ADCET Webinar: Disability discrimination in the tertiary sector – the DDA, the DSE, and current disability discrimination controversies
Event Details
Online
30 March 2023
This webinar was originally scheduled for Thursday 2 March but due to unforeseen circumstances, it has been rescheduled to Thursday 30 March (1 – 2 pm AEDT).
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (DDA) has now been in operation for more than 30 years. It prohibits direct and indirect discrimination and obliges the making of reasonable adjustment for people with disability. The Disability Standards for Education 2005 (Cth) (DSE) were implemented in 2005 in order to clarify the scope of reasonable adjustment in the context of the education of people with disability.
This presentation will provide a refresher on how the DDA and DSE work to promote the inclusion of people with disability, and will also address the limitations of the legislation, particularly in respect of how the obligation to make reasonable adjustments has been narrowly interpreted by the courts.
Controversies that have arisen in the tertiary sector will also be covered: the education institution’s obligations in respect of students with disability-related challenging behaviour; the ramifications of failure to disclose disability; inherent requirements statements; and course completion disrupted by disability.
The webinar will be presented by Elizabeth Dickson, Senior Lecturer, Law School, Queensland University of Technology
Elizabeth’s PhD considered the utility of anti-discrimination legislation as a mechanism to promote equality of opportunity in education. Elizabeth teaches, researches, and consults in the area of Australian anti-discrimination law. She has published widely on the topic of disability discrimination and Australian education institutions.
The webinar is free to attend, and it will be live-captioned.
More information on the webinar and how to register can be found on the ADCET website.