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Dawson College
Adaptech Research Network
3040 Sherbrooke West
Montreal, Quebec
Canada H3Z 1A4
Tel: (514) 931-8731
Fax: (514) 931-3567
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New: Looking for Research Participants
The Adaptech Research Network is conducting a research study called "Study on the Postsecondary Education Experience of Persons with Disabilities in Canada". The study is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and is carried out by researchers at Dawson College and McGill University. The purpose of this study is to identify environmental, financial, personal and other factors that help or pose barriers to students with visible and non-visible disabilities pursuing a college or university education in Canada. We are also interested in the transition to employment.
We are looking for three groups of individuals with visible and non-visible disabilities. First, we are looking for students currently enrolled at colleges or universities in Canada. We are also looking for recent Canadian college or university graduates (i.e., graduated between January 2007 and the present). Finally, we are looking for individuals from across Canada who started and completely stopped pursuing their college or university studies, for whatever reason, between January 2007 and the present. Please note that colleges include vocational or technical colleges.
If you are interested in participating or knowing more about the research, go to http://www.adaptech.org/gradswd
Should you have any questions, email gradswd@adaptech.org
Jennison Asuncion Interviewed on Web Accessibility
Co-Director Jennison Asuncion was recently interviewed to get his opinions on a number of web accessibility topics for the blog, Art of Accessibility.
Free and Inexpensive Computer Technologies Video
You can see demonstrations of some of the free and inexpensive software featured in our Downloads section by watching a brief video we produced.
Pédagogie Collégiale Profiles Adaptech Research Network Co-Director Catherine Fichten
An article profiling co-director Catherine Fichten has appeared in Pédagogie Collégiale. It is available in French in PDF.
Now Available: Positives Scale (Postsecondary Information Technology Initiative Scale)
The Adaptech Research Network recently developed the Positives Scale, a 26 item questionnaire allowing students with disabilities to assess how well their information and communication technology (ICT) needs are being met on and off campus. Results can be used to evaluate how well an institution.s ICTs meet students' needs; provide empirical data to influence ICT policy; and pinpoint areas of strength as well as areas for improvement, all from the perspective of students with different disabilities. Statistically reliable and valid, the scale can be completed online, within a Word document, or on paper in either English or French. The research behind the development of the Positives Scale involved 1354 university and junior/community college students with a variety of disabilities from across Canada, and was funded by a grant from the Canadian Council of Learning.
Download and read our final report:
For more information on this study, contact Catherine Fichten.
Now Available: Why do students with and without disabilities abandon their studies?
The main aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of why students abandon their studies, or perform less well than expected given their high school grades, and to develop predictive models that can help identify those students most at-risk at the time they enter college. This will allow teachers and those responsible for student services to better support these students with early interventions. Due to their higher risk profiles, the investigation pays particular attention to males and students with disabilities. The objectives of this study were to: 1) compare the retention profiles of the targeted groups and establish baseline data; 2) gain a better understanding of the reasons why students leave prior to completing their diploma; 3) identify characteristics that contribute to poor performance and attrition, and 4) develop models that can identify students with the highest probability of academic failure by exploring the contributions made by a combination of background, psycho-social and study skill variables and high school grades.
Download and read our final report:
For more information on this study, contact Shirley Jorgensen.
New: Quebec Study on Information and Computer Technologies and Students with Learning Disabilities
The Adaptech Research Network has recently been awarded a three-year grant from the Fonds de recherche sur la société et la culture (FQRSC) to look at the current state of information and communication technology that could be useful for postsecondary students with learning disabilities in the mainly francophone province of Quebec. The goal is to examine and understand any gaps and recommend solutions, particularly for information and computer technologies that could be useful for college students with learning disabilities.
For more information on this study, contact Adaptech Research Network co-directors Maria Barile, Laura King, or Catherine Fichten.
New: Canadian Study Looks at Persistence of Canadian Postsecondary Students with Disabilities
The Adaptech Research Network has been awarded a three-year Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant whose objective is to examine and understand factors that drive academic persistence and drop-out among college and university students with disabilities in Canada. The goal is to make data-based recommendations to the postsecondary education community about how best to support these students. success.
For more information on this study, contact Adaptech Research Network co-director Jennison Asuncion or Catherine Fichten.
New: Quebec Study Comparing the Satisfaction and Academic Success of College Students With and Without Disabilities
With funding from a new two-year grant from the Programme d'aide à la recherche sur l'enseignement et l'apprentissage (PAREA) we will compare college satisfaction, perceived academic obstacles and facilitators, and academic success of students with and without disabilities and examine how these aspects are related. This is an archival study looking at students who studied at Dawson College, Montreal's largest English language Cegep, in 2001, 2002, 2005, and 2009. The objective is to recommend interventions that will help improve satisfaction, diminish obstacles, decrease attrition, and improve academic success.
For more information on this study, contact Shirley Jorgensen, Alice Havel, or Catherine Fichten.