Disability Studies in India: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

✍ Scribed by Nilika Mehrotra (editor)

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 2020
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 320
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This book examines the state of art in disability studies, focusing on the Indian context, as well as the broader South Asian situation. It presents interdisciplinary perspectives on the basic idea, evolution, practices and challenges of researching and teaching disability studies at various higher education institutions and in other civil society spaces. The chapters address a range of related themes, including activism, development policies, research, pedagogy, spatial and social access, caste and gender representations and rights-based discourses. Given the scope of its coverage, the book is of interest to scholars and students in area of humanities, education, law, sociology and social work, political science development and disability studies.

✦ Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgements
Contents
About the Editor
1 Situating Disability Studies: A Prolegomenon
Epistemologies and Representations
Policy and Institutionalization
Academia–Activism Interface: Enabling Practices
References
Epistomologies and Representations
2 Decolonising Disability Studies? Developing South Asia-Specific Approaches to Understanding Disability
Introduction
Origins of Disability Studies in Western Europe and the US
Contexts of Engagement with Disability in South Asia
Cultural Relativism and Its Shortcomings
Countering Culture
Constraining Disability Studies
Institutional Restraints
Developing Disability Studies in South Asia
South Asian Cosmologies
Countering Assumptions of Alterity
Local Biologies and Political Movements
Conclusion
References
3 Disorder, Disability, Difference: (Re)presenting Autism in India
Introduction: Contextualizing Autism in India
Autism in India: An Historical Verview
From ‘Disorder’ to ‘Disability’: Autism, Families and Advocacy
Life with Autism: Some Experiences and Expressions of ‘Difference’
Autism in Hindi Cinema
Concluding Observations
References
4 Disability and Public Spaces: Universal Design Approaches
References
5 Ignorance of Disability: Some Epistemological Questions
Disability in India
Ignorance of Disability in Intellectual Scholarship
Possibility of Disability Studies in India
Conclusion
References
6 Rethinking Monsters: Teaching Disability Studies Through History and the Humanities
References
Policy and Institutionalisation
7 Service and Knowledge: The Emergence of Disability Studies Extension
Introduction
Genesis of the Existing Schemes
Inequity in HE
Strategies to Address Inequity in HE
Disability Studies Centres (DSCs)
Service and Knowledge Through Disability Studies Extension
References
8 Disability Education at Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi
Relationship Between Disability Studies and Home Science Education in India
How Interest in Disability Emerged at Lady Irwin College
The Study of Disability at Higher Education Levels
Interdisciplinary Nature of Work on Disability
Disability as Social Construction
Department of Human Development and Childhood Studies (HDCS)
Department of Fabric and Apparel Science (FAS)
Department of Resource Management and Design Application (RMDA)
Department of Development Communication and Extension (DCE)
Department of Education
Conclusion
References
9 Establishing a Disability Studies Centre in a Law University: Recounting the CDS NALSAR Experience
Introduction: Need for Disability Studies
Other Institutional Models to Undertake Disability Studies
Multidisciplinary Centre in a University
Disability Studies University
Disability Studies Chairs
Research Centres Within Single Discipline Universities
Research Wings of Advocacy Centres
Research and Documentation Wing in Equal Opportunity Centres
Disability and the Discipline of the Law
Centre for Disability Studies NALSAR
Nurturing New Paradigm in Old Spaces
Symbiotic Relationship Between Teaching and Research
CDS NALSAR in Interaction with the Outside World
Law Reform Efforts
Dilemmas in Law Reform
The Initial Country Report
Learnings from the Process
Conclusion
References
10 Mapping Disability Studies Programmes in India: A Case of Hyderabad, Telangana
Introduction
Disability Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences
Disability Rights Movements in India
Disability Studies in India
Status of Education Within India
Setting Up of Disability Studies Centres in India: A Case Study of Hyderabad
Engaging Disability Within Law
Voicing the Understanding of Disability Through Literature
Debates of Disability Through an Aesthetic Approach
Disability Studies Within Social Sciences
Conclusion
References
11 Disability Social Work Education: Emerging Trajectory in India
Contextual Background in the Disability Sector
Influence of Emerging Perspectives and Models
Disability Social Work
Antecedents to the Masters’ Programme in Disability Studies and Action
Trajectory of the Programme
Principles of the Curriculum
Initial Conceptualization of the Programme
Emerging Trajectory
References
Academia—Activism Interface: Enabling Practices
12 Resisting Dominant Construction of Blindness and the Genesis of Disability Studies in the University of Delhi: A Historical Context
Resistance to Dominant Construction of Blindness
Intellectual Movement Challenging the Myth of Blindness in the University of Delhi During 1980s and 1990s
Emerging Disability Research and Evolution of Services for Disabled Students
Conclusion
References
13 Emancipating the Lives of Persons with Disabilities: Potential for Contributions by Disability Studies
Introduction
Capacity Building of Disabled Persons Organizations
Participation of Stakeholders
Realising UNCRPD: Learning from Inclusive Practices in Education and Employment
Striving for Governance Reforms
Conclusion
References
14 The Right to Work for Persons with Disability in India: A Critical Disability Theory Perspective
Introduction
The Contents of the Right to Work
The Right to Work in the Indian Context
Disability Based Discrimination in Employment
The PWD Act 1995
The RPD Act 2016
Just and Favourable Conditions of Work
PWD Act
RPD Act 2016
State Wise Policies on Disability
Critical Disability Theory
Defining Disability: PWD and the RPD
Conclusion
References
15 ‘Encounters’ with Disabled People: Concerns from Field Work Settings
Introduction
Field Work Process in Social Work
Stigma in Disability Context
Conclusion
References
16 Examining the Question of Deaf Education within Disability Studies in Delhi, India
Introduction
Status of Education for Children with Disabilities in India
Educational Opportunities for deaf in India
Barriers Within School
How Disability Studies Can Look at the deaf Question?
Proper Training of Teachers
Use of Sign Language and Interpreters
Classroom Setup
Conclusion
References
17 Examining the Experience, Barriers and Enabling Measures for Visually Impaired Visitors in Heritage Sites—A Study in the Indian Context to Enhance Accessibility and Inclusion
Preamble
Introduction
Objectives of the Study
Methodology
Analysis
Frequency of Visitation to Heritage Sites
Satisfaction and Past Experiences of Visiting Heritage Sites
Barriers to Access in Heritage Sites
Preferred Measures/Enablers for Enhancing Experience and Accessibility in Heritage Sites
Discussion
Conclusions
References