HSTCMP / DIS ST 502 Topics in Disability History
Offered jointly with HSTCMP / DIS ST 402
Summer Term: A-term
Course topic: Devices and Designs: Histories of (In)Accessible America
Instructor:
- Joanne Woiak, Disability Studies Program
- Contact: jwoiak@uw.edu
Hybrid learning course delivery plan:
- Mondays: asynchronous lectures, podcasts & webinars
- Tuesdays: class meets on Zoom, 1:50-4:00pm
- Wednesdays: class meets both in the on-campus classroom and on Zoom, 1:50pm - 4:00pm
- Thursdays: class meets both in the on-campus classroom and on Zoom, 1:50pm - 4:00pm
- NOTE: This course can be completed online and asynchronously. All materials will be available for asynchronous access.
Course description:
This course seeks to bring disability into the center of historical inquiry, engaging with topics and themes in the histories of disability in the United States from the 19th to the 21st centuries. Topics will focus on disability activist movements; medicine and technology in the lives of disabled and D/deaf people; and histories of design, material culture, and accessibility.
The course content will be offered in a variety of modalities in order to provide as much flexibility and accessibility as possible. Some class sessions will meet in person with synchronous remote access, and some will meet on Zoom only. All classes will be recorded and all class materials will be available for asynchronous access. There will be synchronous and asynchronous participation options. My goal is to support you this summer in engaging with the course material while navigating hybrid learning.
Students will participate in synchronous or asynchronous discussions, write short responses to the readings, films, and podcasts, and complete a final paper of 4-5 pages or a project in another format.
There are no prerequisites.
Please contact instructor Joanne Woiak for further information (jwoiak@uw.edu)!
Readings:
Much of our work this quarter will focus on reading two recent books. You can find the chapters that we'll read here on Canvas, or you can read/download the books from UW Libraries as digital copies. Copies of the books will also be available for purchase at the University Bookstore on the Ave. Additional required readings will all be available on Canvas.
- Jaipreet Virdi, Hearing Happiness: Deafness Cures in History (2020) - available via Canvas, UW Library and University Bookstore
- "Weaving together lyrical history and personal memoir, Virdi powerfully examines society’s—and her own—perception of life as a deaf person in America." (University of Chicago Press site)
- Bess Williamson, Accessible America: A History of Disability and Design (2019) - available via Canvas, UW Library and University Bookstore
- "Have you ever hit the big blue button to activate automatic doors? Have you ever used an ergonomic kitchen tool? Have you ever used curb cuts to roll a stroller across an intersection? If you have, then you’ve benefited from accessible design—design for people with physical, sensory, and cognitive disabilities. These ubiquitous touchstones of modern life were once anything but. Disability advocates fought tirelessly to ensure that the needs of people with disabilities became a standard part of public design thinking. That fight took many forms worldwide, but in the United States it became a civil rights issue; activists used design to make an argument about the place of people with disabilities in public life." (NYU Press site)
Assignments:
- 15% Participation
- Class activities will be synchronous and asynchronous
- 30% Reading Responses – write 3 papers
- 20% Facilitating Discussion – do 2 days, individual assignment
- Hand in: discussion questions, reading notes, and annotations
- Help facilitate discussion synchronously in class or asynchronously
- 35% Final Essay / Project
- 10% Pre-writing and peer workshop
- 25% Final essay/project
Students enrolled in DIS ST/HSTCMP 502:
- This class is taught jointly with DIS ST/HSTCMP 402. Graduate students will have an additional assignment preparing a short presentation on the reading for one day followed by their leadership of the discussion. Grad students will write a final term paper that takes a deeper dive into one or two of the topics and/or theories covered in the course. This assignment can be negotiated with the instructor; it could be a literature review, original research into historical primary sources, a draft article for your primary field of study, or other format.
Learning objectives:
- Understand the history of disability and disability rights and justice activism in the United States in connection with other social categories and movements.
- Gain a theoretical background in the field of disability studies (DS), and apply the concept of the social construction of disability to knowledge and methods in disability history.
- Investigate how normalcy is constituted through gender, sexuality, race, class, and disability.
- Develop skills in communicating complex ideas related to disability, diversity, and intersectionality.
- Demonstrate knowledge of emerging issues, debates, and scholarship in disability history, disability studies, and disability justice.
- Learning objectives for the Disability Studies Program
Access, disability and religious accommodations, and resources:
Accessibility and Disability Accommodations
The instructor is trying to create an inclusive learning environment. Your experiences in the class are important to all of us. If you anticipate or encounter barriers participating or demonstrating your learning because of any aspect of how the course is taught, I encourage you to contact me as soon as possible so that we can discuss options.
We can work in conjunction with Disability Resources for Students: Disability Resources for Students (UW Seattle) Email: uwdrs@uw.edu Phone: 206-543-8924. If you have already established accommodations with DRS, please communicate your approved accommodations to me at your earliest convenience so we can discuss your needs in this course. DRS offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities and/or temporary health conditions. Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructor(s) and DRS. It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law.
Note that while this is directly applicable to students who are registered with DRS, you do not need to disclose a disability or provide an accommodations letter to discuss accessibility. Please feel free to talk with me about any aspect of accommodations or accessibility.
Religious Accommodations Policy
Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request. If you are unable to fill out the request but will need an accommodation, please speak with me as stated above.
Student Support Services:
Mental Health Services to Students:
- Here is the main UW website with many on-campus and off-campus resources: https://wellbeing.uw.edu/topic/mental-health
- View more Student Support Services on this Canvas page and on the University Services and Support Page Link
Writing Resources:
- POL S/LSJ/JSIS Writing Center: http://depts.washington.edu/pswrite/
- Odegaard writing & research center: http://depts.washington.edu/owrc/
- CLUE writing center: http://depts.washington.edu/clue/dropintutor_writing.php
- CHID (Interdisciplinary Writing Studio) https://chid.washington.edu/writing-center