Research Information System
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH, vol.133, 2025 (SSCI)
This qualitative study explores barriers that visually impaired students face in Turkey's highstakes educational assessments, employing the social model of disability. Through semistructured interviews with 24 visually impaired adults (aged 20-42), three themes emerged: (1) Accessibility and Accommodation Challenges, including inadequate braille materials, inaccessible exam centers, and untrained readers; (2) Lack of Teacher Training, reflecting educators' unpreparedness and discriminatory attitudes; and (3) Technological Solutions and Gaps, where assistive tools like screen readers are beneficial but limited by cost and infrastructure. Findings reveal how Turkey's assessment system, rooted in a medical model, perpetuates inequities, particularly for low-income students. Inconsistent accommodations, such as extra time and reliance on poorly trained readers, hinder equitable participation. The study proposes standardized accommodations, universal design for learning (UDL)-based teacher training, and state-funded technologies to transform assessment practices. Focusing on visually impaired students' voices challenges normative paradigms and contributes to global discourses on inclusive education. Turkey's experiences offer lessons for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where resource constraints mirror these barriers, and high-income nations, where inconsistent implementation persists. The findings advocate a social-relational model, redefining disability as a product of structural obstacles, and call for proactive, inclusive assessment systems worldwide.