Unlocking the desires of teachers and students in higher education: what they truly crave

Abstract

Flemish universities aspire to encourage an inclusive culture in the context of education democratization and increased educational options. Their policy plans reflect this commitment. In this exploratory, qualitative study, the aim was to find out to what extent practice is affected by these policy plans and therefore asked students and teachers to design the ideal, widely accessible online and offline learning environment for their university. Semi-structured focus groups with teachers and students from seven different faculties revealed valuable insights into their wishes and values. This study reports on what characterizes this inclusive online and offline learning environment from their perspectives. The results will be presented using examples and quotes from the respondents and will be related to the current international literature on inclusive higher education.