Undergraduate Course: Sociology of Disability and Chronic Illness (STIS10017)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Disability and chronic illness continue to be important issues affecting almost all of us, or someone we know, at some point in our lives. In this course, using an interdisciplinary and intersectional approach, you will understand the extent and effect that visible and invisible disabling conditions have on individuals, as well as the social processes, structures, organisations and actors that are involved. |
| Course description |
Disability and chronic illness are both serious and current issues for society and increasingly so post-pandemic. This course draws upon materials and arguments about how chronic illness and disability is a persistent source of inequality in and of itself but also how it intersects with other protected characteristics which are subject to discriminatory policies and practices. We examine the history and (identity) politics of disability in society as well understanding how discrimination operates and why it is resistant to change. We will cover topics such as the disabling role of technology, disability and children, covid-19 and chronic illness, sexuality, MAD studies, and bioethical discourses about disability and what inclusion might look like. Innovative teaching and assessment practices such as 'Un-essays', Universal Design reporting, and critiquing Disability simulations will be used in order to critically reflect on how discrimination can work by stealth, and the subsequent labour that disabled and chronically ill individuals have to undertake to belong in a normate, that is a 'normal bodied' world (Garland 1997). Theoretically the course will cover (but not be limited to) medical/social models, crip theory/time, epistemic justice, bodymind literature and feminist disability studies. At all times the course will be innovative, interdisciplinary and inclusive.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Gain an in depth understanding of the historical context and core theoretical insights into how disability and chronic illness is positioned in the Western world drawing upon a social science approach that emphasizes inclusivity, intersectionality and interdisciplinarity.
- Develop a critical appreciation of theories about disability and chronic illness that is based in experientially learning as well as through traditional pedagogy.
- Identify the power dynamics involved in disability and chronic illness including the way they intersect with gender, race, class, age etc.
- Apply critical and creative thinking to key contemporary issues and policy challenges pertaining to disability and chronic illness.
- Recognise and evaluate the different ways in which ableism and discrimination affects individuals with a disability or chronic illness.
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Reading List
Garland-Thomson, R. (1997). Extraordinary bodies figuring physical disability in American culture and literature / Rosemarie Garland Thomson. S. American Council of Learned. New York, Columbia University Press.
Kafer, Alison. 2013. Feminist, Queer, Crip. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
Mladenov, T. and I. Dimitrova (2023). "Epistemic injustice as a bridge between medical sociology and disability studies." Sociology Of Health & Illness 45(6): 1146-1163.
Shakespeare, T., (2018). Disability: the basics / Tom Shakespeare. Abingdon, Oxon ;, Routledge |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Knowledge and Understanding: To nurture an open and reflective approach to knowledge and practice that identifies, understands, challenges and deconstructs the context it is created within.
Applied Knowledge, Skills and Understanding: To be able to apply a 'curious mindset' that has been developed through meaningful engagement and experiences; generate skills that allow the identification, analysis and application of relevant knowledge/s, including scholarship from other (unfamiliar) disciplines, and critically reflect on challenges, foundations and applications of such knowledge/s.
Personal and Intellectual Autonomy: to take responsibility for independent learning and develop a commitment to continuous reflection and self-evaluation.
Generic Cognitive Skills: to enable a mindset that is predisposed to question and critique evidence and argument; to be able to use collaboration and debate effectively to test, modify and strengthen their own and other views.
Communication: make effective use of oral, written and visual means to create and communicate understanding; use communication as a tool for collaborating with others; offer, seek, and value open feedback from others.
Autonomy and working with others: be able to flexibly transfer knowledge, learning, skills and abilities from one context to another and to concrete projects |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Gillian Haddow
Tel:
Email: Gill.Haddow@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | |
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