Representing Disability in the English Classroom

Margarida Morgado

Aims of the presentation

• In increasingly more multicultural and inclusive societies it is important to lead children to think about issues of disability in the wider context of representation of difference and diversity.

• Teachers need to be familiar with quality materials and pedagogical tools that facilitate their understanding and mediation of books with children.

• Show interpretive modes

Generating thought and reflectionReading will not change realities, but it may well constitute “a first step toward changing attitudes and building relationships.” (Smith-D'Arezzo, 2003, 92).

Books

• Define what is ‘normal’, ‘acceptable’, ‘worthwhile’• Empathy for people who face discrimination• See themselves represented• Inclusion• Reflect the real world• Not enough good books• Characters with disabilities are invisible• Difficulty in finding positive non-biased

representations

From the educational perspective:

• portray dynamic characters with disabilities

• more willing to talk about own feelings about disability

• promote acceptance of children with disabilities in reality

• inclusion of books with characters with disabilities may not be enough to change perceptions

positive portrayals + strategies for guiding the reading

From the educational perspective

Ballard, 1999Beckett, Ellison, Barrett

and Shah, 2010 Brenna,2008

Inquinta and Hipsky, 2006

Jackson,2009Matthew and Clow, 2007

Moore-Thomas , 2010Saunders, 2000

Smith-D’Arezzo and Pirowsky, 2002

Sotto and Ball, 2006

Ballard, 1999Beckett, Ellison, Barrett

and Shah, 2010 Brenna,2008

Inquinta and Hipsky, 2006

Jackson,2009Matthew and Clow, 2007

Moore-Thomas , 2010Saunders, 2000

Smith-D’Arezzo and Pirowsky, 2002

Sotto and Ball, 2006

Situations that create and sustain social and cultural division

Fear, ignorance, prejudice and resentment

Exclusion

Secondary positions

Flat characters

degrading and devaluing practices:

The character with communication problems was often depicted as weak, timid, withdrawn and spineless

people with exceptionalities are generally not capable, persistent or independent, have communication difficulties, lack a sense of humour

wholly defined by their impairments or differences

Buried in the Footnotes: The Representation of Disabled People in Museum and Gallery Collections

Recommendations for the English classroom

International Children’s Digital Library http://www.icdlbooks.org

http://www.letterboxlibrary.com/acatalog/index.htmlBook Trust http://www.booktrust.org.ukBookhead http://www.bookheads.org.ukCool-Reads http://www.cool-reads.co.ukBooktrusted http://www.booktrusted.co.uk

Guidelines for choice

1. Take into consideration disadvantages of different kind.

2. The plot of the stories have to be interesting and stimulating for an audience of varied age groups.

3. Adjust readings to learners’ ages so that by reading they can generate positive attitudes and perceptions towards understanding disability.

4. The book’s literary values should be acknowledged by teachers, critics, scholars, librarians or other experts.

5. Allow for the fact that books centering on characters with special needs miss award lists and that you will need specialized help.

s

• children’s books should portray characters with disabilities as dynamic;

• realistic images of characters with disabilities should be cast in a positive light and be presented with all their flaws.

• Give voice to excluded characters.

Intercultural dialogue Creating spaces for intercultural dialogue is a collective task. Without appropriate,

accessible and attractive spaces, intercultural dialogue will just not happen, let alone prosper. (Council of Europe White paper on Intercultural Dialogue, 2008, p. 47)

Equal dignity of all participantsVoluntary engagement in dialogueA mindset characterised by openness, curiosityA readiness to look at both cultural similarities and differencesThe ability to find a common language for understanding and respecting cultural differenceshttp://www.coe.int/t/dg4/intercultural/concept_EN.asp

Giving children a voice about the way disability is portrayed in books• Brainstorming the term ‘disability’.• Discussing the extent to which disability is a ‘black and

white’ issue, or whether it is more of a spectrum or continuum.

• Considering contemporary films and television programmes. What messages do they generally convey about disability? Consider Shreck and Tracy Beaker.

• Brainstorming on how to raise awareness and improve visibility of disabled people without making it ‘an issue’ or exacerbating stereotypes.

• Brainstorming about what might the difficulties of drawing deafness?

ICEBREAKERSBRAINSTORMING

Giving children a voice about the way disability is portrayed in books• Discussing published books about or including portrayals of

disability.• Fictional disabled characters students can recall from

childhood: what do they remember? How positive is it? What is there in common among those characters?

• Look at particular fairy tales and how they portray physical disability: what kind of characters are the disabled characters? What happens to them? What do you conclude?

• Discussing different types of books – horror, thriller, fairy stories, fantasy, adventure – which they like best and why. What makes a good story? Generate ideas for a book.

• Suggest that a particular central character in a story might be disabled. How might this knowledge have affected the plot or the students’ interpretation of the story?

GENRES AND READING

Giving children a voice about the way disability is portrayed in books• Preparing questions to interview the author/illustrator of a particular

book (on physical disability, on dyslexia, on….).• Use OWN ideas to develop characters: one of them has to be a

wheelchair user. There may be other disabled characters. Discuss how many there should be and why. Which characters will be female and male? Which will be heroes and villains?

• Illustrating own characters. Practical considerations to be discussed: how are they dressed, whether /when the characters ask people for assistance, does the character propel herself or needs to be pushed, …

• Interview authors (imaginatively or in person) about certain characters they have created.

• Drawing a deaf character and present it to the rest of the group explaining own interpretation.

• Creating a potential character in a book by drawing it with eyes closed and using the non-writing hand.

WRITTEN, VISUAL, ORAL AND MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION

Visual prompts http://www.childreninthepicture.org.uk/

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ConclusionConclusion

• Include characters with disabilities in culturally valued activities and quotidian settings;

• Calling attention to the fact that some forms of thinking about disability are forms of oppression;

• Centering on characters and their intrinsic value despite being perceived as ‘others’;

• Valuing the confrontation of the reader with unfamiliar situations as a way into critical reflection;