L’università inclusiva?

The aim of this essay is to provide a sociological perspective on disability, in order to analyze the historical origin and permeability of this concept with respect to other social phenomena, since disability is often a by-product of social relations. Indeed, someone is usually considered disabled in relation to a standard, a model, a social norm that defines what we mean by “being normal”. Education provides the basic framework for assessing and gauging disability, since, over time, the former has become one of the privileged means of emancipation. Analysing the recent history of education for disabled people highlights achievements, critical issues, and new goals of national, European, and international legislations on the inclusiveness of social institutions, starting with School and University. From such critical review, there emerges a new challenge towards the realization of a more inclusive higher education. The latter should provide ever larger common spaces shared both by disabled and non-disabled, allowing everyone to acquire those instruments that are essential for self-realization and understanding of a reality in which being disabled is just one of the many possible ways of being human