Consultation: Initial recommendations for the development of proposed postsecondary education accessibility standards
The consultation is now closed. From June 25 to November 1, 2021, we asked for your feedback on the proposed standards to help make postsecondary education more accessible for students with disabilities. Thank you for your feedback.
Background
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) was passed with unanimous support. Under this legislation, accessibility standards were set in regulation to identify, remove and prevent barriers for people with disabilities in all areas of daily life. The standards apply to every organization with one or more employees in the public, private and non-profit sectors.
One of the functions of the AODA is to set out the legislated process for the development of new accessibility standards through Standards Development Committees. In Spring/Summer 2019, the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility resumed the Postsecondary Education Standards Development Committee — a group of representatives comprised of people with disabilities, disability organizations and sector experts — to develop recommendations for proposed accessibility standards for postsecondary education.
About the consultation
The proposed standards for postsecondary education focus on addressing accessibility barriers in publicly funded postsecondary schools.
The committee has drafted initial recommendations that would inform the government’s work on proposed accessibility standards for postsecondary education.
The committee will review all feedback before it submits its final report and recommendations to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility for consideration.
Initial recommendations
The initial report contains 179 recommendations that the committee developed.
Read the initial recommendations.
Technical sub-committee transition recommendations
Members of the Kindergarten to Grade 12 (K-12) and postsecondary committees also formed a technical sub-committee that focused on transition planning (for example, moving between levels of education or from K-12 to the workforce, the community and to postsecondary education), and developed recommendations that helped inform the postsecondary Initial Recommendations Report. Read the report from the Education Technical Sub-Committee, which includes 75 recommendations the sub-committee developed in the following areas:
- transitions to and within K-12 education
- transitions from K-12 to postsecondary education
- transitions for Indigenous students with disabilities
- transitions from secondary school to the workplace and community
- alternative transition programs/pathways
Read the transition recommendations.
Read the technical sub-committee transition final recommendations.
Final recommendations
The Committee has reviewed all comments, finalized their recommendations and submitted them to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility for consideration.
As outlined by the act, the Minister shall decide whether to recommend to the Lieutenant Governor in Council that the proposed standard be adopted by regulation in whole, in part or with modifications.
Read the committee’s final recommendations.
Your privacy matters
The Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility (the “ministry”) is subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. F.31. The collection of your personal information is necessary under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 for the proper administration of the Ministry’s support of the Postsecondary Education Standards Development Committee’s (the “committee”) work, which is consistent with the mandate of the ministry. The optional personal information you choose to provide (e.g., email address and demographic data) and your feedback will be collected by the ministry, anonymized and shared with the committee. Your responses will be reviewed by the ministry and the committee to inform the committee's advice to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility. Survey results may also be used in a summary report at an aggregate level.
If you have any questions about the collection, use or disclosure of your information, please contact:
Alex Ibrahim
Manager of Standards Development Unit
Alex.Ibrahim@ontario.ca
If you have questions about the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, R.S.O. 1990, please contact:
FOI Co-ordinator
400 University Avenue, 2nd Floor
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 2R9