JAASEP FALL 2007 Part 1 of 7
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- ADHD Series
- Assessment in Special Education Series
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- Special Education: What Do the Latest Numbers Tell Us?
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- The Practical Teacher
- Treatment and Support for IEP Students with Disabilities
- Working with Paraprofessionals in Your School
The number of college students with disabilities has tripled over the past twenty-five years as an estimated nine percent of all entering college freshman report having a disability (Olney, Kennedy, Brockelman, & Newsom, 2004; Palombi, 2000). Since the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, this population of students continues to increase in step with legislative mandates such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requiring inclusive primary and secondary education for students with disabilities (HEATH Resource Center, 1999). While this population of students continues to increase in its enrollment in institutions of higher education, faculty member, disability service providers, and administrators in higher education must have an orientation to serve this special population of students beyond those tangible accommodations such as cement curb cuts and accessible building entrances but in fostering an attitudinal environment of trust and respect where these students can achieve their academic potential (Aune, 2000).
Upon entering institutions of higher education, college students with disabilities encounter a unique set of issues and concerns that their able-bodied peers do not confront. Among these issues and concerns are faculty attitudes towards them and their disabilities.
Abstract
Previous research has indicated that university faculty members’ attitudes towards students with disabilities varies depending on specific background qualities of those faculty, including gender, type of field (soft or hard science), and type of study (pure or applied). We examined epistemological beliefs as a possible mediator between faculty background qualities and attitudes towards individuals with disabilities. 223 faculty members at a large, public research intensive university in the Southwestern, United States, were surveyed to evaluate their attitudes and epistemological beliefs as well as to collect background information. Structural equation modeling was utilized to compare two competing models, one with background directly impacting attitudes and a second with epistemological beliefs acting as a mediator of this relationship. The mediating model provided a significant improvement over the fit of the first model, which supported the mediating role of epistemological beliefs in predicting faculty members’ attitudes towards students with disabilities.