The student body at any educational institution is destined to be diverse. While cultural diversity of students is perceived to be worthy of bragging when it comes to advertisement, students with a variety of special learning needs are still negligible. So, it seems like diversity appreciation is only possible when it’s as exotic as having people from around the world. Yet, recently AUI along with other universities swam against the tide and undertook the Inclusion Program that aims to accommodate the academic needs of students with learning difficulties/disabilities.
The idea of including all students in the learning experience regardless of the difficulties they were facing is said to belong to Mr. Hicham Marbouh, a lecturer at the School of Humanities and Social Sciences since 2016. It took him two years and a “daunting experience” of filing policies and taking many other steps to the Academic Counsel to finally implement his idea. Since Fall 2019 this program has accommodated 6 students with Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) meaning it still needs consolidation and improvements.
Organizational change is difficult and goes back to the change in the culture of an organization
Mr Hicham Marbouh, the Program coordinator
How does the Inclusion Program work?
The Inclusion Program provides several ways through which students can seek help. To ease the process of inclusion, the Center for Learning Excellence has entered the scene with the possibilities it can offer including the physical space and the bigger aim of student success.
In particular, through the new version of Kudos, the platform used for the services provided by CLE, students can fill an application form for this program. The form asks for the medical documentation for the mentioned learning disability and is sent to Mr. Marbouh, the program coordinator. Both work and educational background in Inclusive Education and Behavioral Specialisation should qualify Mr. Marbouh to deal with each case diligently. He mentioned that after checking the validity of the documents, he formulates the unique Individual Education Plan (IEP) for each student to be carried out by the respective faculty. IEPs reflect the theoretical background and intervention that should be undertaken are open to feedback both from faculty and students.
Hopefully, I say hopefully, because you hope that the professor will take it [IEPs] into account. But if a professor believes in a certain culture then there is nothing to do
Mr Hicham Marbouh, the Program coordinator
Iliass Jabali is one of the students experiencing ADHD and Dyslexia and has been part of the Inclusion Program since Spring 2020. He only got to know the program through CLE in Spring and does not know about the IEP required for his case. He thinks that “the intervention is mostly extra time which fixes many issues but does not completely solve the problem that needs to be addressed .”
Culture of Stigma around Psychological Disorders
We can talk about this and similar programs for hours, but does this mean we can remove the stigma around disclosing psychological issues and difficulties from our culture? It is widely believed that the lack of knowledge and contact generate stigma and taboo around the topics related to psychological disorders. For the Inclusion Program to succeed, there is a need for disclosure from students. However, stigma can be an important reason for many not to feel comfortable talking about the difficulties they are going through. There are some plans for providing the comfort zone for students, but it has not yet been able to take any visible actions apart from “shy advertisement”. On the other hand, the lack of awareness about the diversity of the student body is scary when one looks at the implications it has on the affected students. “There are more students with learning disabilities on campus and only breaking the stigma and proper testing will help them reach out for help,” says Iliass Jabali.
People don’t know about it [Dyslexia and ADHD] so they act weird around me.
Iliass Jabali
Barriers and Ambitions of the Program
Since its birth, the Inclusion Program has faced few problems from certain addresses in different forms. From false or lack of documentation and diagnosis to the application of IEPs by the professors. When we first introduced the idea to the faculty body, there was some resistance but not badly intentioned. It was mostly hard for some colleagues to understand that it is still fair to give some people more time than others.” says Dr. Chraibi optimistically. Yet the lack of documentation and diagnosis still remains a bigger problem because of its effects on the process.
While the Inclusion Program at AUI still remains one of the few opportunities available for students with special needs in the country and region, it does not stop here. Despite the barriers, the team consisting of students and staff are planning further publicity of the program to generate conversation amongst both students and faculty. Moreover, the AUI campus being completely not wheelchair friendly needs major amendments. “As part of our program, in two to three years, we will start designing the infrastructure that is necessary around the campus to make the campus accessible for students with physical disabilities” says Dr. Chraibi on behalf of the team.
Change, in general, takes time. Yet it seems to take longer at AUI. Conversations about learning disabilities and other difficulties faced by students are still rare on campus, but can we say that the Inclusion Program is the beginning?
