Opening windows and closing gaps : A case analysis of the agenda setting of Egypt’s inclusion policymaking process in Higher Education Institutions

Hosny, Ola and Trowler, Paul (2023) Opening windows and closing gaps : A case analysis of the agenda setting of Egypt’s inclusion policymaking process in Higher Education Institutions. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

Text (2023OlaHosnyPhD)
2023OlaHosnyPhD.pdf - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial.
Download (3MB)

Abstract

This is an exploratory qualitative study that illuminates an understanding of the inclusion policymaking processes in Egyptian Higher Education Institutions. The study uses the Multiple Streams Framework supported by the Socio Ecological Framework to define the factors that affect the development of inclusion’s problem, policy, and politics on all socioecological levels. Students, professors, policymakers, policy entrepreneurs and public authority members are interviewed, and their perceptions discussed in two public and two private universities in Egypt with different inclusion settings. Findings reveal that all four examined institutions are self-aware and have the potential for inclusion policy change, yet policy entrepreneurs and policymakers’ capacities are negatively influencing this potential, limiting possible ideational change. Scarcity of data on students with disabilities, confusing legal framework, and capabilities gaps are also hindering the process. Adding inclusion as an accreditation criterion puts forward a better chance of inclusion and policy change. To the author’s knowledge, this study is considered the first investigation in discussing the policymaking of inclusion in Egypt’s public and private universities. Thus, the results interrogate a roadmap on inclusion in Egyptian Higher Education Institutions and form an original contribution to knowledge.