Problematizing the Binary: A Poststructural Understanding of Dis/Ability in Schools

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to offer a critique of traditional conceptions of dis/ability in U.S. public schools and propose a shift toward an adoption of poststructural perspectives that trouble the dichotomy between ability and dis/ability. We discuss the perspectives of dis/ability that currently exist within the public-school system and grapple with the way these perspectives impact the material realities of students traditionally labeled as dis/abled. A set of case studies are presented to reimagine the possibilities of alternative approaches to the way that dis/ability is conceptualized and understood in the public-school system, offering a radical possibility of engaging all students as unique members of the learning community. Perspectives will be discussed across a continuum of disciplines with an emphasis on poststructuralist traditions.