Abstract

Research suggests that in classrooms across the United States, teachers are hesitant to engage students in a discussion about disability. However, if children are not given opportunities to talk about disability, they run the risk of internalizing disability stereotypes or believing that discussing disability is not appropriate. In this paper, we use an explanatory, instrumental qualitative case study design to understand how 30 pre-service teachers (PSTs) notice and name disability when describing ideas for using children’s literature in the classroom. Additionally, we operationalize and build on Sapon-Shevin’s categorization of teachers’ responses to ableist behavior to examine the nuances of PST discussion. We found that most PSTs chose not to talk about disability or presented disability in a generic or potentially problematic way. This research provides necessary insight into the ways that teacher education programs can work with PSTs to effectively engage in disability discussion.

摘要

研究表明，在美国各地的课堂上，教师都不愿让学生参与有关残疾的讨论。然而，如果儿童没有机会谈论残疾，他们就有可能将残疾刻板印象内化或认为讨论残疾是不合适的。在本文中，我们使用解释性、工具性定性案例研究设计来了解 30 名职前教师 (PST) 在描述在课堂上使用儿童文学的想法时如何注意到和命名残疾。此外，我们在 Sapon-Shevin 对教师对能干行为的反应的分类上进行操作和构建，以检查 PST 讨论的细微差别。我们发现大多数 PST 选择不谈论残疾或以通用或可能有问题的方式呈现残疾。