Honors College 499CJ - Readings&Research/Disability 1

Fall
2023
01
4.00
Ashley Woodman

M W F 11:15AM 12:05PM

UMass Amherst
83406
Elm Room 228
awoodman@umass.edu
In this course, students will explore disability through theory and research. First, students will be introduced to the definition and meaning of disability. Disability is a complex identity that can be viewed from a variety of social, cultural, historical, legal and political perspectives. Students will be introduced to conceptualizations of disability, models of disability, and historical perspectives as well as the intersection of disability with other social identities such as gender, sexuality, and race/ethnicity. Students will review and discuss the challenges of conducting research with people with disabilities. Students will read and critique contemporary research involving people with disabilities as well as research on perceptions of disability among people with and without disabilities. Throughout the course, students will be scaffolded to design and implement an independent research project related to disability. Students are encouraged to use existing, publicly available data, but may also collect their own data within the UMass or broader community. Students will be advised on an individual basis to design a research project that is ethical, realistic given time and resource constraints, and a novel contribution to the field.

Open to Senior and Junior Commonwealth Honors College students only.

Permission is required for interchange registration during all registration periods.