National Student Disability Support

A prerequisite for Stockholm University to carry out this task is cooperation with all HEIs in Sweden, and also with other authorities, state agencies and relevant interest organizations in this field.

However, the primary cooperation takes place in a network for collaboration between all the disablility coordinators at HEIs, The Coordinators' Network, and in The National Reference Group for Disability Study Support.

Forms of cooperation 

The primary and most active consultative group for National funds is The National Reference Group for Disability Study Support, where seven higher education institutions are represented through one of their disability coordinators. The members of the reference group nominate themselves and are elected for a period of three years.

The group assembles online several times each semester to discuss current topics, to follow up ongoing work, and to plan conferences and seminars for all coordinators at the higher education institutions. Once every year the groups meets up for a two-day meeting in Stockholm.

All disability coordinators can join in The National Disability Coordinators' Network. Members receive newsletters from National funds and are given access to a webpage called The Disability Coordinators’ web (Samordnarwebb). The page contains information about disability support and also a much-appreciated forum, where disability coordinators can ask each other questions and share knowledge. All members are also welcome to join a yearly conference about disability support and webinars on topics relevant for disability coordinators arranged by National funds.

There are also four regional groups for disability coordinators, where they meet every semester and exchange ideas and knowledge. National funds cooperate with the regional groups for information and feedback.

The LINK Network 

In 2008 a European network was formed, with support from the EU lifelong learning programme. This network is called The LINK Network, where LINK is an acronym for Learning Inclusively Network + Know-how. It is led by partner organizations from seven countries: Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Great Britain and Sweden.

You can find more information about the network here:

www.ahead.ie/link

Stockholm University collects and compiles, on an annual basis, data from all Swedish HEIs on their costs for targeted study support for students with disabilities in the study situation. At the same time, the numbers of known students are collected.

The information about costs that Stockholm University collects, only concerns study support through personnel efforts offered, directly targeted to and involving students with disabilities, either individually or as a group.

Thereafter, all the higher education institutions whose costs during a calendar year exceed the equivalent of 0,3 % of their government funding for undergraduate education, will receive a portion of the national funds.

The annual report 

The assignment also involves compiling data on the known numbers of disabled students with disability support at the higher education institutions. The report is to be presented on a national level.

Thereafter, the information about the study support and a summary of the costs for the measures, is presented in Stockholm University's annual report, together with the compiled data on the known number of students with disabilities, grouped by disability area and gender. In the annual report, a short text should also describe various initiatives at the HEI’s throughout the year that have improved the study conditions for the students in question. In this way, an overall picture of the situation is presented in one place.

Disability study support involves different measures in order to erase, compensate or overcome obstacles that could arise in the study situation for students with disabilities. It could also be measures to compensate for inadequate accessibility in the study conditions and the study environment of a higher education institution. The situation varies, of course, depending on the individual students, their choice of subjects, the learning environments, the subject fields and the choices within these fields, etc.

With the exception of a few examples (like interpreting in educational settings and literature in an adapted medium), study support should primarily be seen as help to self-help. An important aim of many types of support is to provide the student with the tools and opportunities to develop skills in order to be as independent and successful as possible in their studies.

When it comes to adjustments at examinations, the disability coordinator can often only recommend different forms of support and adjustment, but it is often the department/teacher/examiner that decides whether a recommended measure is possible to implement in relation to the syllabus and the learning outcomes and learning goals.

A prerequisite for obtaining targeted study support is that the student can verify a non-temporary disability that may affect the study situation, through a certificate from a qualified person.
 

Nationals funds have, in close cooperation with The National Reference Group for Disability Study Support, written a best practice guide for disability coordinators at the HEI’s called “Samordnarguiden”, The Disability Coordinator’s Guide. 

Nais

National funds own a system through which students with long-term disabilities can apply for study support at HEIs. Nais is a nationwide system, and the HEIs pay to use it for their students and disability coordinators. The system is administrated by The Swedish Council for Higher Education. 

The mandate of the MTM (the Swedish Agency for Accessible Media) is to inform and raise awareness and spread knowledge about talking books, braille, easy-to-read literature and news, audio papers and reading (print) impairments.

The MTM also makes sign language literature accessible, provide support to talking newspapers and periodicals, and actively participate in the development of accessible media. (Please see paragraph 17 of the Copyright Act on the possibility of literature in accessible formats.)

Course literature in adapted and accessible formats 

The MTM also has the mandate to provide students with a reading disability access to course literature in media appropriate to them. All produced literature can be found in "Legimus" - the online catalogue of the MTM. Students with a reading disability can turn to the local library at the higher education institution where they are studying, for more information and library services.

Here you can find information about course literature, related apps and software