A passage from this article really struck a chord with me, when Kharani refers to the lack of understanding and recognition to her condition and how it affects her daily life..
‘This, in turn, leads to inability to seek out healthcare or help, as it was in my case, simply because years of asking and not receiving care had ingrained in me the presupposition that I would not, could not, receive it.’
This idea of being let down so many times in the past due to institutional ‘isms’, be it ableism, racism, misogyny or a combination of them all and many others, can make someone feel that there is no help for them and they are not seen. In my experience sometimes students don’t come forward for help. As educators we really have to step out and say ‘hey, if you are struggling please speak up because we are here to help and we want to help you.’ I think there is onus on us as tutors to think and acknowledge, past experiences students may have experienced elsewhere might mean they aren’t forthcoming, and effort needs to be made to make them feel seen.
I am currently reading ‘A Little Life’ by Hanya Yanaihara and a passage I read on my commute immediately made me think back to this article and how you can view someone else’s perspective on speaking up for help. This quote is from a character who had a traumatic upbringing (I can’t elaborate any further as I haven’t read that far!!) which has meant he has had very different experiences to his peers, and also has a disability that affects his leg mobility. When in social situations he sometimes doesn’t understand their references or the content/context of their conversations.
‘But he could never ask anyone for the answers. To do so would be an admission of extreme otherness, which would invite further questions and would leave him exposed, and which would inevitably lead to conversations he definitely was not prepared to have.’ (Yanigahara, 2016)
In the past I’ve always thought students might not speak up for help as they be embarrassed to seem like they don’t understand. I’ve never thought before that in asking for help they may feel an admission of otherness, or when asking for help in a previous experience may have been made to feel othered. This is something to be mindful of as I progress in my teaching.
Some other takeaway from reading this article is the reminder that you can’t see all disability. I admit that sometimes I fall into the ocular centered view of disability and have to remind myself that their may be students truggling in a way that isn’t outwardly visible to myself or others. Are there things I can be doing in the delivery of my teaching that make my sessions more accessible to any students with disability?
References
Pg92-93 Hanya Yanagihara (2016). A little life. London Picador.