COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF READINESS FOR INCLUSIVE EDUCATION ON THE EXAMPLE OF TWO UNIVERSITIES IN UKRAINE AND THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND

Abstract

In Ukraine, due to martial law, inclusive education and the creation of a barrier-free space for people with disabilities are taking on a new meaning. Purpose. To study the European experience and conduct a comparative analysis of the provision of educational services to people with disabilities (PD) by two higher education institutions: a domestic University and a University of an EU country. Methods and materials. The comparative analysis method was applied to ensure the readiness of the provision of educational services to PD on the materials we collected from the documents of the National University «Lviv Polytechnic» (NULP) (Ukraine) and the University of Opole (Republic of Poland). Storage of information on the organization of inclusive education is carried out within the framework of the GoodPharma project. The materials used were data from the PD Resource Center, the Lviv City Organization of the Ukrainian Society of the Deaf, the Galician Pharmaceutical Association (Lviv), the Lviv branch of the All- Ukrainian Association of Sign Language Interpreters and People with Disabilities. Results and discussion. The National Strategy for the Creation of Barrier-Free Space in Ukraine for the Period Until 2030 is reviewed, which is oriented towards international documents, in particular for the implementation of the right to education. It has been established that free access to the infrastructure of higher education institutions is a basic condition for the inclusion of people with disabilities in the educational process. Standards for the accessibility of buildings have been developed in individual EU countries, in particular in the Republic of Poland and Ukraine. A comparative analysis of these documents allows us to establish that they concern the arrangement of parking spaces for vehicles for people with disabilities, their dimensions, ease of exit, and marking. Requirements are also put forward for buildings: the equipment of ramps, special lifts, tactile floor tiles, information tables and the well-known Braille font, audio guides for people with visual impairments, duplication of important audio information with texts, organization of sign language interpretation, use of a sound amplification system for people with hearing impairments, etc. These standards are mandatory and are implemented at both the University of Opole and the Polish National University of Physical Education. It has been proven that physical accessibility is the first component of the inclusion of people with disabilities in the life of the University, and the second component is ensuring inclusion in learning, teaching, participation in self-government, scientific and research work, etc. Special units have been created at the Polish National University of Physical Education: the International Center for Professional Partnership «Integration» (ICPP), the Center for Veteran Development (CVR), the inclusive space «Without Limits», the Resource Center for Educational Technologies. Conclusions. A comparative analysis of the organization of the provision of educational services for people with disabilities in two higher education institutions of Ukraine and the Republic of Poland confirmed the possibility of further studying the European experience of creating a barrier-free environment and ensuring the readiness to provide educational services.