh, India. In this study, quantitative and qualitative
data analyses were used and in most cases quotes of real text for each theme were
maintained and used extensively. The findings of the study show the students were very
categorical about their special needs in order to achieve their goals. A greater
understanding has been gained regarding coping strategies adopted by them to
manage their higher education needs. Based on findings of the study the researcher
has brought out the factors which influence the creation of an inclusive environment in
institutions of higher education.

The study examines the coping strategies among 130 undergraduate college and
university students with learning disabilities (LD) and 146 students without learning
disabilities (NLD). Students completed self‐reported instruments designed to measure
stress, support and strategies. The findings revealed that students without LD reported
higher work stress, higher combined stress and more social support than did students
with LD. Students without LD were more task orientated and perceived more support
than students with LD, while students with LD used more emotional coping strategies
than NLD students. Differences were also obtained regarding age and gender. The
study highlights the importance of further investigations with a larger sample and the
support sources of students with LD, and suggests developing task‐oriented coping
strategies designed especially for students with LD.
Before CMO 23, s. 2000 and CMO 9, s. 2013 were mandated, the College of Education,
Western Mindanao State University started accommodating students with special needs
in S.Y. 1999-2000 in the Special Elementary Education (SEE) of the Integrated
Laboratory School, specifically to address the needs of students with hearing
impairment. Two years later, a Special Tertiary Education Program (STEP) was offered
for students with visual impairment, hearing impairment, intellectual disability and those
with physical challenges. A year later, Special education at the secondary level was
introduced for the incoming secondary students from the elementary department. It was
then called the Special Secondary School (SSS). Inclusive Education for Persons with
Disabilities (PWD’s) in this university is now on its seventeenth (17th) year through the
Alternative Special Programs of Inclusion and Resource Education (ASPIRE). Inclusive
Education models spearheaded the implementation of inclusive education programs
that encourages institutions to include students with special needs in the regular
program and learn side by side with their peers in any type of school setting. Inclusive
Education proponents like [1] indicated that "the first model for inclusive education
reflected the idea that students with disabilities should be included in the public
education system and mainstreamed, or educated together with peers without
disabilities, when possible. Lived-experiences of students with special needs, students
and teachers from the regular classes, special education teachers, staff, administration
and other service provider are essential in documenting the dayto-day activities on the
inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in the university. On the study conducted by [2] on
Qualitative Study of instructional Strategies Used by Elementary General Education
Teachers in Inclusive Classrooms, inclusion or inclusive education was described as
educating students with disabilities in the regular education classroom. Although the
terms regular education initiative and mainstreaming still exist, most educators and
professionals use the term, inclusion. Inclusion is not a legal term and the word appears
nowhere in the federal legislation governing the education of students with disabilities.
Inclusion is a philosophy of service delivery for special education students.
Disability is a global phenomenon. It is estimated that 15% of the world's population
lives with some kind of disability, of whom 2-4% practice considerable problems in
functioning (World Report on Disability, 2011). Almost 80% disabled live in low-income
countries with little or no access to services (World Bank, 2009) and less than 10% of
these have access to education (Peters, 2008). According to the traditional definition of
disability an individual is incapable of performing certain activities due to one or more
functional impairment. This indicates that an individuals' status as disabled person
depends on his/her clinical status. Impairment is the inability to participate on equal
terms and it is believed to be the attribute of the individual who lacks the capacities
necessary to attain autonomy. Impairment is believed to be treated in order to cure or
alleviate the condition (Michailakis, 2003, p. 210). Dealing with ‘Visual Impairment’:
Experiences of Youth in Tertiary Education Social Sciences Review (Bi-annual
Research Journal) 1 Research on disability suggests the shift from medical model of
disability to social model which largely highlights the exclusion of the disabled in the
society (O'Connor & Robinson, 1999). In accordance with the social model of disability,
how the term is understood varies across cultures and often depends on how the social
systems describe it (Hughes & Peterson, 1997). The social model acknowledges the
'power of environmental, structural and cultural definitions of disabilities' (Jones, 1996).
This model represents a sociological phenomenon where disability is rooted firmly in the
'social and environmental situations that segregate or restrict behavior' (Burgstahler,
1994, p. 90).
The stress-coping model is extensively studied in the academic context. Past studies
have primarily focused on different coping strategies adopted by students to overcome
academic stress. However, an important question, how to equip students to cope with
stress, was ignored. Drawing on stress-coping theory and the extracurricular activity
(ECA) literature, the current study investigates the intervention of ECA participation on
students' coping, academic performance, and well-being in a natural setting.
Design/methodology/approach: The study follows a "cross-sectional post-test only
quasi-experimental design" using a natural experimental setting. Findings: The findings
indicate that participation in ECA has a significant influence on academic outcomes.
Different types of ECA participation influence well-being, whereas time spent on ECA
positively affects academic performance. Further, the findings also indicate that
involvement in ECA moderates the relationship between academic stress and coping.
Practical implications: The study results have practical implications for designing
interventional ECA to enhance students' academic outcomes and well-being.
Originality/value: The study indicates the effectiveness of ECA participation in dealing
with academic stress and the development of constructive coping strategies. Hence, the
authors advise the academic administrators to integrate ECA in the academic setting.
Adolescents with specific learning disabilities face more challenges due to their poor
academic performance, affecting the development of social skills and struggles in
identity formation. This study examined the coping and perceived social support of
adolescents with and without learning disabilities. This study also investigated the
relationship between coping and perceived social support of adolescents with specific
learning disabilities. For this purpose, 50 adolescents with learning disabilities and 50
adolescents without learning disabilities in the age group of 13-20 years in different
regular and open schools located in South India were approached. Participants were
asked to complete a Demographic data sheet followed by COPE inventory and
Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Results revealed that adolescents
with specific learning disabilities used more coping responses like denial, humor, mental
and behavioral disengagement and religious coping, more than their peers without
learning disabilities. Substance use showed a significant negative correlation with
perceived social support. The results of this research can aid in understanding the
psychological and social resources that help in the unique developmental process of
adolescents with specific learning disabilities.
The overall aim of this thesis was to illuminate experiences of relatives of persons with
severe mental illness, and their need for support from formal care. Furthermore, to
illuminate nursing support of relatives of persons with severe mental illness. Methods: A
mixed methods design was used. In study I, data was collected with a questionnaire
responded by 226 relatives and analysed with statistics. In study II, data was gathered
with interviews with a strategic sample of 18 relatives, analysed with phenomenography.
Study III gathered data from 216 relatives using open-ended questions in the
questionnaire (I), analysed with qualitative content analysis. In study IV, data was
collected by means of focus-group interviews with 4 groups of nurses, working in mental
healthcare and analysed with phenomenography. Main findings: The relatives
experienced that their lives were intertwined with the life of their severely mentally ill
next of kin. The relatives experienced burden and a poor health, and there were
associations between burden and health (I). The relatives had to balance between
multiple concerns and make choices on behalf of others and themselves, constantly
struggling between opposing feelings and between reflections (II). Relatives’ encounters
with mental health personnel were mainly negative, although some had positive
experiences. They strived for involvement in mental healthcare for the sake of their
severely mentally ill next of kin, and wanted inclusion and support for their own sake,
but mostly felt left alone with straining but inescapable responsibilities (III). The nurses
conceived that their responsibility was first and foremost the patient and to develop an
alliance with him or her. The nurses often felt they had to exclude relatives, but were
sometimes able to support them (IV). Conclusions: Relatives’ lives are intertwined with
the life of their severely mentally ill next of kin. Relatives’ overall demanding life situation
means that the mental health services must involve relatives for the sake of the severely
mentally ill person but also include them for their own sake. They need practical and
emotional support. Guidelines must be designed to address relatives’ needs, and
support must be adapted to the individual relative.
This study attempts to understand social and educational experiences of students with
disabilities in institutions of higher education and is exploratory in nature. To understand
the educational experiences of these students, it is not enough to know only the
availability of services and resources. It is also necessary to understand the students
personally, and the circumstances in which they live. To answer the research questions
posed in this study, the researcher has used mixed methods and three universities were
selected through purposive sampling in so as to gain maximum diverse variation. For
this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with hundred students with disabilities in
selected universities in Andhra Pradesh, India. In this study, quantitative and qualitative
data analyses were used and in most cases quotes of real text for each theme were
maintained and used extensively. The findings of the study show the students were very
categorical about their special needs in order to achieve their goals. A greater
understanding has been gained regarding coping strategies adopted by them to
manage their higher education needs. Based on findings of the study the researcher
has brought out the factors which influence the creation of an inclusive environment in
institutions of higher education.