The foundational philosophy of Catholic schools impels them toward inclusive practice. Scholars have repeatedly established that a moral mandate exists in Catholic Social Teaching for Catholic schools to include all students. However, students with disabilities have traditionally been excluded from Catholic school settings due perceived resource constraints, lack of practitioner skill, and the disposition that students with disabilities are better served in public schools. Many Catholic schools have made tremendous progress in inclusive practice, and stand at the forefront of this work, but these efforts have not been replicated at scale. The purpose of this study was to explore how communities of practice support inclusion in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. A convergent mixed methods approach to social network analysis was used to describe the state of inclusive practice in Catholic schools and the relationships that facilitate diffusion of information and resources across these organizations. The findings of this study indicated that Catholic educators strongly support inclusion and associate it with the mission of Catholic education but lack capacity in their knowledge and resources to create inclusive environments, despite the presence of skilled teachers and other internal resources. The study found that Catholic schools are resourceful and build effective partnerships with parents, students, and outside organizations to support students with disabilities, but that networks across school sites are fragmented.

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General education teachers are critical contributors to the successful inclusion of students labeled with learning disabilities in general education classrooms. Similarly, teacher beliefs about disability labels significantly influence how teachers include or exclude students labeled with a learning disability in their classrooms. This qualitative study investigated eight secondary general education teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion and their experiences teaching students labeled with a learning disability from a Critical Disabilities Studies perspective. Data were collected using an innovative qualitative method, Q methodology, in order to surface distinct perspectives within the group about inclusion and the experience of teaching students labeled with a learning disability in their classes. The data bore that while teachers agree with the aspirations of inclusive education, they insist they are not capable of teaching students labeled with a learning disability. These findings support the need for systemic change within teacher preparation programs and schools that can disrupt deficit notions of disability.

The variables that contribute to the acquisition of personal identity are many, and the interactions that occur before someone realizes "I am ... " are complex, to say the least. The process of ' identification' that is, the aforementioned acquisition of the self is not a static process that is the same for each person. Although some similar patterns of existence may occur, it is ultimately a unique occurrence. I propose that in the 'construction of the self that there are three broad facets of existence that should be addressed in answering questions concerning personal identity the physiological, the psychological, and the social. Each of these factors contributes to the process of becoming that is personal identity. This is in line with modem psychological models. The present work seeks to bring to light some of these facets of personal identity in general. More than this however, an attempt will be made to examine some of the ways in which physical disability can affect one's sense of personal narrative that is woven into "Who I am and whom I wish to be." In the course of this work several topics will surface. First an emphasis will be placed on the physical expressions and ' limitations' of the body as an extension into space. The concept of the "body schema" will be explained here to illustrate the ways in which the body is integrated into the self. Next, the psychological effects of physical disability will be addressed with a focus toward the reconstruction of mental representations of the 'normal' body and the resultant effects of this reconstruction. Here, the "body image" of the disabled individual will be discussed using data from

Magister Legum - LLM / Disability in South African labour law is reduced to incapacity. An evaluation of disability and incapacity was made to advocate a clear conceptual break between the two concepts. Also, that disability should be grounded in a social model paradigm of disability which was a materialist critique of how capitalism constructs disability. To enhance the analysis discourse analysis was employed to illustrate how language, ideology and power sustained the notion of disability in capitalist society. A comparative analysis was made drawing on American disability jurisprudence and Canadian disability jurisprudence to illustrate the difference in approach between the two legal systems with a suggestion that the Canadian approach was better suited to the development of a South African disability law. And the development of South African disability law it was argued would benefit if a legal construction of disability was crafted to deal with the obstacles that disabled people encounter in the work-place. / South Africa

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The focus of this dissertation was to gain a better understanding of how families construct autism. Studies have overwhelmingly used the medical model or the institutional narrative to interpret how autism is understood in families. More recently, a counter-narrative has emerged resisting this medical model. Both narratives, however, simplify the intricate nature of the disability construct within families. Additionally, the term “family” has been used euphemistically to refer to mothers, fathers or siblings of children who have autism. This study explored the constructs of the whole family through shared stories of their day-to-day lives. Through a narrative inquiry, this study used semi-structured interviews and participant observational data collected in homes and communities of three families who have elementary school-aged children diagnosed with autism. Selection criteria consisted of English-speaking families who completed a university-based early intervention program. Attempts were made to select multidimensional or diverse families. Resulting data were analyzed using NVivo software. Five findings emerged. First, contexts and the interactions held within them played a significant role in the type of narrative that was used to construct disability. Second, constructs of disability were in process and fluid. Third, families held competing constructs of disability at both the group and individual levels. Fourth, the dominant cultural narrative of disability founded upon the medical model was used by families; however, its use was predicated on the desire to protect family members (i.e., child with disability as well as siblings) from perceived and directly-experienced exclusions from mainstream society. Fifth, a dominant construct of disability existed within families and was contingent upon the strength of that construct within various contexts with which the family engaged. Knowledge was added to the current literature on the complexity and fluid nature of the disability construct at the group and individual levels. In addition, these constructs were argued to be influenced by the interactive contexts and the embedded narratives of disability. Knowledge generated by this study can be used to integrate different lenses within professional training programs, and help to re-imagine the methods and aims of research that explore families who have children with disabilities.

This research analyzed all available hearings from 2013 to 2015 in a national database of due process hearings regarding placement issues and determinations of the least restrictive environment for individual students with significant disabilities. The main research question was whether parents/guardians and due process hearing officers sought placements for these children with significant disabilities that considered creatively and holistically a range of options rather than just a dialogue between already extant possible programmatic offerings. The research resulted in a description and taxonomy of the types of issues and factors arising in the hearings for students with significant disabilities from 2013 to 2015. This research shows almost no evidence of creative or holistic thinking in these due process decisions, and there was little evidence of parent advocacy for general education classes and creative options for their students with significant disabilities beyond existing offerings. The most unique placements to be found in public school settings for these students were in general education classes. Twenty-four students in this analysis were offered general education classes with their typically achieving peers. In general, though, for this unique group of students with significant disabilities, very few due process hearings could be found to have demonstrated creativity, or the consideration of holistic options, for such students. In general, in due process hearings for students with significant disabilities from 2013 to 2015, parents were overwhelming advocating for, and due process hearing officers were deciding among, options on the continuum of placements already traditionally considered for students with significant disabilities.

Informed by the disciplines of disability studies and interpretive sociology, and using the social model of disability and the collective identity model, this dissertation pursues an investigation of underemployment. Underemployment, conceptualized as the underutilized skills and knowledge of the employed and unemployed, occurs at higher levels amongst disabled persons than among non-disabled people (Canada, 2009). Semi-structured interviews with 14 underemployed disabled people conducted, to investigate the experiences of disabled persons who worked in the fields of education, computer, healthcare, fitness, environment, travel, social work, government and non-government agencies. In addition, Canadian social policies were analyzed to address the research questions: 1) How do disabled workers understand and address experiences of underemployment? 2) How do organizations and social policies account for underemployment amongst disabled persons? 3) How can practices which acknowledge and enhance collective identity be used to address underemployment and advance the disability movement? 4) How can underemployment amongst disabled persons be addressed at the organizational level? The texts of these narratives and Canadian social policies were analyzed using a critical interpretative textual analysis approach. The analysis demonstrates the depths of the negative consequences of high levels of underemployment resulting from structural, environmental and attitudinal barriers. Such consequences include lack of opportunities for recognition, compensation, promotion, accommodations, and career fulfillment, as well as poor mental, physical, emotional and social health. This research study is unique as it reveals the struggles that disabled persons experienced in work contexts, their narratives of resistance, and their recommendations for socio-political change to build more inclusive work environments