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The teachable moment
What teaching students with learning disabilities taught me about my ableism
Most of us are familiar with the terms sexism and racism, but less so with ableism. If you haven’t heard it before, this is the dictionary definition:
Ableism: a type of discrimination in which able-bodied individuals are viewed as normal and superior to those with a disability, resulting in prejudice towards the latter (Encyclopedia Britannica)
We can all easily agree that prejudice against people with disabilities is wrong, in the same way that racism or sexism is wrong. Maybe we don’t think of ourselves as being prejudiced against people with disabilities. In practice, if you have never experienced living with a disability or caring for a family member with a disability, you are probably unaware of the ableism that you perpetuate in your everyday life.
I was a high school teacher for more than a decade and need to own that I had very ableist attitudes for a long time. The turning point for me was teaching students with learning disabilities. As I got to know my students, I started to question my assumptions about neuro-diversity. In the end, it was my students who helped me to see that my good intentions were not enough; I needed to change my way of seeing ability and difference. I now recognise that…
