By Ariani Mohd Nor
GOMBAK, 6 October 2018 – The medium to high level self-esteem within the disabled students of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) is rooted mainly in the positive amount of social support provided by their peers on campus.
According to Izazi Mohamad Ashrri, who has conducted a research on self-esteem level of undergraduate students with physical disabilities, there is no student recorded to have low self-esteem.
“From the sample of 60 registered disabled students under Disability Services Unit, 44 students have recorded to have a high level of self-esteem while studying in IIUM, and only 16 recorded to have a medium range, she said, adding that “the environmental domain provided by the IIUM community is the key factor towards their satisfaction”.
“The message that I wish to inform everyone is that we, together as students, should be more attentive and compassionate towards the disabled students in this campus,” Izazi added.
“A lot of satisfaction has come from the fact that IIUM has provided ample facilities to accommodate the disabled,” she added. “Though there are some things needed to be improved, they are quite satisfied with what they have now.”
It has been brought up when she came across a journal article that states that disabled students in the United Kingdom had faced discrimination due to their physical disabilities, however, no study has been conducted in Malaysia.
Izazi was a panelist at the 15th International Postgraduate Colloquium (IPRC) 2018 and worked together with the Disability Services Unit IIUM on her research.***
