This valuable collection of interdisciplinary essays not only helps in understanding the complex challenges of negotiating disability identity, but through philosophical and theoretical foundations and practical examples it provides various step-by-step manuals to communicate ethically and inclusively in the classroom with one another. In our current learning and teaching environments, instructors can no longer assume all students have the same learning style, learn at the same speed or learn in the same way. Teaching staff and education institutions have a moral duty, reinforced by legal obligations, to remove barriers by adopting a range of flexible learning strategies to meet all students’ needs. By failing to accommodate disabled students’ voices in the classroom, we continue to miss out on valuable contributions made by this group. Hence the richness of this collection lies in the fact that the editor, Michael S. Jeffress, situates disabled people and their allies’ voices as central, as change-agents helping others to become aware of issues not encountered previously. Each chapter provides concrete ways and a rationale for integrating Disability Studies into the classroom. The well-organised chapters touch upon topics related to non-verbal and interpersonal communication, disability and stigma, romantic communication, health and intercultural communications as well as virtual classroom.
Pedagogy, Disability and Communication begins with a chapter by Joy M. Cypher, where she shares her teaching experiences of a course in communication ethics at Rowan University. Cypher encourages using examples from popular media not only to help students reflect on the unquestioned assumptions about disability, but also to identify the ethical beliefs that motivate the representation and policy/actions, while raising awareness of the normative claims underlying those beliefs. Cypher is of the opinion that with a continuous and reflective discussion about the principles and commitments of Disability Studies and its cooperation in different courses, greater sensitivity and acknowledgement of disability can be achieved in the field. Her critical review and in-depth theoretical discussion of utilitarianism, egalitarianism and Kantian deontology, Buber’s dialogical ethic and Habermas’ discourse ethics in order to highlight the need for including disability in classroom conversations offers a stimulating basis for Disability Studies and communication ethics for the following chapters.
In chapter two, Elaine Bass Jenks at West Chester University outlines the design of her course units on Communication and Disability that covers a broad range of topics on communicating about and through disability. In her powerful analysis, she articulates how the course explores the place of perceptions, language and non-verbal behaviours in various everyday one-to-one relationships and interactions. The chapter concludes with several informative and comprehensive suggestions to support readers in their understanding of the human interaction between individuals with and without impairments. The key suggestion that struck a chord with my own experience was the author’s view on opening oneself up to learning together with students and allowing room for mistakes even as lecturers and educators.
Similarly, in chapter three J. W. Smith sketches out for his reader the syllabus, philosophical and pedagogical goals of the course which he designed and developed for over 20 years. The chapter is co-authored with two of his former students who share the value of such a course and its positive impact on students’ future work and interactions with ‘differently abled’ people. The powerful feature of this chapter is the inclusion of authentic student perspective.
In chapter five, Kaori Miyawaki, Kate Ksobiech, and Susan Wildermuth share their experience of utilising a workshop on ‘sexuality and people with disabilities’, facilitated by Elizabeth Houtz, a former student and their co-author, in an interpersonal communication course. The aim is to show that pedagogical strategies can break down misconceptions and stereotypes about disability. The interpersonal communication course is designed to give students a better insight into communicating with disabled people as well as to provide instructors with a workable framework for fostering disability-centred advocacy. This topic is pertinent because during their college or university education, students may have more opportunities to date a disabled person while studying, or as the authors assert they may find themselves in a committed romantic relationship with a disabled significant other at a later point in their lives or indeed students themselves might become disabled. Another important point explored in this chapter is the way student advocates are encouraged to have passion and confidence in their content and delivery of the workshop.
In chapter six, Brian Grewe Jr thoughtfully engages with intersection of gender and disability, highlighting the important contribution of disability identity formation and communication in Gender Studies. He shares three detailed assignment descriptions applicable in a diverse range of learning contexts, creating a safe and facilitated space where students are prompted to critically and openly yet sensitively discuss ideas such as gender and disability. The author helpfully advises using texts that combine popular culture and academic research, for it is through this laying of a solid foundation that students are able to expand their vocabulary to talk about these topics, while simultaneously connecting well to each other’s everyday examples.
By proposing case studies and concrete activities combining discussion, historical readings, interaction in virtual spaces and videos, Emily Stones in chapter twelve identifies a need to include Disability Studies in political communication research areas of campaign image-building and hegemonic masculinity in which disability is relevant, but undoubtedly under-researched. Political communication instructors are encouraged to develop a framework for including Disability Studies and create opportunities for meaningful student reflection on how disability is demonstrated in the national imaginations and political practices, providing the knowledge and language for making the political process more accessible and inclusive. It is necessary to provide opportunities to analyse how perceptions of disability have changed, giving students a critical grounding for reflecting on the effects of future attitudes and practices. Thus, through the lessons discussed in the political communication, students are said to gain valuable insight and enhanced understanding of the impact of both disciplines on each another.
Importantly, in chapter thirteen Bettina Brockmann and Michael S. Jeffress provide pedagogical strategies related to disability and a public-speaking course. They offer several concrete ways to re-envision common public-speaking assignments towards unlearning readers’ limiting expectations set by an ableist society, while embracing uncertainties and exploring innovative approaches towards the goal of an inclusive and transformative public-speaking classroom.
This edited collection engages with and critiques incorporating Disability Studies into the curriculum with a broad reach and user-friendliness with which all Disability Studies scholars might fruitfully engage. All of the chapters in Pedagogy, Disability and Communication: Applying Disability Studies in the Classroom, including those not covered in this review, offer breadth and depth on the subject of Disability Studies in a range of communication courses. This significant contribution emphasises disability as a demographic to consider in the course analysis and reduce uncertainty and unlearn ableist biases and misconceptions with a view to create inclusive and affirming classroom environments in which students feel comfortable to have meaningful conversations about disability. The pedagogical principles, strategies and suggested assignments are transferable to diverse courses and disciplines, which reinforces the richness of this collection. In concluding this review, I highly recommend this book.
Independent Researcher, Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
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© 2017 Armineh Soorenian
https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2017.1414338