Once again, I am beginning a posting with an apology for a lack of activity on my part, this time for several months. Again the reason is that I am continuing to complete my book for OUP in a addition to other duties, which include the role of Academic Disability Coordinator for the School of Arts at Roehampton. With this latter hat on, I have proposed, together with a fellow Disability Coordinator, a workshop for a forthcoming learning and teaching conference, the abstract for which reads as follows:
How to make learning happen for disabled students in Higher Education
‘Making learning happen’ is an apt phrase to use when thinking about disabled students in higher education and the growth of disability studies. As well has having increased access to higher education for disabled students, the Disability Discrimination Acts (DDA) are impacting upon the practice of all staff, who need not only respond now to the needs of individual students, but also to make anticipatory adjustments on the expectation of teaching disabled students with a range of impairments. This workshop will consider how the social model approach adopted by the DDA, while a step forward in enabling participation, has not yet gone far enough in removing barriers to learning and teaching in the classroom. Through a review of the research into experiences of disabled students in higher education, we will reveal a mixed picture that points to several areas for further development.