ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´

Project Summary

The AI for Assessment of Functional Limitations in Disability Services for Postsecondary Education Project will research the viability and effectiveness of artificial intelligence (AI) in assessing disability-related needs.

We will endeavour to develop a prototype system trained by disability experts (including those with lived experience and/or professionals in the field) to a) collect information about self-reported strengths and limitations in functioning; and b) produce recommendations for disability-related supports.

The overall research question is: Can AI successfully assess profiles of strengths and limitations in functioning to recommend meaningful supports in the context of disability services at post-secondary?

Significant ethical considerations must be carefully considered and navigated as part of this project to ensure that it does not trivialize or overgeneralize the complexities of disability-related needs. The proposed model will be co-designed and validated by students with disabilities and relevant experts will help bridge this critical gap in expertise.

This project is made possible with a high degree of interdisciplinary collaboration from various fields and input from persons with disabilities, both among students, expert service providers, and the research team members.

Funding

This project is supported by the Government of Canada’s New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF).

Project Team

Vukovic, Boris, Ph.D (PI)
Director, Accessibility Institute, and Adjunct research professor, Industrial Design, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

, Ph.D (Co-PI)
Assistant Professor, School of Computer Science, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Akkasi, Abbas (Post Doctoral Fellow)

Kevadiya, Rakshil (Research Assistant)

Gunnell, Jessie (Research Coordinator)
Research Projects Officer, Accessibility Institute, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Feltmate, Erin (Project Administrator)
Administrator, Accessibility Institute, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Co-Applicants

Ph.D (Co-ap)
Associate Professor, Sociology, St. Francis Xavier University

Ph.D (Co-ap)
Professor, Systems and Computer Engineering, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Ph.D OT Reg. (Ont.) (Co-ap)
Assistant Professor,  Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto

Ph.D (Co-ap)
Professor, Faculty of Design, OCAD University

Collaborators

Connolly, Tara (Collaborator)
Assistant Director, Research & Development, Accessibility Institute, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Ph.D (Collaborator)
Digital Technologies Research Centre, National Research Council Canada

O’Riordan, Darlene (Collaborator)
Learning Strategist/Disabilities Counsellor, Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology

Tanguay, Sonia M.Ed, RP (Collaborator)
Senior Disability Coordinator, Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities, ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University

Ethics

This project was reviewed and cleared by the ÐÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University Research Ethics Board B, protocol #119314.

Contact

Please direct any inquiries to Project PI, Boris Vukovic, and Co-PI, Majid Komeili.