The selected Rajabhat University in this case study is a higher education
institution for a local development which has a long history in southern Thailand. There
is an institution for special education development which has offered a bachelor degree
for disabled students since the academic year 1994 and required only disabled students
who had impaired vision. Then, in 2007, the university operated according to the policy
to support the educational management for disabled people by the Office of Higher
Education Commission which included the disabled students who had impaired hearing
to enroll the program. The university also established a service office for supporting the
disabled students under the institution for special education development in February,
2007 in order to support the special education management at a higher education level.
By the academic year 1/2011, there were 24 numbers of disabled students who have
impaired vision, impaired hearing and imperfect body or movement, studied in the same
class with students who do not experience disabilities in the fields that the higher
education institution has offered.
The aim of the study of the assistances for disabled students in the higher
education institution was to understand the roles of the higher education institution in
assisting the disabled students, the adaptation of normal students and the values in
learning to live together which will lead to a proper policy recommendation to assist the
disabled students in a local higher education institution.
The research findings revealed that the structural arrangement of the organization
which aimed at decreasing of the working steps was found to be a barrier for communication
and cooperation. Each unit within the organization has been working separately: no work
cooperation among each unit to provide assistances for the disabled students, no effective
management for the university surroundings, buildings and facilities which still do not
facilitate the conveniences and security, and the accessibility for the disabled students. In
addition, the personnel here needs a knowledge development, working skills and attitude  which are corresponded to the educational management of inclusion education including
teaching and learning, student development activities, the management of surroundings,
buildings, and facilities. The overall educational management has been designed to facilitate
only students who do not experience disabilities including the enrollment, programs, the
preparation for necessary learning skills, learning media and technology, self-access
information system, the professional training experience and the preparation for future
careers which are the obstacles for the disabled students in order to make a living and to
learn.
Regarding the Disabled Student Services Center, although it has a potential
competence in service delivery as it is under the authority of the institution of special
education development which is the strength of the higher education institution, the
insufficient number of personnel and a higher turnover rate become barriers in handling
the services, including a punctuality in providing services, work coverage and working
skills. For student development activities, they have not yet facilitated for the change of
the role of disabled students from dependences or observers to be the co-practitioners.
Besides, there was a limitation in supporting the adjustment of normal students and learning
to live together with the disabled students. To live together with disabled students in the
higher education institution, the normal students has adjusted themselves with major values
in learning to live together under the four categories: see by heart and understand with
wisdom, not value people based on the physical appearance, understand own responsibility
and building success together.
The policy recommendations for the higher education institution were proposed
in five issues. The first issue is to develop the administrative system and arrange the
organization’s structure which facilitates the effectiveness of the educational management
for disabled students, including the measure for the planning management and the measure
in building the participation from outside institution. The second issue concerns the
development of the enrollment system which increases the opportunity to access the
education in both number of intakes and type of disability, cooperatively. These include
the measure for the intake of disabled students, the measure of programs, and the measure
of the preparation for students who are gifted. The third issue is about the system and
mechanism management to support and assist the disabled students in graduating as well
as the access to careers which include the measure for personnel, media, equipment and
facilities, the measure for education management, and teaching and learning management, the measure for student development, and the measure for supporting the
careers’ access. The fourth issue employs the human resource management as a mechanism
in solving problems and developing the education management for disabled students,
including the measure for the personnel development, the measure for motivation in
remaining the present jobs, and the measure for assigning works. The fifth issue brings
the qualitative management to develop the education system management which has a
continual quality, including the measure for the quality management development, the
measure for the knowledge management, the measure for the knowledge development and
creative innovation, and the measure for following up and evaluating the educational
management.
Accordingly, the five recommendations mentioned above provide four conditions
for the achievement. Firstly, having a set of a clear policy and transmit to the officers who
mainly have the role in managing education for disabled students in order to work in the
same direction. Secondly, providing the opportunities for disabled students, disabled alumni,
parents, representatives of the disabled, who acted as stakeholders, or other related people
to participate in providing information in order to develop the working procedure, design
work procedure or activities, and evaluate the work associated with the disabled students.
Thirdly, encouraging people to accept the disabled student and treat them similar to that
of normal students, including accepting them in terms of their educational knowledge and
abilities. In particular, they should be accepted that the physical impairment is not an
inferiority complex, without pities or a barrier in living and learning. Indeed, they need
the ability to access to media, equipment, aids, and facilities as necessary, and they also
want all personnel at all level and those normal students see the value of living together,
helpfully. Fourthly, the higher education institution shouldn’t perceive that the educational
management for the disabled is only the responsiveness of the law and related policies or
the routine work, but it is also the value creation and addition to the education institution
as well.