Inclusive Education in Higher Education: Cuban University Context Report

The main theoretical foundations supporting inclusive education in Higher Education in Cuba allow the implementation of two essential components: its dimensions and processes. The dimensions comprise three perspectives: the axiological, based on the acceptance of human diversity as a value; the political, with development of a legislation to make possible the right to inclusion, and the educational, which involves the development of collaborative learning strategies among teachers, students and everybody else involved in the university context. The inclusion imposes challenges to the Higher Education institutions and implies the introduction of changes in their dynamics based on three processes: entrance, retention and graduation. This predicates the training of human resources, improvement of teachers' professional development, organization of material, human and technical resources as well as the methodological didactic work in the teaching-learning process. It also refers to the so called "categories of deficiencies" where most inclusive are blind people and with physical disabilities. The most inclusive university course is Law. Finally, it exemplifies the current state of the University of Holguin, referring to the education of undergraduates and postgraduates.