Cracking the Door Open on Research Havel, A., & Fichten, C., in collaboration with King, L., Jorgensen, M., Asuncion, J., Nguyen, M. N., Budd, J., Jorgensen, S., Lussier, A., Amsel, R., Chauvin, A., & Vo, C. (2018, November). Cracking the door open on research. Presentation at Opening Doors for Accessibility Seminar. Alice Havel, Ph.D. & Catherine Fichten, Ph.D. In collaboration with L. King, M. Jorgensen, J. Asuncion, M.N. Nguyen, J. Budd, S. Jorgensen, A. Lussier, R. Amsel, A. Chauvin, C. Vo Opening Doors for Accessibility Seminar Montreal, November 16, 2018

Adaptech Research Network: Overview Focus College/university students & grads with disabilities Academic success Employment Information and communication technologies Free or inexpensive assistive technologies FANDI

Who Are the Stakeholders? Individuals with disabilities Family and friends Service providers Health care professionals Vendors of supplies and materials Researchers Others Government representatives Senior administrators

Role of Stakeholders in Research Propose research questions Collaborate Design and conduct research Form partnerships with researchers Funding Participate in research Identify implications of findings Distribute findings and recommendations

Benefits of Applied Research Gives stakeholders a voice Expands knowledge base Informs best practices Provides data for lobbying Guides policy

Research Findings

Facilitators of Academic Success Disability related accommodations Services for students with disabilities Access to course notes Extended time for exams / assignments Academic Satisfactory schedules Adequate study skills

Facilitators of Academic Success People Good teachers Supportive friends Helpful family Finances Adequate finances

Graduation / Persistence Students with/without disabilities graduate at the same rate1 Higher graduation rate of students with disabilities Take an extra term 1 Jorgensen, S., Fichten, C.S., Havel, A., Lamb, D., James, C., & Barile, M. (2005). Academic performance of college students with and without disabilities: An archival study. Canadian Journal of Counselling, 39(2), 101-117.

Grades College 6 year archival study1 Program Learning Disability / ADHD  All Other Disabilities No Disability Grade Social Science 64% 70% 62% Career/Technical 71% 67% All Programs   66% 1 Jorgensen, S., Fichten, C.S., Havel, A., Lamb, D., James, C., & Barile, M. (2005). Academic performance of college students with and without disabilities: An archival study. Canadian Journal of Counselling, 39(2), 101-117.

Employment - College graduates 5-10 months after graduation1 Employed   Working Full Time Working Part Time Looking for Work Studying Unavailable For Work Pre-University With a Disability 10% 4% 1% 83% No Disability 8% 5% 2% 84% Career/Technical 51% 15% 30% 49% 14% 3% 31% Employed Pre-university 14% with a disability 13% nondisabled Career/technical 66% with a disability 63% nondisabled 1 Fichten, C.S., Jorgensen, S., Havel, A., Barile, M., Ferraro, V., Landry, M-E., Fiset, D., Juhel, J-C., Chwojka, C., Nguyen, M.N., Amsel, R. & Asuncion, J.V. (2012). What happens after graduation? Outcomes, employment, and recommendations of recent junior/community college graduates with and without disabilities. Disability and Rehabilitation 34(11), 917-924.

Employment: 4 Year Follow-up1 175 university & 77 college students 4 years later 193 graduated from original program 59 dropped out Employment outcome Of those in the labor force 82% employed (94% if no disability2) Jobs of grads closely related to field of study 2Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey. (2015). Unemployment rates of 25-to 29-years-olds, by educational attainment, Canada and provinces, 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010 to 2013. Retrieved from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/81-582-x/2015001/tbl/tble3.2-eng.htm 1Fichten, C. S., Jorgensen, S., Havel, A., Barile, M., Ferraro, V., Landry, M.-E., Fiset, D., Juhel, J.-C., Chwojka, C., Nguyen, M. N., & Asuncion, J. V. (2012). What happens after graduation? Outcomes, employment, and recommendations of recent junior/community college graduates with and without disabilities. Disability and Rehabilitation, 34(11), 917-924. 

Technology From Research to Real Life Barriers students faced High cost of adaptive technologies Lack of knowledge of available products Inadequate opportunities to try products before purchasing Lack of information about where to purchase products Not knowing if a product would work well for them Make sure to explain that these are for assistive/adaptive technologies

Adaptech’s Response to High Cost Technologies Created a bilingual database to Identify Test Compile free and/or inexpensive technologies Provide students the opportunity to try different technologies that could help Ongoing since 1999

Adaptech Research Network Database Free and Inexpensive Technology Database (FANDI) http://www.adaptech.org/en/downloads

Product Categories (1) Adapted Keyboards Dictionary/Reference Organization/Productivity Alternative Mice Dictation

Product Categories (2) Magnification Scanning & Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Screen Reading Writing Other (including multipurpose programs)

Summary Students with disabilities can Have access to free and inexpensive technologies Succeed in postsecondary education Get jobs after graduation

What strategies can be used to engage stakeholders in research? Questions? What strategies can be used to engage stakeholders in research?

Contact Information More information http://www.adaptech.org ahavel@dawsoncollege.qc.ca cfichten@dawsoncollege.qc.ca