SPC ED 511: Social Construction of Disability
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    April 14, 2009 (class #13)


    Topic: Emic perspectives of disability

    Class outline:
    Announcements, questions, and quandaries:
    • Hold on to your book review essays until the end of class.
    • Final essay due in three weeks. Late papers will not be accepted, except in very unusual circumstances (e.g. significant illness or major family emergency).
    Interactive presentation: The importance of emic perspectives
    Report out from book groups
    Break, as needed between groups
    Quick write: "How might personal perspectives on disability differ from 'professional' perspectives? Why is it important to hear from people with disabilities about what it means to have a disability, instead of just 'leaving it to the experts'?
    Minute paper

    Overheads:

    • PowerPoint
       
    Handouts:
    The importance of stories (Patrick Shannon)
     
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    Reading Questions:
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      Note: All of the readings, required and recommended, can be found on electronic reserves at Zimmerman library. Please contact the instructor for the course password.
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    Author: Finlay & Lyons (2005)
    1.) Discuss the various rolls denial can play in the way an individual might reject a label for themselves.
    2.) What were some labels Finlay and Lyons found people using for themselves. How are each of these labels significant?
    3.) In what ways do the results of this study support Finlay and Lyons' assertion that labels "map awkwardly" (p.131) onto the personal experiences of people with disabilities?
    4.) Now that you've read this article:
    • ...what seem to be some important concepts in this reading?
    • ...what are some new terms for you?
    • ...what new questions do you have?

    Author: Taylor (2000)
    1.) How might two members of the Duke family experience the stigma of the label "disabled" differently, depending on their specific disabilities?
    2.)  How might two members of the Duke family experience the stigma of the label "disabled" differently, depending on their specific disabilities?
    3.) How have different institutions (hospitals, the welfare system, institutions, etc.) throughout the Dukes' histories served to construct the Duke family as "disabled" to people who interact with them in the present?
    4.) Now that you've read this article:
    • ...what seem to be some important concepts in this reading?
    • ...what are some new terms for you?
    • ...what new questions do you have?

    * 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
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    Extra Resources:
    Website Links:

       
    • Look up "The Mouth" from Disability Nation, at: http://www.mouthmag.com
    • Check on the Ragged Edge: http://www.ragged-edge-mag.com/
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    Recommended Readings on reserve:
    Clare, E. (2001). Stolen bodies, reclaimed bodies: Disability and queerness. Public Culture, 31(3), 359-365.
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    Duplass, D., & Smith, T. (1995). Hearing Dennis through his own voice: A redefinition. Behavioral Disorders, 20(2), 144-148.
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    Goode, D. (1992). Who is Bobby? Ideology and method in the discovery of a Down syndrome person's competence. In P. M. Ferguson & D. L. Ferguson & S. J. Taylor (Eds.), Interpreting disability: A qualitative reader (pp. 197-212). New York: Teachers College Press.
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    Kimball, W. H., & Heron, T. E. (1988). A behavioral commentary on Poplin's discussion of reductionist fallacy and holistic/constructivist principles. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 21(7), 425-428, 447. .
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    Mactavish, J. B., Mahon, M. J., & Lutfiyya, Z. M. (2000). "I can speak for myself": Involving individuals with intellectual disabilities as research participants. Mental Retardation, 38(3), 216-227.
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    Snyder, S. L., & Mitchell, D. T. (2001). Re-engaging the body: Disability studies and the resistance to embodiment. Public Culture, 13(3), 367-389.
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    Recommended Books:
    Goode, D. (1994). A world without words: The social construction of children born deaf and blind. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.
    Shannon, P. (1995). Text, lies, and videotape. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. -- chapter 1 on on-line reserves
     
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    Julia Scherba de Valenzuela, Ph.D.
    Last updated: April 7, 2009