Author: Michelle Strutzenberger
In my last post, I shared a recent story about my students who are blind finding a way to participate in an online learning space, thanks in large part to an echo of “yeses.” Necessary devices, funding, time, support, and motivation all created the conditions for the students to reach a place where they are now actively engaged in an equitable playing field (for the most part) with the rest of their peers in their class. It’s a feel-good story of generosity and possibility-thinking on the part of all involved, including the students. Today I want to add nuance to the story that may provide some insight into the larger question of shifting the narrative on equity and access in online spaces. As I mentioned earlier, my part in my students’ story was largely to help them learn how to use some of the digital tools. One afternoon I was working with them to troubleshoot some problems, and not once but several times, they revealed that they had already talked with friends and families with similar exceptionalities in different parts of the world and found solutions. So, in the end, they were teaching me about what they could do to access specific platforms as well as make their digital experience more in tune with what they wanted it to be. This small story hints at three considerations as we contemplate the larger question of enabling equity and access in online spaces: 1. Who already has the answers? (In the previous story, it was friends and family who also had exceptionalities and were further along the path in grappling with these same issues). 2. What if those we are trying to support were to take the lead in not only creating their own optimal online space experience but also providing insight into what others might want/need? 3. What if we focused on telling these stories, stories of achievement, and success regarding realizing equity and access in online spaces? How might the sharing of these stories support broader, systemic change?
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USWe are a collective Group of Educators in many different fields, all completing (or have completed) a Masters of Education at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. we all have an interest in teaching and learning with equity in mind. Archives
December 2020
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