Open AccessNaming and Claiming: The Tension Between Institutional and Self-Identification of Disability
Author(s) -
Gillian Parekh,
Robert S. Brown
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
canadian journal of disability studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1929-9192
DOI - 10.15353/cjds.v9i5.701
Subject(s) - identification (biology) , census , disability studies , special education , psychology , inclusion (mineral) , sociology , gender studies , social psychology , developmental psychology , pedagogy , demography , population , botany , biology
The relationship between the social construction and self-identification of disability is complex and has been integral to the work of critical disability scholars (Ben-Moshe, Chapman & Carey, 2014; Davis, 2013; Erevelles, 2011; Yergeau, 2018). In 2006-07 and 2016-17, the Toronto District School Board conducted a student census and asked students to identify whether they had a disability that was assessed by either their doctor or school. Interestingly, the proportion of students who self-identified as having a disability was only a fraction of those who had been institutionally identified (formally and informally) through special education. Additionally, among students within special education, distinct trends emerged around who was likely to self- identify across class, income, gender and racial categories.