Disability Awareness: An Analysis of How Disability is Framed in Australian Society and the Media

Julie M Carmel

The positive inclusion of disability in society and the media creates educational opportunities that can address misconceptions and stereotypes. While provisions are being made to include people with disabilities in Australian society and media, this provision is far from inclusive and equitable. The focus of previous research in this field has been limited to adults with disability, and therefore, a greater awareness of the ways disability is framed for children in the media can build deeper understanding. Using qualitative methodologies and informed by the social model of critical disability theory (CDT), this thesis by compilation investigates how disability is framed in both society and through one iconic Australian made-for-preschool children television program, Play School. The signifiers of diversity, inclusion, and equity are used to illuminate disability awareness across four interwoven phases. Viewed through the autoethnographic lens of a carer Phase one of this study explored the challenges of a child with a disability as they navigate society and education. Vignettes highlight key moments in time and opportunities for change. Phase two investigated how disability is included in one Australian made-for-children television program, Play School. Content analysis helped reveal the ways Play School presenters and segments engage with disability. In Phase three, a Derridean lens was used to explore how disability awareness is evidenced through the inclusion of one child with a disability in a specific Play School “Through the Windows” vignette. Finally, in Phase four, seven children with various experiences of disability were interviewed for their understanding of disability awareness after watching a “Through the Windows” vignette and “Live Action Play” segment of Play School. The combined analysis of these four phases indicated that how society and the media include disability has a considerable influence on disability awareness in children. This outcome aligns with the assertions of proponents of the social model of CDT, who claimed that it is a society that disables more than the disability itself. Importantly, this thesis highlights that both media and societal contexts can potentially inform future approaches that advance the awareness and inclusion of disability in all aspects of Australian society, building understanding. In doing so, disability will become better understood as just one facet of what it is to be human.

Disability Awareness: An Analysis of How Disability is Framed in Australian Society and the Media

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