At a press conference recently, paralympian Dylan Alcott recalled the pain of being a child with a disability. He said he missed out on childhood friends, writes David Armstrong “I had no friends when I was five,” the Australian of the Year told reporters. “I even...
Katrina Hartley’s daughter, who was born with spina bifida, made a successful transition to school. My daughter Hanna was born 7 years ago. While most parents agree that tiredness is a part of parenting, my husband, Bruce, and I are truly exhausted as Hanna was born...
Catherine Smith asks, when research tells us they do better in the mainstream system? Recently, the disability royal commission is looking at the experiences of children and young people with disability in different schools across Australia. This includes mainstream schools as well as so-called “special schools”. An...
A group of Monash University researchers report that over the past 20 years, there have been monumental shifts in the way we work with young people with disability and their families. Back in the 1990s, when a child was diagnosed with autism it followed a sad...
Ruth Wajnryb reflects on the usage of euphemisms. When my son was little, I took him to the Boston Children’s Museum. The impact of one experiential display stayed with me long after the event. It was a group picture and the task was to count the...
As schools, teachers and students adapt to the pressures of COVID, questions have been raised about how inclusive education can be provided during remote learning. Inclusive education means providing high-quality schooling that's fair and equitable for all students. It means every child is welcomed and valued...
NSW wants to change rules on suspending and expelling students. How does it compare to other states? Anna Sullivan, Bruce Johnson, Jamie Manolev and Neil Tippett look at the problems. The disability royal commission heard from experts on the disproportionate number of students with a disability...
Helen Dickinson, Catherine Smith and Sophie Yates report their survey results on the experiences of students with disabilities and their families, when schools across Australia had mostly closed. Only 22% of family members and carers of students with a disability agreed they had received adequate educational...
Klay Lamprell finds that the biggest challenges faced by pregnant women with a disability are not physical but social. Sharon Simmons was born with shortened arms and legs as a consequence of her mother’s use of the drug thalidomide during pregnancy. She had always felt quite...
When Gibb was ready to start school, his mum, Caitlin, took him on a school tour. She had picked this school because of its “small village feel”, thinking they would embrace her son, who has Down syndrome, and provide him with the right support to...
