Information and communication technology use by students with disabilities in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic

Recently, due to the spread of COVID-19, the implementation of remote learning has been increasing worldwide. This study aims to analyze the difficulties and convenience of using information and communication technology (ICT) for students with disabilities and changes in their perceptions of ICT use after the completion of courses for each form of remote learning. The survey included 122 students with disabilities and 314 students without disabilities via a web-based questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of four situations, categorized according to the type of remote classes. We conducted an analysis of variance using a two-factor mixed design with disability (non-paired: two levels) × situations (paired: four levels) regarding perceptions of resistance toward ICT and self-rated comprehension as the dependent variables. Results show that students with disabilities were more positive about using ICT than students without disabilities in many items. However, before the courses that required the use of relatively new application software, such as web conferencing systems, students with disabilities showed significantly higher levels of resistance and lower levels of self-assessed comprehension. Further, a comparison of the amount of change in perceptions before and after the course reveals that students with disabilities showed significantly more improvement in negative items before the course. These results suggest the importance of providing opportunities for students with disability to learn how to use ICT and understand its convenience in an environment similar to an actual classroom, given the rapid changes occurring in ICT.