Unit
2: Disability Rights || Unit 2: Disability
Rights Teaching Notes || Stage 2
Resource sheet: The Law
This
section provides some key points regarding the provisions of the Disability
Discrimination Act 1992
(Commonwealth). It is provided as
a guide only and should not be relied upon for legal advice.
Disability Discrimination Act (1992) (Commonwealth) - This Act aims to eliminate discrimination against people with
disabilities, and promote community acceptance of the principle that people
with disabilities have the same fundamental rights as all members of the
community.
Definition of 'disability' for the purposes of the DDA is:
- total or partial loss of a person's bodily or mental functions
- total or partial loss of a part of the body
- the presence in the body of organisms causing disease or
illness
- the presence in the body or organisms capable of causing
disease or illness
- the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part
of the person's body
- a disorder or malfunction that results in the person learning
differently from a person without disorder or malfunction, or
- a disorder, illness or disease that affects a person's thought
processes, perception of reality, emotions or judgment or that results
in disturbed behaviour,
What areas of life does the DDA cover?
The DDA makes it unlawful to discriminate against someone if
they have a disability in the following areas of life:
Employment - e.g., when someone is trying
to get a job, equal pay or promotion.
Education - e.g., when enrolling in a school,
TAFE, university or other college.
Access to premises used by the public -
e.g., using libraries, places of worship, government offices, hospitals,
restaurants, shops, or other premises used by the public.
Provision of goods, services and facilities - e.g., when a person wants goods or services from shops, pubs, and
places of entertainment, cafes, video shops, banks, lawyers, government
departments, doctors, hospitals and so on.
Accommodation - e.g., when renting or trying
to rent a room in a boarding house, a flat, unit or house.
Buying land - e.g., buying a house, a place
for a group of people, or a drop-in centre.
Activities of clubs and associations - e.g.,
wanting to enter or join a registered club (such as a sports club, RSL
or fitness centre), or when a person is already a member.
Sport - e.g., when wanting to play, or when
playing a sport.
Administration of Commonwealth Government laws and
programs - e.g., when seeking information on government entitlements,
trying to access government programs, wanting to use voting facilities.
DDA and educational institutions
The DDA makes it against the law for
an educational authority
to discriminate against
someone because that person
has a disability. |
A person with a disability has a right to study at any educational
institution in the same way as any other student.
The DDA makes it against the law for an educational authority
to discriminate against someone because that person has a disability.
This includes all public and private educational institutions,
primary and secondary schools, and tertiary institutions such as TAFE,
private colleges and universities.
Whether the actions of an educational institution would be
considered unlawful discrimination would be dependent on the individual
circumstances of each case.
Requirements of the DDA for educators to consider
| If a person with a disability
meets the essential entry requirements, then educators
must make changes or 'reasonable adjustments' if
that person needs them to perform essential course work, provided
that making reasonable adjustments will not cause major difficulty
or unreasonable costs to the institution. |
Educators should not make assumptions about what a person can
or cannot do because of a disability or a perceived disability. They should
base their decisions on a person's ability to meet the essential requirements
of the course of study.
If a person with a disability meets the essential entry
requirements, then educators must make changes or "reasonable
adjustments" if that person needs them to perform essential
course work, provided that making reasonable adjustments will not cause
major difficulty or unreasonable costs to the institution.
Adjustments could include:
- modifying educational premises, e.g., making ramps, modifying
toilets and ensuring classrooms are accessible to the person with a
disability
- modifying or providing equipment, e.g., lowering lab benches,
enlarging computer screens, providing specific computer software or
an audio loop system
- changing assessment procedures, e.g., allowing for alternative
examination methods such as oral exams, or allowing additional time
for someone else to write an exam for a person with a disability
- changing course delivery, e.g., providing study notes or
research materials in different formats or providing a sign language
interpreter for a deaf person.
What if changes are too difficult for educators?
The DDA does not require changes to be made if this will cause
major difficulties or unreasonable costs to a person or organisation.
This is called 'unjustifiable hardship'. Before considering
claiming adjustments are unjustified, educators need to:
- thoroughly consider how an adjustment might be made
- discuss this directly with the person involved, and
- consult relevant sources of advice.
For further discussion of how the courts have interpreted the
requirements, see the HREOC web links:
Other relevant legislation includes:
-
- State and territory anti-discrimination legislation
This document is also available for download
in  Word and  PDF formats. |
