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Expanding your interests: How useful are the social and medical models?

In this video Tom Shakespeare discusses the usefulness of the social and medical models of disability.

In this short video, Tom Shakespeare — a well-known disability scholar and activist — outlines what the medical and social definitions of disability mean to him, saying that he finds some value in the medical aspect in particular situations.

Talking points

  • How useful do you find the social and medical models of disability?
  • How do you think Tom’s interpretation of disability fits with the ideas we have learned so far?
  • Do these models present any problems for better understanding the diverse perceptions and experiences of disabled people’s lives?
  • If you already have some experience thinking about disability, you might also share how you would like to see us think about disability.

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Disability and a Good Life: Thinking through Disability

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FutureLearn - Learning For Life

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