Watch ted talk video and answer these questions –
https://www.ted.com/talks/aimee_mullins_the_opportunity_of_adversity?language=en
Please reflect on the following questions in 5-7 sentences:
How did the adults in your chosen account shape the child’s understanding of himself or herself?
How did the adults shape the child’s understanding of disability?
How has that understanding affected the course of this individual’s life?
The previous sessions have been dedicated to helping you reflect on your conception of disability. Your perspective on disability will inform everything you do and say to your students: how you speak to them, the expectations you communicate to them, and how you contextualize their academic and behavioral struggles. It is important that you dedicate this time to thinking about your thinking because parsing these issues will make you a better teacher and advocate.
In this session, you will choose one of two first-person accounts to gain greater perspective on how your understanding of disability can affect your students. Both of these accounts come from individuals with disabilities whose identities were shaped from an early age by the adults around them and, specifically, the ways in which those adults thought about disability.
You may decide to watch a Ted Talk by Aimee Mullins. Mullins is an athlete, model, and prominent thinker on prosthetic innovation. Mullins was born without fibulae and gained initial fame for her success as a runner at the 1996 Paralympics. To watch her Ted Talk, “The Opportunity of Adversity,” follow the link hereLinks to an external site..
