Situational state, expectations and possibilities of educational inclusion: experiences of students with disabilities at the University of Cuenca

Critical studies understand disability as a relational notion referring to social restrictions imposed by physical, regulations or attitudinal barriers that favor discrimination, contempt, oppression and prejudice by a "trained" majority (Oliver M., 1998; Reid-Cunningham, 2009; Shakespeare, 2010). Thus, physical space, administrative processes, social attitudes and undue curricular adaptation act as deterrent elements or that compromise a pleasant experience in higher education of people with disabilities (Andrade, 2011; Arellano, Perez & Rapanelli, 2021). The objective of this project is to analyze the situational state of students with disabilities of the University of Cuenca, documenting the institutional conditions for their inclusion, their needs, the positive and negative elements of greater incidence in their educational experience, potential deserting factors, as well as their expectations and the possibilities that the disability provides for the enrichment of educational processes and the classroom experience from a paradigm of functional diversity. We propose three moments of intervention: 1. A situational analysis that includes the compilation and systematization of information on processes gestated by the University itself in disability issues, and epidemiological studies; 2. An analysis of the concrete and subjective experience of students with disabilities that includes an ethnographic study on their perceptions and experiences, and an analysis of physical space; And 3. A participatory process that develops a strategic plan to improve inclusion in the university. The relevance of this research is epidemiological, anthropological and public policy, then, it builds a complete baseline of the situation, the actions and resources that the University of Cuenca has developed on disabilities issues; It offers a contribution to contemporary debates on disability and inclusive education; And proposes an institutional plan that improves inclusion, providing a homologable intervention model for other higher education institutions.