How Does Disability Discrimination Affect Educational Opportunities?
Disability Discrimination Affect Educational Opportunities
Disability discrimination can have a significant impact on the educational opportunities of pupils with disabilities. The Equality Act 2010 says schools mustn’t discriminate against pupils because of a disability. They must also take positive steps to ensure that disabled pupils have access to education and other facilities, services, and activities.
In the United States, laws that prohibit disability discrimination include the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), Section 504, and IDEA. Generally, these laws cover people in any setting where they might need access to educational services. They also cover a wide range of services, including employment, health, welfare, and social care.
The key difference between the laws is how they define disability. ADA and Section 504 have a broad definition of disability, while IDEA has a more limited definition. IDEA also has different requirements about what types of accommodations are required for children with disabilities in school.
How Does Disability Discrimination Affect Educational Opportunities?
While the laws differ in how they define disability, they all have similar prohibitions on disability discrimination. They all require that employers provide reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. To determine if an accommodation is needed, the employer must start an informal and interactive process with the person who needs the accommodation. This should identify the limitations caused by the person’s disability and any potential accommodations that might help overcome those limitations.
If a college or university treats a student more favourably than another student, that is unlawful direct discrimination under the Equality Act. However, colleges and universities can still make more favourable arrangements with people who have a disability law if those are necessary for a particular purpose and can be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
For example, a school might allow an autistic pupil to visit before other prospective students arrive for open days, because that will give the pupil more time to familiarise themselves with the environment. This is not only lawful, but it could also be a good way to attract students with autism.
There are other ways in which schools can be accused of discriminating against pupils with disabilities. For instance, it might be discrimination to deny a pupil with disabilities the chance to participate in extracurricular activities or facilities such as sports centres because of their disability. It is not permitted for schools to charge fees for these kinds of arrangements, and it would be unlawful for them to do so if they were aware of the pupil’s disability.
The educational opportunities of pupils with disabilities are often not as good as those of their non-disabled peers. A significant percentage of pupils with disabilities fail to complete secondary education, and those who do complete it have lower attainment levels than their peers. This can be partly explained by the fact that many schools are unable to make reasonable adjustments for pupils with disabilities, and that there are barriers that prevent them from accessing educational and other facilities, services, and activities.