“Other Tales of Wonder”: Implementing Disability Studies in Rehabilitation Studies

• In Event: Roundtable Session 11
  In Roundtable Session: Preparing Disability Practitioners: Policy Implications

Abstract

This paper will discuss how Disability Studies can be used to improve the postsecondary education of undergraduate and graduate students who will work with people with disabilities in special education and rehabilitation-based settings. Disability Studies is a field of inquiry created to think critically about disability, serving as both an academic discourse and a mechanism for social change. Specifically, the focus of this paper is on merging Disability Studies Theory within Rehabilitation Studies curriculum to prepare pre-service practitioners to situate disability within socio-political contexts and thus be more empathetic and respectful of people with disabilities.

Author

• Michael T. Hartley, The University of Arizona