Children with disabilities negotiating every day lives

Mona Asbjørnslett

Phd. Student

Oslo University College

mona.asbjornslett@hf.hio.no

” Am I disabled”?

Aim of the presentation

• Peter• One Research question from my project• Brief background• Design• Frame of references• Aim of the study• Participants• Results• Themes for discussion so far……..

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Research questions

• What do children with disabilities express about participation in their every day life, and how could we understand participation from the childrens own experiences?

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Peter, 12 years old

”Am i disabled” ?

• Diagnosed with learning disordres

• Diagnosed with physical disability

”Disabled- I think they are worse than me…”

Background

• Norwegian children with disabilities are attending schools in the community where they belong, according to rights of education and principals of equality (ref,1-2)

• Only 0,5 % of the pupils in primary and secondary schools are attending spesial schools or classes, which is among the lowest in Europe (ref.3-4).

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Design and Method

• Descriptiv design;Childrens expressions and experiences about every day

lives are explored (also comments from parents and teachers underline some of the childrens perspectives)

• Design following children with disabilities in the process of Trancissioning from primary to secondary school

• Through this process 11 and 12 year old boys and girls become teenagers

• Method; Life- form interviews asking about what happend yesterday (ref.5,6,7,8)

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Frames of ReferencesTheory

• United Nations (UN); Convention on the Rights of the Child, article 12

The right to forming his or her own views and the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child.(ref.11)

Expressive selfhood (talk and body) (ref.9)• Phenomenology; Understanding entities from

being with others (ref.10)

”Being ordinary kids within an average frame of reference to other kids and adults”

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Aim of the study

The Aim is to explore how children with defined disabilities experience and express participation in their every day lives, especially focusing on the transition from primary to secondary school.

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Participants

Selection1 (2009)- 11/12 year old

children finnishing primary school, spring 2009

10 children 10 parents5 professionals

Selection 2 (2010)-

11/12 year old children finnishing primary school, spring 2010

6 children

6 parents

3 professionals

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Results

The results enlightens “the ordinary kid” with expectations conserning transitioning from primary to secondary school connected to friendships, getting grades, but also bad marks.

• Some children bring up questions around work, which could be an orientation towards future situation or economical independence.

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ResultsThemes for discussion;

• (1)Am I disabled?Disability are adult construct, childrens

perspectives are excistential within an average everydayness with kids and adults

“Otherness” are “others with disabilities”(2)I think I have to do so muchChildrens challenges shows itself in being ordinary

kids within everyday averageness at school, making friends, doing work and in ususal social practices

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Conclusion

• “Otherness” may be within adult thinking and constructions

• Listening to childrens voices may give us some Exsistential answers to what participation in

ordinary lives when living with a disability may be

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References

(1)Opplæringslova. LOV-1998-07-17-61 Departement: KD (Kunnskapsdepartementet) (2)Tøssebro J, Engan E, Ytterhus B. Har vi en inkluderende skole? In: Tøssebro J, Ytterhus B,

editors. Funksjonshemmete barn i skole og barnehage. Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag AS; 2006(3)I første rekke- forsterket kvalitet i grunnopplæringen for alle. 2003 (NOU).(4) Vislie L. From Integration to Inclusion: focusing global trends and changesin the

western European societies. European Journal of Special Needs Education 2003;18:18.

(5)Haavind, Hanne. Kjønn og fortolkende metode- metodiske muligheter i Kvalitativ forskning. Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag; 2007.

(6)Andenæs A. Fra undersøkelsesobjekt til medforsker? Livsformsintervju med 4-5 åringer. Nordisk psykologi. 1991;43(4):18.

(7)Gulbrandsen M. I barns hverdagsliv: en kulturpsykologisk studie av jenters og gutters utvikling. 1998.

(8)Ulvik O, Skjær. Seinmoderne fosterfamilier. Unipub, editor. Oslo2007.(9)Käll L. Expressive selfhood. Copenhagen: University of Copenhagen;2006(10)Heidegger M. Being and time: Harper & Row, Publishers, Incorporated; 1962.(11)United Nations (UN). Convention on the Rights of the Child, article 12 (1989).