Blog Task 1: Disability

In your first blog task you will use Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality to analyse how disability intersects with other identity factors:

Workshops 1A & 1B: Key Concepts in Inclusive Practices (Equality Act, Intersectionality, Positionality, Disability, UAL data) and Guest Lecture – Frameworks for Disability Equity in HE with Carys Kennedy, provided the resources to develop an understanding of disability and learning differences, through the literature and theory concerning frameworks such as the social model of disability (Oliver, 1990) and intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1990) as well as their implications for disabling structures in Higher Education.

Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality exemplifies how disability is not a monolithic experience, but rather one that intersects with factors like race, gender, sexuality, and socioeconomic status/class to create unique, compounded experiences of discrimination or privilege. An intersectional, disability-justice analytical tool for understanding how systems such as ableism, racism, and sexism simultaneously act upon individuals and impact on their sense of belonging, thus preventing disabled people from participating fully in society.

At the heart of the resources, short films, and interviews by individuals identifying as disabled, the recurring theme is that what disables them is not caused by their impairments, but by structural barriers deeply embedded in society that can be either environmental, attitudinal and/or procedural. Drawing from the social model of disability (Oliver, 1990)—which acts as a solution-oriented conceptual framework and a practical tool to shift the focus from an individual’s impairment to the barriers imposed by society and reach personal and collective emancipation—all three interviewees provided context about societal challenges, covert discrimination, and systemic oppression based on how their disabilities intersect with multilayered dimensions of identity, such as race, socioeconomic status, and gender. More specifically, an example from the resources that illustrates the intersection of disability with other identity aspects is the British Nigerian, Paralympian, and wheelchair user, Ade Adepitan; he brings into focus both overt historical and modern-day covert racism, highlighting the relation between the intersection of race and disability—as echoed by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement—and the need for meaningful systemic change and intersectional equality beyond surface-level diversity.

Within the context of education, it is important to recognise that disabled students with intersectional identities may also face discrimination based on race, gender, class, or sexual orientation compared to those with a single marginalized identity, which can create unique obstacles in learning spaces.

In my teaching context, which falls into experiential/industry learning—Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) conducted outside the university culture for a year yet still embedded into an in-between stage of the main study—disability considerations, drawing on UAL data and my own experience are heavily influenced by ableism and neoliberal norms. The intersections of disability, neoliberalism, and industry placements often produce tensions that can compromise student learning experience:

• A shift of responsibility for adjustments from the institution/employer to the individual student, requiring them to “disclose” or negotiate their own access.
• Disability support is under-resourced, often creating complex, bureaucratic barriers to “reasonable adjustments” in the workplace.
• The focus on employability and high-performance in industry placements can disadvantage students who work at different paces or require different environments.

The In-Between Space of DPS can also amplify tensions that relate to disability considerations:

• Operating outside the main university campus for a year places students in a Liminal Space, where they may lack the immediate access to university support, UAL’s Disability Service.
• There can be a disconnect between the university’s commitment to the social model of disability and the realities of industry employers, who may hold traditional or medicalized views of disability.
• Students may feel pressured to align with “ableist norms” of constant productivity, causing them to hide or downplay their access needs to seem more employable.

Based on my experience in supporting students in this In-Between Space of DPS (where they are balancing professional demands with personal access needs) it is pertinent to implement relational, care-focused approaches over ableist, market-driven ones. This comes with challenges, as students have additional pressures stemming from a further year of debt and the cost-of-living crisis that interrelate with complex social and academic barriers. Identifying the discomfort that arises from the uncertainty and precarity of a new territory (e.g., a year-in-industry) as a Threshold Concept (Osmond, 2009) allows for finding ways to work with students to scaffold this transition.

need to add more REFERENCES + FURTHER RESOURCES : )

References:

Crenshaw, K. (1990) ‘Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and
violence against women of color’, Stanford Law Review, 43, p.1241-1299. Available
at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1229039?seq=1 (Accessed: 12 March 2026).

Chapter 2/ The Social Model in Action: if I had a hammer Mike Oliver (In ‘Implementing the Social Model of Disability: Theory and Research’ edited by Colin Barnes and Geof Mercer (2004); Leeds: The Disability Press, pp. 18-31).

Disabled Students Campaign – Social Model of Disability with Mike Oliver, National Union of Students UK (2018). Youtube [Online]. 22 Nov. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDO6U0-uaoM

ParalympicsGB (2020) – Ade Adepitan gives amazing explanation of systemic racism. Youtube [Online]. 16 Oct. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAsxndpgagU&t=42s

Orr S. & Shreeve A. (2017) Art and Design Pedagogy in Higher Education: Knowledge, Values and Ambiguity in the Creative Curriculum. Routledge Research in Education.

Further reading/resources:

Rust C. (2005) Threshold Concepts and Troublesome Knowledge (3)*: Implications for Course Design and Evaluation, Improving Student Learning Diversity and Inclusivity. Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development, pp 53–63

Google/Wikipedia Entry (2024) Liminality. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liminality