XENIA Inclusiveness Index (WP2) is the core of the project and it will be developed on the basis of the thematic areas and indicators defined, identified and developed in WP1. This is an intense WP of accurate technical work in which partners will assign values to each indicator, establishing hierarchies of relevance, importance and significance for each indicator against the principle of “Inclusive HEI” in the domain of gender and sexual orientation.
The final result of WP2 is the XENIA Inclusiveness Index that is composed by three key elements:
1. Matrix structured along thematic areas, under which objective indicators allow to assess the inclusiveness of a HEI;
2. Survey for students and staff of the HEI to gauge the “perception” of inclusiveness in the HEI;
3. Index that is the aggregation of the results of the objective assessment and the subjective perception among students and staff of the inclusiveness of HEIs.
The XENIA Inclusiveness Index will allow to capture both the objective and subjective elements of inclusion at HEI level by assessing the institution from:
a) empirical perspective along the five thematic areas (Institution, Policies and Programmes, Pedagogy and Academics, Support Services, Academic life) and a set of objective indicators;
b) individuals’ perspective of the inclusiveness of a HEI: the survey will be structured to capture the perceived level of inclusion in the specific institutional setting of the HEI;
c) aggregate perspective by consolidating the “objective” and “subjective” measures of inclusion in a HEI. The Index will capture any mismatch between “the theory” and “the practice” of inclusion by combining the results of the Matrix and Survey and identify gaps and disconnects.
