Took this wholly from David Hingsburger's blog:

[capri0mni]

It'a a combination word puzzle and a Disability Awareness Exercise, and I know folks in my circle who enjoy both, so:

[Begin Quote]
I have always believed that those, 'ride around in a chair for an hour to experience how hard it is to be a disabled person' kind of exercises are both patronising and counter-productive. You cannot take a 'tourist' approach to difference. I believe asking someone to write a paragraph without using the letter 'e' is a much better exercise. I know I've written about this before, but I want to revisit this. The whole time the pen is in hand the mind is thinking and evaluating, options - that's life with a disability.

Try it now. Translate this sentence into one that doesn't use the letter 'e':

My home is my castle where I eat and sleep.
[End Quote]

(and yes, I'm trying it -- haven't gotten there yet).

[ETA: This building is my sanctuary and my fort; in this spot, I sup and nap.]

Comments

Ooh, tough one.

[raze]

My habitation is my acropolis, in which I munch and nap.

Re: Ooh, tough one.

[capri0mni]

"munch" is a good word...

As is "nap."

A reason that I like this exercise is that it demonstrates that we can get to the same place (or nearly), but we often have to take the long way 'round.

Also, it gets easier the more you do it. ...Which is why I feel sorry for those who're prescribed six weeks of wheelchair or crutch use: It takes about four weeks to figure out the basics.

Well...

[ysabetwordsmith]

It depends on what you want to teach people. Nobody is going to think of a 1/4" crack in the ground or threshold as a barrier until they have either ridden in or walked next to a scooter that stalls over the damn things. By all means, put people in a wheelchair -- in a situation where that chair is going to limit where they can go or require them to do some problem-solving. It changes how they think about the environment.

If you want to teach them about frustration, exhaustion, and how every minute of the day can be an almighty burden, then something like the no-E exercise, or doing everything with their off-hand for a while, is much more effective.

Re: Well...

[capri0mni]

*nod*

I understand the reasoning behind such exercises, but, in my experience, the way these things are usually done (and as I've tried to do, in days of yore) -- as Dave Hingsburger puts it, "the Tourist approach," people still don't get it. Instead, they come away overwhelmed with frustration, and even more pity for the disabled, because they get the barriers without the time to find a solutions that we in the Disability Community have worked out (which is what the blog post source for this quote is ultimately about -- here's the link: http://davehingsburger.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-missing-e-of-disability.html).

That's what I like about the writing exercise: it focuses on the problem-solving side of living with disability. Yes, it's hard at first, but once you crack the puzzle, it becomes easier, and there's a real sense of accomplishment, and a reaffirmation of your individuality.

I think making a video of your day (with a camera on your transport), would be a better way to illustrate the environmental maze. Plus, it has the added benefit of recording other people's condescension toward you. >;-) Also, it would free you up to show common barriers even if those specific barriers are not in the place where you're trying to teach folks.

One benefit of being human is that we've evolved as a species to learn from and absorb well-told stories, so we don't have to experience everything directly.

If I were doing a "Disability Awareness" workshop, I would start with such a video (and maybe include interviews with several different people), and follow up with the no-e exercise.

Re: Well...

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Instead, they come away overwhelmed with frustration, and even more pity for the disabled, because they get the barriers without the time to find a solutions that we in the Disability Community have worked out <<

No one exercise can do everything. You need to provide contextual support. To mimic the learning process, I'd probably give people hints or let them access a help service where someone could coach them if they got stuck.

>>I think making a video of your day (with a camera on your transport), would be a better way to illustrate the environmental maze.<<

That's terrific for visual learners, and will work for audio learners if the narration is good enough. It does nothing for tactile/experiential learners, who are habitually ignored by most educational efforts.

>> One benefit of being human is that we've evolved as a species to learn from and absorb well-told stories, so we don't have to experience everything directly. <<

That's why I write some of the stuff I do. And my series P.I.E. -- whose lead character uses wheelchairs -- has started enticing my handicapped readers to feed me prompts based on their own experiences. I'd like to see more projects like this.

>>If I were doing a "Disability Awareness" workshop, I would start with such a video (and maybe include interviews with several different people), and follow up with the no-e exercise.<<

A combination of methods will usually work better than solo, yes.