Smart inclusive universities: the role of technology for the accessibility and usability in the Italian context

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the Italian universities outlining their degree of accessibility and usability using digital technologies. Considering the crucial role played by the digital technologies in supporting educational and training processes and making them much more accessible and used in practice for students with disability and special needs, we aim to provide a portrait of the Italian universities and their way to be accessible and inclusive adopting the digital technologies (accessible website; visual content in PowerPoint slides; student-facing online tools, such as, clickers, discussion boards, chat bots, and WIKIs accessible, etc.). Starting from a deep review of the literature on the topic, we investigate the Italian universities mapping them considering some specific main features (i.e. the degree of accessibility and usability of website, the adoption of e-learning solutions, etc.). Our qualitative research, through a multiple case study, aims to provide interesting insights for the future analysing one specific country, where some relevant cultural, contextual, geographic and organizational factors can significantly impact the way the universities try to be much more inclusive, adopting digital technologies, and consequently becoming ‘smart’ universities.

Technology for sustainability in the educational context: A portrait of the Italian universities

“…Unfortunately, only 14 state universities (only 1 telematic university) have their website completely accessible and usable in practice for a blind or partially sighted person, for a person who cannot hear, for those who have dyslexia, for those with physical problems, and for elderly people. Most of these universities have only screen readers on their website to read the text on the computer or device screen but only in specific sections * This empirical analysis of the Italian universities follows a previous study conducted aimed to investigate the Italian universities outlining their degree of accessibility and usability using digital technologies [1].…”

“…During the last thirty years, sustainable development has been receiving an increasing attention by the academic community, following the spread by organizations of behaviours and actions based on the logic of socio-environmental responsibility and the use of accountability tools that allow stakeholders to be accountable for the commitment of the organizations in pursuing sustainability objectives [1,2]. Likewise, universities have begun to play a role of agents and subjects of change, respectively, the promotion of research and training courses about economic, social, and environmental sustainability, and the definition and internal implementation, above all, of policies, practices, and initiatives able to sustainably perform (e.g., waste management, energy savings, mobility management, inclusion of employees and students with disabilities and special needs) [3].…”

“…In the last three decades, digital and smart technologies have grown considerably, also because of COVID-19 pandemic, in any areas of daily life, including educational processes, working processes and so forth. In some cases, the use of digital and smart technologies is becoming fundamental to help organizations to become much more sustainable; for instance, higher education organizations thanks to digital and smart technologies can be much more sustainable, taking a look at the several dimensions of sustainability, such as social sustainability with services accessible and usable especially for people with special needs, achieving and fulfilling sustainable development goals (SDGs) (UN Agenda 2030), in terms of infrastructure, industrialization, and innovation (SDG 9), good health and wellbeing (SDG 3), quality and inclusive education (SDG 4) [1]. Digital and smart technologies become useful tools for higher education institutions, e.g., by making content more interactive and engaging for learners and to improve the quality of materials, as well as by activating the in-depth dematerialization of documents.…”

“…Most research shows an increasing attention paid by higher education organizations to sustainability and also technology, where significant improvements occur especially regarding the accessibility and usability for students with disabilities by combining special methods and materials with the use of digital and smart technologies. Indeed, several technological solutions have been developed and largely implemented by high education institutions making them much more sustainable, especially inclusive [1], for instance, for improving the accessibility and usability of services for anyone or for enhancing the waste management and water and energy savings practices.…”

The Role of Universities for the Development of Human Capabilities in the Sustainable World: Evidence from Italy

“…Universities promote the culture of sustainable development in all their institutional activities, teaching, and research. The main lines of activities promoted and implemented by universities with a view to sustainability can be traced back to four areas of competence: 1) promotion of responsible research 2) environmental sustainability, 3) international cooperation, 4) equal opportunities (Varriale et al, 2022).…”