Dear all
I hope you are all doing well. I welcome you to the 6th edition of the Disability Studies Association e-newsletter (in association with the Research Institute of Health and Social Change, Manchester Metropolitan University and Breakthrough UK Ltd) below:
Very Best Wishes
Tsitsi Chataika
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Disability Research Network e-Newsletter: September 2007
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Editor’s Comments:
Welcome to the 6th edition of the Disability Research Network e-newsletter (in association with the Research Institute of Health and Social Change, Manchester Metropolitan University and Breakthrough UK Ltd). I would like say a big “thank you” to all those who contributed to the last edition. It is exciting that the e-newsletter is spreading it wings. I have received contributions as far as Afghanistan, Canada, Malaysia, and USA. This is encouraging. Keep on emailing me your contributions so that we are aware of what is happening in disability research. Please, remember to submit contributions for the next edition by latest 28th September 2007 for me to be able to put together the e-newsletter and email it to you on time. Once again, thank you for the wonderful support and I wish you the best in disability research.
Best Wishes
Tsitsi Chataika
Coordinator’s Comments:
Please find below the sixth e-newsletter from this newly established but expandable network. Our aims are to provide informal, off the press and informative monthly details of disability research activities, which might be of interest to audiences including disability activists, organisations of disabled people, students, researchers, policy makers, families, practitioners and local authorities.
The idea for this newsletter emerged from discussions between the Research Institute for Health and Social Change, Manchester Metropolitan University (http://www.rihsc.mmu.ac.uk/) and Breakthrough UK Ltd - a social enterprise that draws upon social model ideas to promote employment advocacy, advice, support and training to disabled people (http://www.breakthrough-uk.com/). They encouraged us to share regular information from disability research, which might inform their work. This sharing and networking links into the aims of the Disability Studies Association and, we hope, will have broader appeal (http://www.disabilitystudies.net/). This network relies, obviously, on regular monthly input. What we would like from you, if you are interested:
The details of your institution and one contact person and their email address
Monthly commitment to provide us with BRIEF information (inc. related web links) about disability research activities you and your colleagues are involved through emails each month me (you will be reminded by email). This could be no more than a few lines – and no attachments – as we want to keep it workable, informal and relatively easy to read.
To provide details on such things as news on forthcoming publications;
conferences/seminars you are attending or hosting; funding opportunities of interest to disability researchers; news from local and national government; international disability issues; stories from research; ideas for research that you would like to explore with interested others; disability studies teaching materials and resources; links to new policy and user consultation, etc …
To provide in your email information categorised in terms of your institution e.g. ‘News from the Research Institute of Health and Social Change, Manchester Metropolitan University’; ‘Activities of the
disability studies team at University of Northumbria’.
To make the email simple text without loads of formatting for ease of putting together
To posit other ideas for developing the e-newsletter - perhaps a section on 'possible future research / funding priorities' which readers might be able to link into for funding bids.
We hope you are interested.
Very best wishes,
Dan Goodley
[log in to unmask]
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1. News From Manchester Metropolitan University, Research Institute of Health and Social Change
Contact - Dan Goodley ([log in to unmask])
In July and August 2007 Dan Goodley and Rebecca Lawthom visited the Sabah and Penang states of Malaysia to develop existing and new links around disability studies and community psychology. The trip also allowed for an exploration of future developments with colleagues in Japan, Australia and Singapore. Below they report on some of the key developments, debates and outputs.
(a) Attendance at the 7th ASIAN ASSOCIATION OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY CONFERENCE 2007, Kota Kinabalu Sabah, Malaysia, 25th – 29th July 2007
Over 500 delegates attended this conference, representing all Continents, with the next conference planned for 2009 in New Delhi. The conference was broadly North American / mainstream social psychology in persuasion. Both of us chaired sessions, five papers per hour, quite a challenge in view of the ‘Malaysian time’ kept by many of the presenters. We co-presented two papers (1) The Social Psychology and Politics of Disability in a Global World: Critical Reflections from the UK and Malaysia and (2) Parenting a Disabled Child: Creating Enabling Identities in a Changing but Disabling World. These papers led to discussions with colleagues who are newly exploring disability studies debates in Japan. We agreed to put together a symposium on ‘disability studies, community and critical psychology: trans-national perspectives’ with our Japanese colleagues for the next conference in 2009.
If you are interested in contributing to the symposium or would like copies of conference papers please contact: [log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask]
(b) Meetings with Sabah Self-advocacy groups, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
The Kangaroo club is a self-advocacy group that has developed primarily through the involvement of core members who were previously students at the school and centre. This group is not impairment-specific and boasts members with labels of learning and physical disabilities. They are the key organisers of the 2nd National Malaysian self-advocacy conference held in Sabah. For further details visit: http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=52047
http://www.unitedvoice.com.my/
(c) Meetings with Asia Community Service (ACS), Penang, Malaysia,
ACS is a non-governmental, non-profit organization, which supports disabled people and their families and explicitly follows a philosophy of normalisation. For further details visit http://www.asiacommunityservice.org
(d) Presentation of One day seminar Penang Malaysia ‘Disability, Psychology and Learning Difficulties: Working Together, Working for Self-Advocacy’ 9th August 2007
This seminar organised by RIHSC, Asia Community Services, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), United Voice Malaysia and the Malaysian Welfare department followed previous seminars presented by Dan in Sarawak, Sabah and Kuala Lumpur (in early 2007), and the ambitions of the conference organisers to bring together community/critical psychological ideas in relation to disability studies and disability activism: expressed through self-advocacy.
Dan and Rebecca presented four sessions including an introductory keynote by Dan which included sessions on what and why is self-advocacy; introducing and adapting the social model of disability, conceiving notions of support and making links between critical/community psychology disability studies and self-advocacy in a Malaysian context. Two self-advocacy groups – Voice UP Multiara, Penang and United Voice, Kuala Lumpur – and Kenji Kuno (who provided an account of Japanese self-advocacy and disability activism), provided the other sessions. Most sessions were presented in English apart from two in Malaysian (BM).
130 delegates attended, including self-advocacy groups, disabled activists, educational professionals, parents and community rehabilitation professionals, Ministry of Education, policy makers.
Key highlights included:
I. Policy debates
Examine the promotion of self-advocacy skills in key parts of the school curriculum;
Consider notions of inclusion rather than integration in schools;
Explore the applicability of social model thinking in the Malaysian context
II. Theatre of the oppressed – two of the sessions originally planned by Rebecca and Dan were changed because of an interesting encounter during the dinner hour, where Jian Lin a member of a Penang self-advocacy group insisted upon exploring (a) notions of support and (b) the problems faced in everyday interaction by disabled people. His intervention led to a period of performing arts where two scenarios were presented, one disablist (acted out and planned by presenters in the dinner hour) and two enabling (which was worked up spontaneously through the involvement of volunteers from the delegates). The latter performance then primed further discussion and consideration of the ambitions, tensions and barriers faced by disabled people in the current context.
III. Postcolonial connections with disability studies and community/critical psychology – a recurring theme throughout the seminar was the extent to which models and approaches to self-advocacy adapted and were transformed in the context of Malaysia. A key concern related to notions of independence/interdependence – the latter being consistently cited as a destiny more in-fitting with certain Chinese and Malay families understandings of adulthood.
Copies of slides / notes for sessions are available by contacting authors ([log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask])
Dan Goodley and Rebecca Lawthom
Manchester Metropolitan University
August 2007
Correspondence:
[log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask];
Tel: + 44 (0) 161 247 2526
2. News from Lancaster University
Contact Person: Hannah Morgan, Lecturer in Applied Social Science
Director of Studies BA Social Work.
Email: [log in to unmask]
(a) Call for papers from Claudia Malacrida of University of Lethbridge in Canada
Mundos de Mujeres/Women’s Worlds 2008 (http://www.mmww08.org) is “the most important congress on academic research on gender and women and feminist social movements.” This major international event will bring together people from all over the world – researchers, specialist, activist and major international public figures to discuss the key issues that impact women. A key goal is to fight against social injustices and gender inequalities. The 2008 interdisciplinary Congress has selected three concepts: frontiers, dares and advancements to address a spectrum of themes and issues that can help us understand the world we live in.
Kindly consider submitting an abstract for the following sessions:
Session 1 - Panel Title: Citizenship, policy and inclusion for women with disabilities
Women with disabilities have, until recently, remained a silenced and virtually invisible minority group. Historically, at least in the West, such women were frequently institutionalized, medicalized, eugenicized and marginalized. During the latter half of the 20th century, however, liberal-humanist movements and medical advances led to significant changes in the lives of women with disabilities. The 'last civil rights movement' of disability rights has led in many countries to anti-discrimination and human rights legislation that specifically includes disability. This in turn has given rise to policies and programmes aimed to include people with disabilities more fully into their societies. Additionally, medical advances and paradigmatic shifts in models of disability have resulted in increasing numbers of people living longer and more fulfilled lives in their communities. For many women with disabilities, this has meant that motherhood, sexual rights, employment equity,
educational opportunities, and personal autonomy are rights and expectations grounded in probability rather than fantasy. Nevertheless, women with disabilities in all countries continue to face heightened gendered challenges in many areas of their lives. Women with disabilities are more likely than other women to encounter poor access to appropriate and inclusive education, lack of employment or underemployment, poverty and inadequate housing, vulnerability to violence and abuse, limits to their sexual and reproductive freedom, and lack of social and institutional support for 'natural' gendered roles, such as being a lover, partner, careerist, mother, citizen.
This session invites papers that are focused on women with disabilities and the disjunctures between civil rights discourse/liberal-humanist practice and women's lived realities. Papers should address the barriers, challenges and triumphs women with disabilities encounter in attaining equity. Possible issues to consider would be disabled women's challenges in obtaining recognition, support and inclusion in terms of; citizenship, mothering, sexuality, education, employment, freedom from poverty, community inclusion, and freedom from violence
If you are interested in participating in these panels, please submit your paper abstract (approximately 200 hundred words) by email to the organizer: Dr. Claudia Malacrida ( [log in to unmask] ). The deadline for submitting your paper abstract is September 30th 2007.
Session 2 - Panel Title: In/visible: Indivisible?
Women with disabilities have, until recently, remained a silenced and virtually invisible minority group. Historically, at least in the West, such women were frequently institutionalized, medicalized, eugenicized and marginalized. During the latter half of the 20th century, however, liberal-humanist movements and medical advances led to significant changes in the lives of women with disabilities. The 'last civil rights movement' of disability rights has led to anti-discrimination and human rights legislation that specifically include disability. This in turn has given rise to policies and programmes aimed to include people with disabilities more fully into their societies. Additionally, medical advances and paradigmatic shifts in models of disability have resulted in increasing numbers of people living longer, more fulfilled lives in their communities. For many women with disabilities, this has meant that motherhood, sexual rights, employment equity, educational
opportunities, and personal autonomy are rights and expectations grounded in probability rather than fantasy. Nevertheless, women with invisible disabilities are often conceptualized as being one of the last frontiers for the disability rights movement, which privileges physical and visible disabilities. Thus, women with invisible disabilities find themselves in a borderland.
This session invites theoretical and empirical papers that address how recent attempts to traffic the concept of 'difference' across the borders of the disability rights' movement in Canada (most specifically recent attempts to reform mental health legislation) and at the recent U.N. convention on the rights of people of disabilities have met with resistance to countenancing how invisible disabilities are to be figured into rights'-based struggles.
If you are interested in participating in these panels, please submit your paper abstract (approximately 200 hundred words) by email to the organizer: Dr. Leslie Roman ([log in to unmask]). The deadline for submitting your paper abstract is September 30th 2007.
News sent by:
Claudia Malacrida
Associate Professor, Sociology
University of Lethbridge
4401 University Drive
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
T1K 3M4
Tel: (403) 329-2738
Fax: (403) 329-2085
[log in to unmask]
3. News from Cardiff University
Welsh Centre for Learning Disabilities, School of Medicine
Contact Person: Dr Axel Kaehne
Email: [log in to unmask]
There is a new PSA Specialist Group on Disability and Politics in the UK!
What is a PSA Specialist Group?
The PSA (Political Science Association) is ‘the leading organisation in the UK linking academics in political science and current affairs, theorists and practitioners, policy-makers, journalists, researchers and students in higher education.’ (www.psa.ac.uk). Membership of the Political Studies Association is open to everyone interested in the study of politics.
The PSA encourages members whose work focuses on a particular field to organise themselves into a Specialist Group. That Group can then apply for some small financial support to organise conferences, contribute panels to the annual PSA Conference or alike to enhance academic collaboration.
There is a plethora of Specialist Groups under the umbrella of the PSA (www.psa.ac.uk) already but there was none for ‘Disability Studies’, i.e. for those who have had an interest in policy and politics of disability. This has changed now! The PSA has approved of our request to set up such a group and we are now in the process of accepting members into it, publicise the existence of the group more widely and think about the first conference of the Specialist Group itself!
Aims and Outcomes
The specialist group would
· raise the profile of disability issues amongst PSA member and political science community in general
· organise a panel on ‘Disability and Politics’ at the PSA Annual Conference
· Facilitate networking between political scientists, health scientists, political theorists and ethicists on issues of policy formulation, policy implementation and ethics of service provision in disability policy field
· Provide an opportunity to established academics working in political science, political theory, health sciences and disability studies to engage in debate and discussion on research in disability
· support young researchers by giving them a forum to present research in progress and elicit constructive criticism from senior researchers
· establish an arena for informal exchange of ideas, academic interests and to develop academic contacts to explore possibilities of collaborative research (network)
Specialist groups only work well if there is sufficient interest amongst members to participate in the activities of the group. It is up to the group to discuss and decide what activities suits the group best. Everyone (no affiliation to a political science department is necessary) who has an interest in the group’s focus on ‘Disability and Politics’ can become a member.
How to get in touch or become a member
In order to become a member of any PSA Specialist Group you need to be a member of the PSA itself. It is easy to join (see www.psa.ac.uk ) and various membership dues are outlined on the webpage. Membership of the PSA carries the benefit of subscription to 3 high profile journals in political science with wide distribution amongst academics. Membership of the Specialist Group itself is free.
If you want to get in touch, contact the convenor of the group - Dr Axel Kaehne using the details below, and he will note your membership and inform you about upcoming events.
Dr Axel Kaehne
Welsh Centre for Learning Disabilities
School of Medicine
Cardiff University
Heath Park
Cardiff
CF14 4XN
Phone: 029 20 687 212
Fax: 029 20 687 100
Email: [log in to unmask]
4. News from Afghanistan
Contact Person: Sami ul Haq Sami - National Disability Advisor - Rights and
Advocacy
(a) Disability Mainstreaming Tool Guidelines for Afghanistan
(i) Background and Guiding Principles
Do you know that 10% of any given population has one form of disability or another? And that about 650 million persons with disabilities (PWDs) worldwide are excluded from participation in development, decision making and accessing much needed service such as health, education, shelter?
Historically, people with disabilities (PwDs) have been perceived as ‘different’ human beings in need of special attention and separate programmes. This thinking has continued to reinforce the negative stigma attached to disability, and is also costly and subsequently unsustainable. Globally, this charity/welfare model is shifting towards a rights based approach which recognizes that people with disabilities have the right to full participation, and equal access in all aspects of life. This model emphasizes the social dimension of disability, and seeks to eliminate environmental, social, economic and institutional barriers that impede effective participation and equalization of opportunities for those with various forms of impairments.
This new paradigm has led to an emphasis on inclusion in which people with disabilities are now becoming intergraded into mainstream development programs across the world. Mainstreaming should be embraced and facilitated as a principle; what hinders the participation of PWDs in development is NOT their impairments, but environmental barriers created by society through acts of omission or commission. Afghanistan too has begun this process of inclusion in many aspects of national development; however, it is a long way from achieving desired level of mainstreaming.
This document will provide a tool to enable mainstream organizations to successfully integrate people with disabilities in their programs across Afghanistan.
(ii) UN Convention for Persons with Disability
According to the recently agreed disability treaty text 2006:
“States parties to the present convention recognize the equal rights of all persons with disabilities to live in the community, with choices and opportunities equal to others, and shall take effective and appropriate measures to facilitate full enjoyment by persons with disabilities of this right and their full inclusion and participation in the community”
(iii) Constitution
The new Afghan constitution and development blueprint - the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS) - prominently talks about the place of persons with disabilities in the country.
Article 53 of the Afghan constitution states," the state shall take necessary measures for regulating medical services and financial support to descendents of those who were martyred or are missing, to disabled or handicapped, and their participation and reintegration into society in accordance with the law.”
(iv) Afghan National Development Strategy
Reaffirming this article, the Afghansitan Compact which is derived from ANDS and was endorsed by the government of Afghansitan (GOA) and the international community in February 2006 in London, states, ‘by end 2010, increased assistance will be provided to meet the special needs of all disabled including their integration in society through opportunities for education and gainful employment”.
The ANDS further states, "Government will create a barrier-free society for all based on the principles of participation, integration and the equalization of opportunities, as defined by the United Nations. In doing so, the Government of Afghanistan gives priority to enabling disabled people to take charge of their lives by removing barriers that deter them from full participation in society. While continuing to honour the sacrifices that the war disabled have made in Afghansitan, the Government will expand its focus to address the needs of other disabled population as well".
The Government of Afghanistan is therefore fully committed to the principles of non-discrimination and improving the lives of persons with disabilities in all its mechanism, rules, regulations, policies and strategies. It calls on civil society, private sector and the international community to embrace the same principles and mechanisms in all aspects of their work in Afghanistan.
While much progress has been made in the field of disability policy, it will take much time for the results of this work to filter into improvements on the ground where people with disabilities continue to be the most excluded, invisible in the development programmes, poor, and marginalized section of the Afghan population. It is thus imperative that your organization adopt a mainstreaming disability policy in order to affect practical change now.
Contact Details:
Sami Ul Haq "Sami"
National Disability Advisor - Rights and Advocacy
UNDP/NPAD
Mobile # 0093 (0) 799 30 61 32
Emails: [log in to unmask], [log in to unmask],
[log in to unmask]
5. News from University of Toronto, Department of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education (SESE) at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE/UT), Canada
Contact Person: Tanya Titchkosky
Email: <[log in to unmask]>
Tenure Stream Position: Anti-racist and Feminist Studies in Globalization and Education
The Department of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, invites applications for a tenure-stream position in anti-racist and feminist studies in globalization, immigration and education. The appointment will be at the rank of Assistant Professor and will begin July 1, 2008. We seek candidates with expertise in anti-racist and feminist theory of education, with a specialization in studies of globalization,transnationalism, migration and immigration.The preferred candidate's research and publications will further our understanding of the intersections among anti-racist, feminist, political economy and/or critical sociology perspectives in a global context.The successful candidate will be expected to teach and develop courses in the graduate program and in the initial teacher education program, and to supervise graduate students. S/he will have a doctoral degree, a record of research and publications,
and a record of teaching courses at the post-secondary level. Ability to teach/supervise in French would be an asset. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. Applications, which must include an up-to-date curriculum vitae, should be submitted by November 15, 2007 to:
Professor Kari Dehli, Chair, Department of Sociology and Equity Studies in Education, OISE, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1V6, Canada. E-mail address: [log in to unmask] Three signed confidential letters of reference should be sent directly to Professor Dehli by the same date.For more information, please visit the OISE website at: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca <http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/> or the department's website at: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/depts/sese/
The University of Toronto is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from visible minority group members, women, Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, members of sexual minority groups, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas.
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.
6. News from Northumbria University
Contact Person: Toby Brandon
Email: [log in to unmask]
We have just become the lead partner in a brand new Centre for Excellence for Teacher Training (CETT), which will be the only one of its kind in the country, focusing on Inclusive Learning. It is one of 11 centres nationwide, which have been awarded CETT status, announced by Bill Rammell, Minister for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education. The CETT has £360,000 of government funding to combine quality research with good practice. It will look at the breadth and quality of teaching and training currently available for people with learning difficulties and enable the partners involved to develop innovative strategies for the future, which are grounded in work-based practice. One aim is to develop a database resource which will allow the partner organisations to draw on expertise in a way never seen before. The CETT partners include a wide range of training providers from right across the North East region, encompassing higher education, further education,
adult and community learning, as well as work based learning, the voluntary sector and secure estates. The idea is that the CETT are an important part of the Department for Education and Skills reforms to teacher training in the learning and skills sector. It is rooted in the idea of building future Initial Teacher Training systems around networks of providers that provide trainees with good experiences of teaching and professional development across further education, adult and community education and work-based learning.
Contact Details:
Dr. Toby Brandon
Senior Lecturer Disability Studies
School of Health Community and Education Studies
Northumbria University
Coach Lane Campus
Benton
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE7 7XA
Tel: 0191 2156672
Fax: 0191 2156081
7. News from Chicago, USA: AHEAD - Professional Development
Contact: Richard Allegra
Email: [log in to unmask]
(a) Equality of Access in Campus Environments: Weaving a new Philosophy into Campus Planning AHEAD Fall Workshops Chicago, IL October 26 27 -
Registration is open for the AHEAD Fall Workshops to be held on October
26 & 27 at the Hilton Garden Inn - O'Hare.
http://www.ahead.org/training/reg_training/index.php
Workshop # 2
Equality of Access in Campus Environments: Weaving a new Philosophy
into Campus Planning
Presenter: L. Scott Lissner, ADA Coordinator, The Ohio State
University; Affiliated Faculty of the John Glenn School of Public
Affairs; Adjunct Instructor Knowlton School of Architecture & Moritz
College of Law .
For years, college campuses have taken up the charge to meet
accessibility requirements under disability law. Today the call is to
ensure that all environments - information, programmatic, attitudinal
and physical - anticipate the needs of an increasingly diverse campus
population. This essential training will help you move from a code compliance approach to isolated construction projects toward a universal design approach integrated into institutional planning. The principles of universal design provide a platform from which to address the demands placed on campus infrastructure by changing technology, sustainability and diversity initiatives while providing a bridge to strategic and instructional planning that can be anchored to institutional mission and core values.
Attendees will be provided with: Models, tools and strategies for a cohesive institutional approach to developing and maintaining an inclusive environment. Opportunities to discuss local campus concerns.
Extensive reference materials including copies of enforceable standards,
check lists, and training materials for use on campus.
And will gain:
* Fluency with the range, interrelationships and coverage of the key
standards for access.
* Familiarity with the components of internal and external compliance audits.
* The ability to identify the most common facilities compliance failures.
* Knowledge to relate universal design principles to sustainability, diversity and institutional mission and values.
* The understanding of universal design as a process and its potential use as a planning tool.
* Knowledge to apply the model developed for facilities access to other campus infrastructures (instructional planning, technology, co-curriculum, policy).
Complete registration information is available on the AHEAD website at:
http://www.ahead.org/training/reg_training/index.php
We hope you'll take time to thoroughly review the registration
information and join your colleagues for one of these important
professional development workshops.
Questions? Please feel welcome to contact:
Richard Allegra
AHEAD's Director of Professional Development
Email: [log in to unmask]
Telephone: 704-947-7779 (v/t).
We look forward to seeing you in Chicago!
8. News From Tsitsi Chataika (Newsletter Editor)
I am currently actively looking for employment. If anyone one could help, I would greatly appreciate. I recently submitted my PhD thesis entitled “Inclusion of disabled students in Zimbabwe: From idealism to reality – A social ecosystem perspective”, which I have been doing at Sheffield University, School of Education - Prof Dan Goodley being my “superstar” supervisor. I am now waiting for my oral examination “viva”. My research interests are:
Disability Theory, Policy and Practice
Inclusion
Disability and higher education
Post Colonial Theory/Globalisation and Disability Research
Disability and development
Disability and Employment
Qualitative methodologies - especially Life Story/Narrative Research and Ethnography
Widening participation and Diversity
Early Education/Early Intervention and Home-School Partnership
Visual Impairment
If anyone can signpost me to a career in research, university teaching, NGOs, etc, I would be grateful. This does not mean that I will stop being the editor of this newsletter. It is just that I now need a full time job and I will continue working on this newsletter since I really enjoy doing this, particularly with your unwavering support. Below is an updated version of my abstract:
Thesis Title: Inclusion of Disabled Students in Higher Education in Zimbabwe: From Idealism to Reality – A Social Ecosystem Perspective
Abstract
Inclusion of disabled students in higher education has been gathering momentum in various countries, although until recently, it has not been under the spotlight. This study was born because of the absence of research on personal experiences of disabled students in higher education in Zimbabwe. The study’s major object was to investigate the current provision for disabled students in higher education in Zimbabwe. Narrative research and ethnography are the methodologies that informed this study. Fifteen University of Zimbabwe disabled students were the main informants of this study. Inevitably, the study took into cognisance, the researcher’s vast personal and professional experience, and diverse views from other scholars through a comprehensive literature review. The study established that attitudes and disability awareness could be either catalysts or obstacles to inclusion. Institutional barriers that incorporate physical access, inappropriate application and admission
procedures, inappropriate teaching methods, inadequate support services and resources, and most importantly - absence of legislation and political will, hampered participation of disabled students in higher education in Zimbabwe. Lack of coordinated disability activism among disabled people’s organisations was also reported in this study. It was from these research outcomes that the researcher constructed the social ecosystem framework, which embodied the theoretical resources, namely, postcolonial theory, globalisation, disability studies and inclusive education. Critical determinants in the applicability and effective use of the social ecosystem framework in promoting the inclusion of disabled students in higher education in Zimbabwe and beyond were identified. These include enabling socio-cultural beliefs, genuine family and community support, stable political and economic climate, appropriate legislation and political will, appropriate/accessible information and
technology, self-belief, proactive disability activism, and sustainable partnerships. Conclusions were drawn, and practical recommendations were made to various stakeholders in the education of disabled students in higher education. Finally, the research study also signposted areas for further research.
Key Words: inclusion, disabled students, higher education, institutional barriers, social ecosystem framework, postcolonial theory, disability and development, narrative, ethnography, Zimbabwe
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NB: A copy of this Newsletter is available at:
http://www.breakthrough-uk.com/DRN.shtml
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END OF NEWSLETTER
For any further contributions and information contact me at:
Email: [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask],
Tel: +44113 293 8749 or +4479 03859902
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Tsitsi Chataika
PhD Student
University of Sheffield
School of Education
Tel/Fax: 0044(0)113 293 8749
Mobile: 0044 (0)79 03859902
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