Courses in Disability Studies are taught by Texas Center for Disability Studies faculty and staff and are currently offered through the School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin. The course number for each course is SW 387R for the graduate level and SW360K for the undergraduate level class.

Text:   You will have readings for the course made available to you by the Texas Center for Disability Studies. The readings will be uploaded on the Blackboard Web site. You can either read them online or print a copy.

Format: This course will be conducted entirely on the Web, using software called “Blackboard.” This software is fully accessible, but if you have difficulty using a screen reader to access any information on the Web site, please contact the instructor as soon as possible. According to university policy; if you need any accommodations to successfully complete this course, you must notify the instructor of your needs in advance.

Course Objectives:
The purpose of this course is to introduce psychosocial topics from an empowerment model as they relate to disability studies.  To that end:

Lesson 1:  In lesson 1, we try to understand exactly what we mean when we say “disability.” We start with the variety of definitions that can apply to the word “disability,” then move to an examination of different frames of reference for understanding disability. In addition, we work to understand the meaning and scope of Disability Studies coursework.

Lesson 2:  In this lesson, we come to understand the importance of deliberate and precise language use when it comes to disability and appreciate some of the guidelines that are important to know when discussing disability. This helps us understand the variety of perspectives about the "naming" of disability.

Lesson 3:  We explore some of the issues related to attitudes toward disability in more depth. We begin to understand the importance and impact of attitudes and values about disability as we explore issues of paternalism and power as they relate to the oppression of people with disabilities.  In addition, we begin to conceptualize the meaning of a disability identity.

Lesson 4:  We continue our exploration of attitudes by understanding the importance and impact of cultural attitudes and values about disability, and their effect on individuals with disabilities. We also work to identify personal values and attitudes toward disability.

Lesson 5:  We continue our focus on attitudes related to disability by using what we know about attitudes toward disability and to understand the attitudes of people with disabilities towards people without them. We also explore attitudes people with disabilities have toward their disability.

Lesson 6:  We consider how culture and gender impacts disability, how we come to understand our own culture and what it means to have a multicultural understanding of disability.

Requirements:  
This course is designed in a Web-based environment that gives us a certain kind of flexibility in creating learning opportunities for you. The course is designed to give you some flexibility in choosing how you best learn, and what topics are of primary interest to you, within a structure. There are six lessons in this course (not counting what you will do the first week). Each lesson will last two weeks. There is one "project" that will last one week. At the beginning of each lesson or project, there is a "map" to tell you all of the learning activities for that lesson.  Some of the activities will be required, and some will be optional. The map will clearly state what you need to do to complete that lesson. If you have any doubts or questions, be sure to ask the instructor.

Grades:
You will acquire points by doing the tasks associated with each lesson. Each lesson has basic requirements equivalent to the time you would physically spend in a classroom, plus the time you would normally spend outside the class doing readings or working on papers.  Each lesson clearly states how many points you can earn, and the grade per point total. There are different point requirements for the graduate and the undergraduate students. There will be points for doing the project during the project week. There are no mid-terms or final exams, only quizzes at the end of each lesson, and activities to support your learning.