Guide to Systematizing Support for Students with Disabilities in Postsecondary EFL

Abstract

Despite the ubiquitous presence of students with disabilities (SWDs) enrolled in institutes of higher education around the world, English as a Foreign Language (EFL) programs are often underequipped to provide them with appropriate and effective disability services and inclusive instruction. Given the general uncertainty among EFL professionals of how to provide such services and instruction, and considering that postsecondary EFL learning environments can differ considerably from context to context, it may be useful for language program leaders to create context-specific support systems to serve SWDs enrolled in their courses. The present paper provides a set of practical guidelines for establishing an institutional or departmental policy and procedure for ensuring a continuum of services to SWDs in contexts where such measures do not already exist, as is the case in many postsecondary EFL learning environments around the world. These guidelines are presented as a set of eight steps in a suggested sequence of execution: identify existing policies or create new ones, identify and determine the availability of resources, identify and remove barriers in the learning environment, assign clear roles and responsibilities for leadership, create a framework for service delivery, include a provision for post-implementation evaluation, offer opportunities for professional growth and creation of expertise, and share best practices with practitioners in other contexts.