The Faculty of Education Sciences, Department of Special Education students and the Special Education Club held a public awareness event on December 2, 2025, at the Istanbul Medeniyet University Göztepe North Campus B Block Lobby Area, as part of December 3, International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The event, organized with the contribution of Assist.Prof.Dr. Damla Işıtan Kılıç, was attended by Prof.Dr. Eyüp Sevimli, Assoc. Prof.Dr. Hatice Fakioğlu Bağcı, Assist. Prof.Dr. Mutlu Aksoy, academics, and students. The program highlighted the importance of accessibility and independent mobility through cane usage exercises, Braille writing experiences, and awareness board activities.
The event significantly contributed to establishing a more inclusive perspective within the university community and created strong awareness, particularly regarding accessibility, equal opportunities, and creating fair conditions for everyone. Students and academics who participated in cane use and Braille writing workshops gained a much more concrete understanding of the need to reduce discrimination by personally experiencing the difficulties that individuals with visual impairments face in daily life in terms of orientation, communication, and mobility. These experiences enabled participants to recognize both physical barriers in the environment and social prejudices, thereby making the invisible barriers that prevent individuals with disabilities from participating equally in social life visible.
Interactions in the application area allowed students to discuss what kind of arrangements are needed to strengthen each individual’s social participation; this process highlighted why inclusive policies and practices are necessary. The awareness board at the event provided a shared space for participants to share their thoughts on accessibility, independent movement, and equality, fostering collective awareness towards empowering disadvantaged groups. Through the messages they wrote on the board, participants drew attention to the right of individuals with different needs to fully participate in social life and contributed to strengthening a more equitable and inclusive culture within the university.
All these efforts increased empathy among students and academics towards the life experiences of individuals with disabilities; they demonstrated that creating a more equitable, accessible, and inclusive university environment is possible not only through physical adjustments but also through a strong social awareness. In this regard, the event offered a holistic learning environment that developed both individual awareness and institutional sensitivity.
