SPC
ED 511: Social Construction of Disability
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March
24, 2009 (class #10)
Topic:
The social construction of disability in special education
Class
outline:
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Announcements, questions, and quandaries:
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Draft of final essays due next week – we will
work on them in class.
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I have appointments available during office
hours – come and see me if you want to talk over upcoming assignments.
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Don’t forget to keep commenting on the wiki
– weekly commented are required.
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Interactive presentation on the role of
schooling in society |
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Quick write: In what ways (other than
the specific examples provided in the readings) do you see the institution
of schooling in the U.S. as contributing to a particular construction of
disability? |
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Individual/small
group activity:
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The readings addressed
3 educational contexts in which disability is/can be constructed (team
meetings, curriculum, case files), with specific examples of how this process
can take place.
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Individually, you need
to identify specific behaviors that you have engaged in, within each of
these three contexts (or related ones, for those of you who work in non-school
contexts) that (a) construct disability in a positive light and (b) need
your attention in order to provide a more positive construction.
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In small groups, share
your +/- behaviors and develop a plan for improvement.
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Minute paper |
Overheads:
Reading
Questions:
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Author:
Rao (2000)
| 1.) |
To what extent to you believe that the
factors listed on the bottom of page 475 are valid? Why or why not? |
| 2.) |
What do you understand about the author's
discussion of the design of this study? |
| 3.) |
Based on the information provided in this
article, what ways do you see that differences in race, class, and gender
may have influenced the interactions of Rose with various service care
providers? |
| 4.) |
In what ways did it appear that Rose's
assumptions (about disability, special education, assessment, 'good' parenting)
differ from those of "the system"? |
| 5.) |
Now that you've read this article:
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...what seem to be some important concepts
in this reading?
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...what are some new terms for you?
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...what new questions do you have?
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Author:
Kliewer articles
| 1.) |
How has disability been constructed by
traditional views of literacy, according to the Kliewer article you read |
| 2.) |
In what ways can a student with disabilities
demonstrate literacy that might not be 'acceptable' in a traditional model?
Consider students with a variety of disabilities ~ physical, intellectual,
or psychiatric. |
| 3.) |
What do Kliewer et al. mean by the literate
community? How do the authors suggest the individuals described in the
article are participants in this community? |
| 4.) |
Now that you've read this article:
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...what seem to be some important concepts
in this reading?
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...what are some new terms for you?
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...what new questions do you have?
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Authors:
Mehan, Hertweck, & Meihls (1986)
| 1.) |
What are the major ideas that you took
from the section on rational decision making models? |
| 2.) |
On page 118, the authors discuss one mechanism
(the reappraisal meeting) as one way of subverting the team meeting and
limiting the number of placement option available. What other practices
have your seen, or heard or read about that serve a similar function? |
| 3.) |
The authors refer to "the important role
of language in authority relations within the institutionalized order of
the school..." (pp. 120-121). How did you see this enacted in the transcripts
provided? |
| 4.) |
How might the decision making process
described in this chapter impact minority (ethnicity, language, and/or
SES) parent participation? |
| 5.) |
Now that you've read this chapter:
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...what seem to be some important concepts
in this reading?
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...what are some new terms for you?
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...what new questions do you have?
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* To view PDF documents, such as the readings on reserve,
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader. Click here to download
a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader
Extra
Resources:
Recommended Readings
on reserve:
Baker, B. (2002).
The hunt for disability: The new eugenics and the normalization of school
children. Teachers College Record, 104(4), 663-703.
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Dansforth, S. (2000).
Resistance theories: Exploring the politics of oppositional behavior. Multiple
Voices, 4(1), 13-29.
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Dudley-Marling,
C., & Dippo, D. (1995). What learning disability does: Sustaining the
ideology of schooling. Journal of Learning Disability, 28(7), 408-414.
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Poplin, M. S. (1987).
Self-imposed blindness: The scientific method in education. Remedial and
Special Education, 8(6), 31-37.
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Poplin, M. S. (1988a).
Holistic/constructivist principles of the teaching/learning process: Implications
for the field of learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities,
21(7), 401-416.
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Poplin, M. S. (1988b).
The reductionistic fallacy in learning disabilities: Replicating the past
by reducing the present. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 21(7), 389-400.
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Skrtic, T. M. (1991b).
The special education paradox: Equity as the way to excellence. Harvard
Educational Review, 61(2), 148-206.
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Wiest, D. J., &
Kreil, D. A. (1995). Transformational obstacles in special education. Journal
of Learning Disabilities, 28(7), 399-407.
Recommended Books:
Skrtic, T. M. (1991a).
Behind
special education: A critical analysis of professional culture and school
organization. Denver, CO: Love Publishing.
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Skrtic, T. M. (Ed.).
(1995). Disability and democracy: Reconstructing [special] education
for postmodernity. New York: Teachers College Press.
* To view PDF documents, such as the readings on reserve,
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader. Click here to download
a free copy of
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Julia Scherba de Valenzuela,
Ph.D.
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Last
updated: March 24, 2009
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