| Ableism can be briefly described as the belief that it is better or superior not to have disability than to have one and that it is better to do things in a way no disabled people do. | ● This concept is so upsetting. The use of the word superior in the description of ableism is awful. Just because someone isn’t capable of the same things others are doesn’t make anyone superior to anyone else.
● The fact ableism exists is not very surprising. People don’t like things they don’t understand and often disabilities are seen as weakness. What surprised me was that ableism encompasses and oppresses not only physical disabilities but mental and emotional disabilities as well. |
| Disability needs to be infused into activities… Administrators should consider forming various disability related clubs. ( ASL club, people first!, etc.) | ● This is such a good idea! Schools already celebrate multiple cultures in many situations. So, why not celebrate those with disabilities? Many individuals with disabilities have lived fulfilling lives and they should be recognized. This would almost normalize disability and make it easier to accept others differences. It also gives students with disabilities a chance to identify and gain a possible role model who is like them.
● Why do people who are different and don’t fit into society’s idea of normal scare people or make them so uncomfortable? ● Is this because of the lack of conversations about disabilities? ● Is it because disabilities are confusing and people do not know what to say, is that why people get so uncomfortable? |
| we’d rather be defined by our abilities than by our disabilities, that we can be as productive as the next person if you guarantee us access, that, really, everyone is disabled in some way, aren’t they? | ● This is such an amazing statement. I agree that everyone is disabled in some way or another. Not everyone can do everything and nobody’s perfect, is that any reason to exclude them or discriminate?
● As teachers we should focus on a student’s skills and attempt to bring them up to the highest level of learning they can accomplish. ● We should make students feel pride in what they have learned and how far they have come instead of focusing on what they can not do. This is especially important because we assume if a student has a disability that they are not capable of anything and that is not always true. A lot of the time individuals with disabilities can accomplish way more than we give them credit for. ● That is what we do for our students without disabilities so why should it be any different for our students with disabilities? |
