A battle between perception and reality is going on for ages. Let’s clear some air first of all with some examples; Perception is like watching students with a question mark on their face when the teacher on wheel chair enters a classroom, while reality is about the problems students facing in such situation. So to change this perception is like changing the mentality of those individuals, while reality is about finding solutions for those problems. Universities around the globe has stepped up and decided to be on the right side. Not only teachers, but also the staff members with disabilities will be satisfied by the initiative taken by the Universities. Universities wise up to the needs and demands of staff members which were taken for granted.
Small efforts make up for big changes; it’s not about spending large sums of money on having better infrastructure or providing costly equipment for these people. The willingness to do something useful is far important than anything else. Let’s consider an example where a teacher in the wheelchair is facing some problems while interacting with students due to the height of the microphone. He will ask the management for help, management usually refuses to work based on lip-service. Thus, such small issues take up center stage due to ignorance. The responsibility comes towards Universities to remove these barriers so staff could able to perform their job.
In UK, the Equality Act 2010 asks employers and Universities to provide the required facilities to their staff with disabilities. These initiatives, further help in restoring balance along workforce and supports the ‘equality’ bias. Many Universities have joined hands through Two Ticks scheme which is committed to solving problems of staff members with disabilities.
We all heard about quotas and excess care offered to students with disabilities from all over the world, but what about teachers with disabilities. Students will be watching their future with shadow over it, and then what will be the use of those quotas and care they get. The imitative by Universities will bring back some of the lost morality to this crippled world.
Interview- Disable to enable
Most of the time interviewer holds an unprecedented grudge over candidate with disabilities. The process of interviewing takes down the spirit of an individual due such approach. Universities have figured out plans so they can able to proceed with an interview by concentrating on the abilities of the person sitting on that interview chair. This helps in judging the candidate on fair points, allowing gender and other equality like these.
Flexibility in working hours- Loosening up some strings
The burden of work draws a lot of energy for normal people only. People with disabilities have special case, stressing their bodies far enough will be very harsh on them. Flexibility in working hour and a complete weekend break can serve the purpose. The solution may sound unfair to lots of people, but they all need to realize the importance of this benefit to the people with disabilities.
A much needed helping hand of a colleague- Teamwork at its best
Wouldn’t you get embarrassed while asking the help of your friend again and again, so how these people with disabilities feel? Most of them will shy away from asking help. By teamwork, we can provide a solution to this issue. We don’t need to provide them a babysitter, by helping in time of need through teamwork, we will able to make far better work environment for these people to work. That’s what many universities are aiming at.
We all hope for a better world for generations to come where everyone will be judged on their hard work and merit, not on their disabilities.