Ca' Foscari students' perception of disability. A comparison between future teachers and future social workers.

Abstract

What people think of and how they act towards individuals with disabilities may have a huge impact on society, especially when they are in close contact. Social workers and teachers work in close contact with people with disabilities every day and therefore they represent important figures in this area. This thesis wants to offer a contribution to this research field by exploring the perceptions, the thoughts and the attitudes towards disability. More specifically, the aim of this work is to investigate Ca’ Foscari students’ perception of disability, since the employment rate of Ca’ Foscari students after graduating is higher than the national average. Particularly, the present work focuses on future teachers and future social workers, in order to understand their initial beliefs and expectations. Communalities and differences between these two groups of students will be underlined in the results. Essentially, the research involved eighty-nine Ca’ Foscari students of various disciplines studying in Venice, who voluntarily completed an online questionnaire. The findings indicate that the majority of the participants consider disability as a condition of difficulty and an insidious obstacle in daily life. Moreover, participants believe that knowing someone with disabilities personally, leads to a better understanding of disability and none of them showed indifference to the theme.