Goals/Aims
Students will become familiar with both the social model of disability and the medical model of disability.
Students will understand the different educational implications of a medical model and a social model of disability.
Students will list attitudinal and environmental barriers that they can reduce or remove so that diverse learners, including those with disabilities, can more fully and effectively participate in their academic and social experiences in school.
Background information/ Questions to be Discussed After learning about Brown v. Board and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, can separate education ever be equal? Discuss the diversity of learners now attending our public schools. Note that historically our schools were more homogenous since so many groups of students were not entitled to a free public education. Note that students with disability are no exception. Discuss what attitudinal and environmental barriers need to be removed or at least reduced for diverse learners if equity in education is to be realized. Discuss how this also applies to students with disabilities.
Resource Materials
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq. (P.L. 101-336).
Brown v, Board of Education of Topeka. 347. U.S. 483, 74 S.Ct. 686, 91, L. Ed. 873b(1954).
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, P.L. 108-446, 601 et seq., 118 Stat. 2647 (2005).
Losen, D. L., & Orfield, G. (2002). Racial inequality in special education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities retrieved from http://www.un.org/disabilities/convention/conventionfull.shtml on February 11, 2011.
Williams, R. R. (1989). When no one answers. In a Struggling Voice. Philadelphia: Institute on Disabilities at Temple University.
Yell, M.L. (2006). The law and special education (2nd Edition). Upper Saddle River. NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Materials
Posters on Inclusion and Exclusion.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Activity/Action Project Learn what Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is and who it might benefit. Students should demonstrate both the principles and practices of UDL. http://www.cast.org/
Attitudes Towards People with Disabilities At the beginning of class, have students break into small groups of 4 or 5. In each group, have students select a recorder who will report out to the whole class. Ask the students to generate words that they associate with the word “disability.” Encourage students to be honest. After the students have completed their small group work, ask each group to report the list of words generated. Using a red marker, note on the board words that carry negative meanings. Using a blue marker, note on the board words that carry a positive meaning, and using a green marker, note on the board words that are neutral or you are uncertain about the value associated with the word. Once all the words are written on the board, discuss the attitudes these words reflect. Finally, ask students to say where they learned the attitudes about people with disabilities and write them on the board.
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Poem “When No One Answers” By Robert Williams “A child sees me. Naturally curious, He looks to his mother, “Why?’ “Shhh!” is her answer. Time passes; the child and I, I smile recalling his curiosity. This time he isn’t curious though He picks up a stone, throwing he yells, “Get ya, mental” Where did he learn that? Surely not his mother, her only answer was “Shhh!” After reading the poem, ask students to write a short paragraph about what they think the poem means. Lesson 9: Disability and the Media
CONTENT AREAS ADDRESSED Film, media and disability, disability as diversity
Rationale for the Lesson Through the lens of television and film, people with disabilities have been shown in many lights, not all of them positive. This lesson will use scenes from a 2010 popular television show, Glee, as its examples for discussion. Students will discuss how the media has influenced their views of people with disabilities.
Goals/Aims
Distinguish positive, neutral and negative perceptions of disability
Recognize the role of people with disabilities in television and film
Apply a new understanding of media messages about disability to your everyday lives and to your coursework
Background information/ Questions to be Discussed Views about People with Disabilities • Have students break into small groups of 5, ask them to appoint a scribe who will also report to the larger group. • Ask students to brainstorm words that come to mind when they think of the term disability. • After small groups have finished, ask the reporter from each group to slowly say the words their group came up with while you write them on the white board. If the word is negative, write it in one list using the red marker. If the word is positive, make a second list writing each word in green. If the word is neutral or uncertain in value, make a third list writing each word in blue. Continue with the second group, instructing them to report all words including those that have been cited before (put a hash mark next to words that have already been listed). Use the color of the marker (blue, green or red) given the value of the word noted. Once all groups have had a chance to share their list of words, ask the group why they think you listed the words as you did and with different colors. Discuss the positive or negative words that they lists and whether there were more negative or positive words. Finally, ask the whole group where they learned their views about people with disabilities. If they include “the media” as a source for their views about people with disabilities, this can be the lead-in to the lesson. If they do not include the media, ask them about what they learned about people with disabilities from the media (newspapers, television, the cinema).
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