Broadening Participation in Engineering to Include People with Disabilities

[Music]

>> Narrator: Engineers design,
create and innovate.

From airplanes and cars
to robots and electronics,

engineers design products
we use every day.

There’s a great demand
for skilled engineers

with a strong academic background
and work experience.

Increasing the participation of people
with disabilities in engineering

can help to meet this demand.

>> Nils Hakansson: People with
disabilities are problem solvers

and engineering is about
solving problems

and improving quality of life

and designing environments and
structures and devices to help people.

And we’re experts at that because
we do it every day in our lives.

>> Cynthia: A lot of
society isn't really built

to be accessible for a blind person
so, throughout my life,

I either talk to role models about
how they have solved a problem

or I have to figure it out myself.

I think that the problem-solving
fits really naturally

into an engineering discipline.

>> Leyf Starling: So, just increasing,
when you're thinking about putting together

the best possible team to
work on an engineering problem,

you want as many different ideas
coming to the table as possible.

>> Constance Thompson: You will find
a lot of individuals

with varying levels of dis-Ability
think differently about solving problems

because they have to

and just by inserting that
into the conversation,

inserting that into the way
that you practice engineering,

it's going to change the game.

It's a game changer

and we need that type of
game changing attitude in the U.S.

to meet those innovation challenges
that we're going to face.

>> Grace: It's important
for people with disabilities

to go into engineering fields because
they've experienced problems themselves

and they probably have ideas on
how to fix that and what to do.

>> Narrator: Human ability
varies across a wide spectrum

including individuals with
visual impairments,

hearing impairments,
learning disabilities,

autism spectrum disorders,
attention deficits,

and mobility impairments.

>> Nils: I have a physical disability,

I ride a wheelchair.

>> Daniel: I have high functioning
autism spectrum disorder.

>> Grace: I'm profoundly deaf.

I grew up with two hearing aids

and then last year, when I was 17,
I got a cochlear implant on my right side

because I wasn't hearing anything
through my right ear.

>> Billy Price: Yes, I'm in a wheelchair

but being in a wheelchair
shouldn't have any impact whatsoever

on my ability to do my job.

So, in that sense,
I'm just the same as everybody else

so I don't think I should have
any sort of,

I don't think I should be
treated any different.

I mean, there's a job
that has to be done.

Yes I have an engineering background and

I can do it just as successfully
as anyone else.

>> Kat Steele: I think one of the challenges
for individuals with disabilities

is low expectations.

We all have different levels of ability
but often, I think, people make assumptions

based upon whether you move a certain way

or if you use assistive technology
during your daily life.

>> Cynthia: I don't meet enough
engineers with disabilities.

For example, on my campus, I am usually
the one person that people go to,

“Oh we need your feedback about this.

Is it accessible?”

I think that people with disabilities
still have to make a concerted effort

to find role models
who are engineers.

>> Narrator: Assistive technology
and reasonable accommodations

can make it possible for
individuals with disabilities

to successfully pursue education
and careers in engineering.

>> Daniel: I was able to get
more time on examinations,

which was extremely helpful.

Which gave me time to think on a problem,

not be compressed in a very short time span
to complete a problem,

have a very low
distraction environment.

I was in a room all by myself.

>> Grace: In school I use an interpreter,
a sign language interpreter,

and also have a note taker
for each of my classes

whenever I request one.

>> Leyf: So a talking calculator

it's a great tool not just for
someone with a visual impairment

but for someone with dyscalculia
who has trouble flipping numbers around.

>> Nils: I was even able to attend
a machine shop class,

working with a lathe and end mill,
non-computer controlled, hand controlled,

largely because the faculty
who taught that class

were open-minded and really allowed
me to dictate my limits.

>> Narrator: Instructors can make
their classes accessible to all students

by applying universal design,
designing their classes and lessons

so all students have equal access
to the information.

>> Brianna Blaser: Captioning on videos,

not only is that great for students
who might have hearing loss or are deaf,

but students who are not
native speakers of English

often use the captions when
they are watching a video

so you know that's a
great example of universal design

that's benefiting all kinds of people.

>> Leyf: So for a student
with a learning disability

in reading for example,

if they have the opportunity
to gain the information

from an engineering design perspective
instead of just reading a textbook,

they're going to excel more

and they're going to feel
more successful in that area.

>> Kat: Many of the new
educational techniques

that incorporate active learning

and involving many different types
of educational material

really not only help
individuals with disabilities,

but all students.

Each year as you teach a class
you can introduce some of these changes,

hear how students respond,
and over time,

create a more accessible environment

within your department
and in your classroom.

>> Narrator: Many engineering assignments
involve group projects,

and faculty can encourage
classmates to be welcoming.

>> Cynthia: I think traditionally people
with disabilities are sometimes marginalized

to,

for example, write the lab report rather than
pouring liquids or using machinery

and that's where asserting one's self
can really come in handy to say, “No,

it's just as important for me to learn
how to use the shop equipment as you,”

and so I might need to touch the equipment
or be instructed on how to use it,

but I still need to take part
in that process.

I don't want a group member
to make an assumption

about what I may or may not
be able to do

or in what ways that
I could use some help

so I have to be able to
communicate my skills and say

“Well, this is what
I can offer the group,

and here, maybe formatting
the PowerPoint slides,

maybe that’s something

that someone else in the group
could do.

>> Sheryl Burgstahler: The key there

is to make sure that every
team member has a role.

And I suggest the first thing t
hey should do

is ask the student
with a disability

how they'd like to contribute
to the group work

and often they'll
come up with something

that maybe the faculty member
or other students

wouldn't have even thought of.

>> Kat: Many of our new tools
that we use on an everyday basis

such as CNC machines which are
computer numerically controlled machines

where we use them for mills
and lathes and drills,

a lot of them are
controlled by computers now

and so that actually
increases access

and makes it so that
more people can easily build

the products that they're
wanting to create.

>> Michelle McCombs: These are
great students.

They have a lot to offer.

You will learn as much from them
as they learn from you,

if not more.

And just the more
you work with them,

it just really
moves the field forward

in ways that you are
not going to expect.