The Student Domain and Epistemic Access in South African Higher Education: Michael Cross's Legacy for Students with Disabilities

The epistemic access and success of historically disadvantaged students in South African higher education have been topical issues in recent decades. The late Professor Michael Cross was at the forefront of projects exploring the epistemic access and success of disadvantaged students. Even though students with disabilities are disadvantaged, their epistemic access has not been fully explored, a gap which this chapter seeks to close, specifically in the South African context. A synthesis of the literature on Cross's work was carried out and international and South African data on disability, epistemic access, and epistemic success were analysed. A decolonial analytical framework was used to understand the pertinent underlying constraints in South African higher education. Building on Cross's research, the chapter proposes a social and emotional learning (SEL) approach as a starting point for boosting positive self-image and helping in developing self-confidence in students with disabilities. This is aimed at enabling students with disabilities to be active participants in academic practice.