Dominant disability discourses in post-Soviet Azerbaijani higher education: an empirical analysis

This study, grounded in Critical Disability Studies and informed by postcolonial and decolonial perspectives, investigates how lecturers and pre-service teachers in Azerbaijan’s higher education system conceptualise disability. Drawing on semi-structured interviews conducted at a local university, it explores how post-Soviet educational legacies and broader colonial frameworks continue to shape understandings of disability. Although participants increasingly referred to the social model, their interpretations remained strongly influenced by deficit-oriented and medical traditions, reflecting the country’s transitional context in which inclusive rhetoric coexists with hierarchical and medicalised practices. Participants expressed empathy toward disabled students, yet their approaches often resulted in symbolic rather than substantive inclusion. Persistent discomfort with disability-related terminology further revealed cultural and linguistic uncertainty. The study argues that meaningful inclusion in Azerbaijani teacher education necessitates critical professional development, increased reflexivity, and justice-oriented pedagogical approaches that challenge ingrained assumptions about normalcy, ability, and difference.