ERIC Number: EJ885247
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-May
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0968-7599
EISSN: N/A
"Away with the Fairies?" Disability within Primary-Age Children's Literature
Beckett, Angharad; Ellison, Nick; Barrett, Sam; Shah, Sonali
Disability & Society, v25 n3 p373-386 May 2010
This article outlines the findings of a new study that explores the portrayal of disability within a sample of the primary-age children's literature most readily available to UK schools. The kind of literature to which children are exposed is likely to influence their general perceptions of social life. How disability is handled by authors is therefore important from the standpoint of disability equality. Findings suggest that whilst there are some good examples of inclusive literature "out there", discriminatory language and/or negative stereotypes about disability continue to be present in a range of more contemporary children's books. Clearly, more "still" needs to be done to ensure that schools and teachers are provided with information relating to the best examples of inclusion literature and efforts must continue to be made to inform authors, publishers and illustrators about how to approach the issue of disability. (Contains 1 table and 1 note.)
Descriptors: Childrens Literature, Stereotypes, Elementary School Students, Foreign Countries, Social Attitudes, Disabilities, Attitudes toward Disabilities, Negative Attitudes, Language Usage, Social Bias
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A