ABSTRACT
This paper engages with the issue of teacher education for inclusion and particularly with the approach of employing disability arts and narratives of people with disabilities in university based courses for inclusion. It draws on three examples of anti-oppressive curricula that were developed as part of a graduate university module in Cyprus that encouraged student teachers to engage with disability arts and narratives in order to understand key ideas developed in disability studies and inclusive education. The three examples presented in this paper are representative of the three approaches all the participating student teachers followed, and indicate the strategies they used and the nature of the materials they chose. The discussion considers how these approaches can further inform teacher education for inclusion and how using disability arts and narratives can inform the discussion on other issues concerning teacher education of inclusion.
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Simoni Symeonidou
Simoni Symeonidou is an assistant professor (Inclusive Education) at the Department of Education of the University of Cyprus. Her research interests include teacher education for inclusive education, curriculum development for inclusive education, inclusive education policy and practice, and disability politics. Her publications include articles in international peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, two books in Greek and an edited volume in English. She is the scientific co-ordinator of the research project Tesserae of Knowledge (www.ucy.ac.cy/psifides-gnosis) focusing on the collection, digitisation, dissemination, and usage of material produced by people with disabilities and people with chronic illnesses.