Challenges and issues concerning the inclusion of people with lived experience of intellectual disability at university as students, co‑trainers, and co‑researchers: The example of the DESHMA project

Abstract

This article examines the place of people with lived experience of intellectual disability (ID) at university through the project DESHMA, which trains pairs to co‑teach disability awareness courses. It first explores their role as students, then as teachers once they obtain their co‑instructor certificate. The article also analyses their involvement as co‑researchers, particularly in the co‑writing of scientific publications. The issues raised by these roles are discussed through the lenses of epistemic justice (Fricker, 2007) and the social role valorization framework (Wolfensberger, 1991). The analysis highlights the challenges of co‑construction in a context marked by structural asymmetries. This work builds on a communication jointly delivered by a person with ID and a university lecturer‑researcher who both took part in the project.

Keywords: disability, experiential knowledge, intellectual disability, research, training.