Call for Papers

Shortly after the 20th anniversary of the 2005 Act on Equal Rights and Opportunities, Participation and Citizenship of Persons with Disabilities (Act No. 2005-102), and in line with the Sixth National Disability Conference held in 2023—one of whose commitments is the creation of a “fully accessible university”—the ET Si conference aims to examine inclusivity (Dugas, 2023) in higher education through the articulation between education and self-determination.

This conference adopts both a retrospective and prospective approach, as it is organized on the occasion of the signing of the Atypie-Friendly charter by the Université de La Réunion. This will make it the first full-fledged university in the Indian Ocean to join a broad network of higher education institutions committed to fostering a more inclusive university.

This strong political and symbolic commitment, represented by the signing of the charter, will be accompanied during the conference by a scientific reflection on inclusive dynamics in higher education at the local, national, and international levels.

UNESCO defines inclusion as “a process aimed at addressing and responding to the diversity of needs of all—children, youth and adults—through increasing participation in learning, cultures and communities” (UNESCO, 2009). Consequently, the inclusive imperative, omnipresent in political discourse, also concerns higher education. The massification of higher education and the diversification of student profiles require a transformation of the sector. Issues related to academic pathways and specific support needs for academic success are therefore at the heart of the Act of 8 March 2018 on student orientation and success.

Long regarded as a bastion of elitism, higher education must now work toward accessibility and rise to the ambitious challenge of inclusion in the service of academic excellence. Thus, the circular of 10 July 2024 on the rights of students with disabilities or disabling health conditions “was established to guarantee equitable access to education and to ensure favorable conditions for their learning and personal development” (MESR, DGESIP, 2024). For example, Ministry data show that although the proportion of students with disabilities is increasing (approximately 62,000 at the start of the 2023–2024 academic year – MESR, DGESIP, 2025), their academic progression remains lower than that of other university students (only 21.8% of students with disabilities are enrolled at the master’s level and around 1% at the doctoral level, compared with 38.2% and 3.5% respectively for non-disabled students – MESR, DGESIP, 2025).

Taking into account the variety of student profiles and, systemically, the diversity of needs requires structural change across all dimensions of student life. The increasing complexity of academic pathways means that diversity has become the norm (Meyer et al., 2013). Inclusive education thus represents a “high local-stakes issue” (Perez, 2018).

However, in 2021, it was observed that specific classroom situations were insufficiently taken into account and that some teacher-researchers lacked familiarity with the very concepts of inclusive pedagogy or Universal Design for Learning (Kennel et al., 2021). Complementarily, a literature review conducted in 2023, based on scientific works published between 1990 and 2020 in English and French, indicates that inclusive practices in higher education are more widely studied abroad than in France (Perez & Suau, 2023). Nevertheless, the publication in December 2024 of a special issue of La nouvelle revue. Éducation et société inclusives entitled Towards an Inclusive University: Collective, Pedagogical and Technological Processes to Be Implemented (Canat et al., 2024) reflects a renewed consideration of these issues and a growing interest in this emerging field of research.

Indeed, while the development of students’ full potential (Bergeron et al., 2011) appears to be a priority objective of higher education, the conditions necessary for achieving this remain to be clarified. This is why the ET Si conference proposes to examine, from the perspective of inclusivity, the contours of higher education in order to explore innovative practices and schemes at the local, national, and international levels that may enrich educational provision in support of the self-determination of both users and staff. Particular attention will be paid to the perspectives of those directly concerned—students and staff alike—in order to address the experience of higher education in the first person.

To this end, four thematic tracks are proposed:

Track 1: Access to Higher Education

The transition from upper secondary education to higher education (bac–3 to bac+3) appears to be a necessary cornerstone of a truly inclusive dynamic. But has this transition been conceived from an inclusivity perspective? Does it promote success for all, and in particular for pupils and students in vulnerable situations? This track will examine the articulation between accommodations and schemes offered by secondary education and by higher education and research, as well as the continuity of educational pathways, with regard to the distinct functioning of these two sectors—particularly in Réunion and the Indian Ocean region.

In this respect, the existence of specific inclusivity-related features across different higher education pathways may be discussed. For example, do preparatory classes for elite schools (CPGE), because they are housed within secondary schools, benefit from a more seamless articulation of inclusive measures compared to the first years at university? Or do they remain, despite reforms aimed at broadening social access, an expression of “segregative democratization” (Dutercq & Masy, 2016)?

Similarly, are there disparities in inclusivity among different components of the university? If so, how can these phenomena be explained? Issues of guidance, informed choice of study projects, and future career planning may be examined in this regard.

Finally, what specific schemes have some higher education institutions developed and implemented to reduce inequalities and to encourage genuine inclusion of all publics, regardless of their profiles, from the very beginning of their higher education studies?

Track 2: Higher Education as a Potentially Enabling Environment

Have the numerous reforms experienced by universities (including the Faure Act of 1968, the Savary Act of 1984, the LRU Act of 2007, and the ESR Act of 2013) contributed to making the university an environment conducive to the development of agency among students and staff? Legal issues and public policies related to this question may be addressed. The legislative framework promoting the implementation of inclusive policies within institutions, along with the integration of University Social Responsibility (USR), assigns higher education the role of a major actor in solidarity (Luangsay-Catelin & Gasner-Bouquet, 2018), enabling individuals to develop skills and knowledge for greater autonomy (Falzon, 2013).

To this end, not only individuals’ internal capacities must be available, but also a set of environmental conditions—organizational, technical, and social in nature. An enabling environment thus defines a field of possibilities both for individuals in developing their agency and for the organization, which benefits in return (Zimmermann, 2008, 2011).

Higher education in Réunion will be examined from this perspective. Do territorial specificities linked to the island, multilingual, multicultural, and postcolonial context—where diversity is an identity—position the university within an ecosystem conducive to the development of agency? Analyses may address both local constraints, particularly socio-economic ones, and opportunities related to the island’s specific demographics and the relative youth of its educational and university systems. The situation of the Université de La Réunion—as a European, ultra-peripheral institution at the heart of the Africa–Asia axis in the Indian Ocean—exposes it to multiple influences that may be analyzed in comparison with other national and international contexts.

Universities as potentially enabling environments (Fernagu, 2022) may also be examined in relation to issues of well-being and quality of life for users and staff. Topics related to campuses, catering, or transportation, in connection with physical and mental health, may be addressed.

Furthermore, the role of partnerships—particularly with health and medico-social sectors—and inter-professional approaches in higher education and research will be explored.

Finally, the outcomes of university studies, in terms of personal fulfillment, mobility, and professional integration, may also be discussed.

Track 3: The Relationship Between Digital Technology and Accessibility

The general context of education, which is in constant flux, has undergone accelerated transformation since the COVID-19 pandemic, with an increased role for digital technology in higher education. The hybridization of learning spaces, the use of virtual or augmented reality, and the rise of generative artificial intelligence are central to reflections on new teaching and learning modalities. This conference examines transformations in the educational ecosystem with regard to the role of digital technology and its accessibility. Do these transformations contribute to the creation of more inclusive learning environments? Does the plurality of teaching and learning modalities respond to the needs generated by the diversification of student profiles?

Do pedagogical devices and instructional design that combine physical materiality and digital immateriality contribute to inclusive dynamics, or do they reinforce digital exclusion? What are the consequences of this hybridity for student engagement, persistence, success, and sense of belonging? What impact do these changes have on staff, their practices, and their professional gestures?

Digital accessibility became a major issue in 2020 in the context of the health crisis. During the first lockdown, access to digital tools proved essential to ensuring pedagogical continuity. But where does digital accessibility stand in universities today? While around ten French higher education and research institutions currently have designated digital accessibility officers, there is still no official framework. What obstacles remain—particularly at the institutional level—to harmonization? What levers could be used to better define and unify these roles, which are both technical and strategic? What are the consequences of inequalities in digital accessibility for students and staff with disabilities? What solutions are being proposed by different institutions?

Finally, contributions may focus on various innovative tools or schemes, for example those using AI or VR for awareness-raising, support, or training purposes, in service of inclusive dynamics within higher education institutions. Their design, implementation, and outcomes may be analyzed.

Track 4: The Relationship Between Education and Self-Determination

Higher education is inherently a vector of transformation. Education leads to change in learners who, through interaction with instructors and peers, develop new knowledge and skills. Likewise, through contact with the great diversity of students it educates, the university evolves, adapts its training offer, and develops new practices. It transforms from within through a continuous process of institutional change. The trajectory implied by the prefix trans- thus applies both to students and to higher education as a whole, positioning the latter as particularly capable of influencing society toward greater inclusivity.

Are university studies therefore vectors of self-determination? Do they offer real opportunities for a wide diversity of young people to learn, achieve their goals, and fully realize themselves? For students to develop, during their studies, the skills and competencies necessary for agency—to choose and make decisions freely in accordance with their values and goals (Wehmeyer, 2003)—it is essential that learning content be accessible. Universal Design for Learning and the participation of those concerned in the development of training and assessment schemes in higher education may be addressed. Professional integration may also be examined, for example through schemes designed for students with specific needs.

The inclusivity of higher education and the prospects for self-determination it offers will be examined through the lens of experiential knowledge. Individual and collective trajectories, narratives, and analyses from those concerned will enable inclusive dynamics to be considered in the first person.

Finally, insofar as an educational institution can only promote an inclusive message if its staff reflect the diversity it advocates, attention will be paid to the place and role of staff—particularly teachers and teacher-researchers who are representative of this diversity. Issues surrounding disclosure of diagnoses in cases of so-called invisible disabilities may be raised. What visibility do these staff members have? Do higher education institutions offer inclusive management approaches? Finally, what accommodations are proposed for these staff members, and what career prospects are available to them?

Recommended Approaches

This broad issue of inclusive higher education will be addressed from an interdisciplinary perspective.

Proposals for scientific presentations may come from a wide range of disciplines—social, psychological, educational, legal, or technological—in order to explore the multiple facets of this emerging field.

Participatory approaches in the sense of disability studies, as well as research conducted with and for those concerned, will be particularly valued.

The conference is interested not only in scientific research but also in the experiential knowledge of individuals who wish to share their lived experiences of higher education.

Thus, proposals focusing on experiences, life stories, and educational narratives from students or staff (from secondary education, higher education and research, and health and medico-social sectors) are welcome in order to address inclusivity in the first person.

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