Pixel International Conferences

The intensification of inclusive processes in higher education has resulted in the possibility to educate people with disabilities with diverse disorders at universities in various training programmes. At present higher education is forced to be maintained in conditions of COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a large-scale move to distance learning at universities. The purpose of this study was to define the range of academic problems, which students with disabilities came across while studying at universities and using distance education technologies in the period of pandemic. At the methodological level the study was based on the assumption that during the move of universities to a distance learning mode disabled students will have other difficulties than all other students. To figure out problematic students experience, including those with disabilities, and their attitude towards distance education transition, oral (interview) and written (questionnaires) field enumerations were used as the main methodological tool. The authors have identified a problem area for the implementation of the training process at universities for students with and without disabilities. It was established that problems, which students came across during distance education period during the pandemic, have no significant differences within two given groups of students. The experience, acquired by students from both groups, sets the major directions of implementing the distance learning in inclusive higher education in a post-pandemic period.

Keywords: higher education, inclusion, students with disabilities.