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This study was to examine the available adaptive technologies and the role they play in supporting PWDs in public academic libraries in Ghana. University of Cape Coast library and University of Ghana library were purposively selected for the study since these institutions were known public universities that practice inclusive education. Interview guides were used as data collection tool. A total of 20 respondents were selected and the interviews targeted 16 students with disabilities, the 2 librarians and the 2 heads of the unit in the library that catered for the needs of the students with special needs. The library environment and services were assessed considering the adaptive technologies that are present in the selected cases to support PWDs to be independent users of the library. The thematic content analysis was used in analysing the data. On the constructive side, the study revealed that the two selected cases had some form of adaptive technologies that aided PWDs to access some services in the library, there was a special unit dedicated to serving the needs of PWDs and there were dedicated staff that served their needs. Nonetheless, the adaptive technologies that were needed to access the libraries built environment as well as library services were woefully inadequate to afford the students with disabilities independent life in the library environment. Elevators and ramps were missing, computers were often faulty, alternative format of information were in most cases not available, internet connectivity were often poor, and all these together with the financial challenge faced by the libraries and the lack of formal library policy that targeted service provision for PWDs made it difficult for the libraries to serve the students with disability. In view of these recommendations to improve on the provision of adaptive technologies included: changing some of the disabling factors in the built environment like providing ramps and elevators, increasing the number of adaptive technologies like computers with all the necessary software and ensuring that the available adaptive
technologies are in a good working condition.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that over a billion people; representing about 15% of the world’s population has some form of disability (WHO, 2013). Out of this number, roughly 80% live in poor and developing countries (Mensah, 2008). Oye-Lithur, Stickney and Nathan (2007) estimated that 10% of Ghana’s citizens were “Persons with Disabilities” (PWDs.).
This large minority group are socially excluded as they are deprived of their basic rights to access information. All citizens should have access to information as that permit’s self- development and active participation in a democratic society (Todaro, 2005). Unfortunately, this important right eludes most PWDs. Cosequently there was a need for global, regional and national legislative interventions like the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and among others that strived to include the rights of PWDs.
Ghana in a bid to uphold the rights of PWDs passed the Disability Act 2006 (Act 715). The section 6 of the Act urges owners or occupiers of public place to provide apt facilities that make it open and available for use by PWDs and also obliges public service providers to ensure that such services are accessible to PWDs. However, national and private information and communication service providers exempt the hearing impaired from public information access and many newspapers, books and educative materials are offered in inaccessible format to the blind. (Mensah, 2008).
The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 that stresses on inclusive and equitable quality education and promotion of lifelong learning opportunity for all is somehow dependent on ensuring inclusive built environments in institutions of higher learning of which the library is part (Tudzi, Bugri & Danso, 2017). However, the built environment presents one of the greatest challenges of providing equal opportunities and full integration of PWDs in Ghana (Mensah, 2008). Information, communication and adaptive technology according to Friedman and Norman, (2012) can offer PWDs new possibilities to freely live and participate in socio-economic activities yet these technologies are woefully inadequate or missing in the public care system.
Library is a collection of information materials; organised for studying, research and recreation. Eberhart, (2010) defines a library as: ” a collection of resources in a variety of formats that is organized by information professionals or other experts who provide convenient physical, digital, bibliographic, or intellectual access and offer targeted services and programs (4) with the mission of educating, informing, or entertaining a variety of audiences and the goal of stimulating individual learning and advancing society as a whole.”According to Clee and Maguire, (1993) the total library environment encompass many factors like layout and distribution of stock and equipment, furniture provision, lighting and heating levels, atmosphere and decor any one of which can change a user’s view of the library and all have their own impact, and being part of a cumulative effect.Academic Library is synonymous to university library. It refers to a library that is set up to serve students, staff, faculty and researchers of colleges and universities. It is characterised by larger institutions with several libraries on their campuses devoted to serving particular college or faculty. It can also be said that it is a library that is attached to a higher education institution which supports the school’s curriculum, and the research of the institution faculty and students. Kpodoe (2008) states that “the University Library is an essential support subsystem of a university in that it is recognized as reflecting or even determining the intellectual status and wellbeing of the university.Public Academic Library according to Kpodoe, (2008) refers to a library that supports a public/government college or university and is financed almost entirely by the government.Garrod, (2004) declares that “adaptive, accessible, enabling and assistive technologies” are used interchangeably to mean “the software packages and equipment” that assist people with special needs to use computers and access the internet. Robertson, (2007) also defines adaptive technology as a broad range of electronic devices in the form of specialist software and/or equipment that enable people with disabilities to bypass, overcome, or compensate for barriers to learning and access to information.According to WHO, (2013) “disabilities is an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. WHO claims that “impairment is a problem in body function or structure; an activity limitation is a difficulty encountered by an individual in executing a task or action; while a participation restriction is a problem experienced by an individual in involvement in life situations. Disability is thus not just a health problem. It is a complex
phenomenon, reflecting the interaction between features of a person’s body and features of the society in which he or she lives. Overcoming the difficulties faced by people with disabilities requires interventions to remove environmental and social barriers.”
Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) as used in this study, refers to persons who face difficulty
To sum up, there is a growing trend of disability that has necessitated the passage of several legislations globally yet access to the built environment and information that constitute a basic human right eludes PWDs and the great potential of “Information, communication and adaptive technology” to support daily life needs of PWDs to actively participate in society has been ignored in the public care systems. Thus, building inclusive library environment will add in no small way to the attainment of the “Sustainable Development Goal” (SDG) 4.
Studies show that every individual including PWDs need information for daily decision- making (Yoon & Kim, 2011; Koulikourdi, 2008) and this is one of the fundamental human rights that permits self development and active participation in a democratic society (Todaro, 2001). This all important right eludes most PWDs in Ghana as “national and private information and communication service providers” exempt the hearing impaired from public information access and many newspapers, books and educative materials are offered in inaccessible format to persons with visual impairments. (Mensah, 2008). Again the SDG goal 4 declares the need to ensure “inclusive and equitable education for all” yet, less than 2% of PWDs in Ghana attain education past the second cycle level (Ghana Statistical Services, 2013; Tudzi, et al., 2017) and even these few number struggle since
the “built environment of educational institutions including libraries usually is inaccessible to PWDs” (Ashigbi et al., 2015; Fidzani et al., 2013).
Studies from Koulikourdi, (2008) and Kwafoa, (2016) shows that efforts are being made to integrate assistive technologies for users with disability however majority of libraries are not fitted with a complete set of adaptive technologies and despite their importance for achieving equal access to information and services, they are woefully inadequate. Koulikourdi’s study on “Library services for people with disabilities in Greece” revealed that though there were some adaptive technologies like elevators, ramps scanners, screen enlargement devices, Braille printers, speech synthesizers, talking books, tape recordings among others they were woefully inadequate in Greek libraries. (Koulikourdi, 2008). Kwafoa, (2016) in a similar work studied three public universities known to practice inclusive education for the visually impaired in Ghana. She sought to find out the kind of library services provided for the visually impaired students in the universities in Ghana. This study also showed equipment and materials for providing service to the visually impaired were found to be inadequate and the libraries were faced with challenges such as financial, resource persons, lack of equipment and infrastructure.
Since the passage of the Ghana Disability Act, 2006 (ACT 715); all public facilities including academic libraries were to be made accessible to PWDs by 2016 yet this has not been achieved as most public academic libraries do not have services for PWDs (Kwafoa, 2016). Beaton (2005) declares that the library is part of society and so can contribute to disabling environment for PWDs in view of this if the libraries in Ghana can do away with the barriers in the library environment it will go a long way to help the library users with impairments to achieve independent living and participate fully in their daily use of the
library. This will then spearhead Ghana into the achievement of the SDG 4 and SDG 10 which aim at reducing inequalities.
In the face of the growing trend of disability worldwide of which Ghana is no exception (National Health Policy, 2007; WHO, 2013), libraries in Ghana are possibly excluding large potential users as adaptive technology for disabled users are usually lacking and despite their value very little is done to provide these technologies in Ghana. In view of the above, libraries in Ghana will do well for PWDs if they embrace the adaptive technologies.
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