The Impact of Disability
This module talks about the fiunctional limitations of each disabilty such as blind stuents, deaf students, chronic helath impairments students, Learning disabilties students, ADHD students, PTSD(Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), Autistic Students, Aspeger Syndrome Students, Traumatic Brain Injuries Students, and Disabled Veterans. Everybody has strengths and weaknesses. In addition, everybody wants to succeed in their lives. In the How Hearing Impacts Learning of this module, Helen Keller was asked one time whether she would considered blindness or dearfness to be the more significant handicap. She said, "Blindness is a barrier between people and things. Deafness is a barrier between people and people."
Helen's comment made a strong impact on me. I cannot imagine the struggles one would go through when dealing with deafness. That is why I believe that educational institutions should be more than prepared to deal with and properly advise anyone with a disability. It is often found though that most schools do not have custom made advise on the career paths that might best fit a person with a specific disability.
Isis,
You're right. I think it is important that there be SOMEONE at the institution who is knowledgeable about the impact of disability and who can help the student understand how it might effect their training and their work. The idea is not that students be told what they CAN'T do (or shouldn't try because of the obstacles), but rather to have someone there who can give them an honest understanding of how their functional limitations will impact their chosen career, perhaps to help them think through what accommodations would work, and let the student make their own decisions.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
I think that people with any type of disability need to have a strong positive attitude and not look at them as "disabilities" at all, but rather, as an opportunity to conquer. Its all in how you look at the bigger picture and say to yourself, "How can I take what I have been given and magnify it to contribute to the positive -ness of what I can teach people about it."
Alicia,
While I like the idea of believing in the full potential of people with disabilities, be careful about imbuing them with heroic qualities simply because they have a disability. They shouldn't be revered because they have "conquered their disability." They just deserve the respect that we give to other students who have pursued and achieved their goals.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
