Andrej Košir, Janja Košir and Janez Zaletelj

ABSTRACT
This paper deals with the identification and interpretation of seg-
ments of students with disabilities at the University of Ljubljana.
The data on which this segmentation is based are the students’
responses to a dedicated questionnaire created through an op-
erationalization process according to the selected aspects and
objectives of the segmentation.
The segmentation aimed to identify homogeneous groups of
students with disabilities in order to 1. improve the understanding
of students’ needs, 2. prepare reliable data for the selection of
technological support for students and 3. create the basis for
a subsequent project on ICT-based support for special needs
students.
Through the operationalization process, we identified five ar-
eas (aspects), namely 1. technology and overcoming academic
barriers, 2. technology and academic outcomes, 3. ICT and aca-
demic obligations, and 5. technology and overcoming academic
barriers. Based on student responses, we identified segments for
the first three areas, with all three areas well covered by three
segments each. We identified three segments in each area: 1.
Technology Enthusiasts (accept everything), 2. Skeptical Users
(reject everything but the exceptions), and 3. Picky Users (accept
almost everything but the exceptions). From the second and third
segments, we extracted the main characteristics by technology
and by activity. The results are applicable for the next steps in
technology support for students with special needs.