Access Service

Access to Education

Adaptive measures for students at the post-secondary level are governed by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and by provincial human rights statutes: http://www.ohrc.on.ca.

The Ontario Human Rights Commission's Disability Policy reaffirms the right of persons with disabilities to full participation and integration (click here to view this policy). An accessible educational system is one in which persons with disabilities can "access their environment and face the same duties and responsibilities as everyone else, with dignity and without impediment."

In the context of post-secondary education, as with elementary and secondary education, accessibility goes beyond physical accessibility, to include accessible curricula, and delivery and evaluation methodology, as well as the provision of the necessary supports and adaptive measures to ensure that students with disabilities have equal opportunity in their education. Denial of access may be direct or indirect: it may result from refusal to accommodate students with disabilities, from admission criteria that indirectly exclude students with disabilities, or from barriers in funding programs.