Episode 295 - Ableism in Schools

ABA Inside Track

Man, the more episodes we do around how well-meaning authorities tend to fall back to maintaining the inequitable status quo, the more examples of it we find. This week, we look at many of the practices in schools that continue to perpetuate ableism and what behavior analysts can do to disrupt these trends. And, spoiler alert, half of these practices were actually implemented to INCREASE access to education for individuals with disabilities. It turns out just trying to be nice doesn’t actually fix much without a solid understanding of individual perspectives. So, y’know, listen to the episode and don’t be “that guy”.

This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU.

Articles discussed this episode:

Storey, K. (2007). Combating ableism in schools. Preventing School Failure, 52, 56-58. doi: 10.3200/PSFL.52.1.56-58

Bottema-Beutel, K., Kapp, S.K., Lester, J.N., Sasson, N.J., & Hand, B.N. (2021). Avoiding ableist language: Suggestions for autism researchers. Autism in Adulthood, 3, 18-29. doi: 10.1089/aut.2020.0014

Timberlake, M. (2020). Recognizing ableism in educational initiatives: Reading between the lines. Research in Educational Policy and Management, 2, 84-100. doi: 10.46303/repam.02.01.5

If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, and the two episode secret code words to complete the purchase. Email us at [e-mail] for further assistance.