Education for All Week 2 - An unexpected arrival

Watermeyer, Brian

Education for All Week 2 - An unexpected arrival

MOOC

2018-06-01

Abstract

In this video, Brian Watermeyer discusses the adaptations and emotional experiences of families that discover that their new infant has been born with a disability. He explores the different psychological models that have been used to analyse the experiences of families with disabled children, such as the traditional model which often characterises the personal, individual and internal experiences of individuals and has historically characterised family experiences of living with a disabled child in negative ways, while paying less attention to the structural injustices that serve to exclude people with disabilities from support services and essential services. He then discusses a second approach, named the Family Support model, which focuses instead on the support needs of families with a disabled child. It assumes that all families can thrive when provided with the support they need, and focuses more on structural and social barriers that prevent these families from thriving.This is video 3 in week 1 of the Education for All MOOC.