News from Dreamweavers Unlimited

(Excerpt from Culture in Special Education, by Maya Kalyanpur and Beth Harry)

Maya's Story - I came to the United States for the first time as a graduate student, after having taught in special schools in India for several years, and began working with adults with developmental disabilities who lived in a group home. One of the first tasks I was assigned was to teach them "community living skills." My supervisor suggested eating in a restaurant. I set off confidently with "Gary," a young man with moderate mental retardation, to the nearest restaurant; after all, I thought I knew what to expect.

Gary and I entered a McDonald's. It was the first time in my life that I had entered a fast-food restaurant, and I realized, very quickly, that the rules here were very different from what I knew. As I hesitated, Gary sized up the situation. Taking my hand, he led me to the end of a line of people who, I realized with a start, were not waiters but customers waiting to place their orders. Gary pointed to the bewildering array of choices displayed on a sign above my head-bewildering because the menu did not read from top to bottom in traditional fashion but in blocks across the wall. I looked at the first block and began to make a choice when I discovered that this block was for breakfast only and not available after 10 a.m. I looked at the second block and started to choose from the list when Gary directed my attention to the third block. I later learned that the second block was for specialty items. It seemed that despite the array of choices, our impecunious circumstances restricted us to a single option: the value meals in the third block.

By the time I recognized the subtle differences between a "number one value meal" (cheeseburger, fries, and a medium drink) and a "number two value meal" (double cheeseburger, fries, and a medium drink), we had reached the front of the line. Before I could say anything, the lady behind the counter said, "For-here-to-go?" I stared absolutely blankly at her. What on earth did that mean? Was she speaking in English? When I did not respond immediately, Gary stepped up and replied, "Here."With obvious relief, the woman turned to him and directed all subsequent questions, including my order, to him.We carried our trays to a small table to which Gary led us. Gary later showed me how to "bus" our table.

In that environment, I undoubtedly was the more disabled of the two, not only in my own perception but also in others. Over the years, I have related this story to my students on numerous occasions as a springboard for a discussion on the social construction of disability. It serves to remind me of the fragility of our own perceptions of competence and helps them to become aware of the arbitrariness with which we determine, in each culture, who is "normal."

(The above exerpt was featured in the August 30, 2010 Pathways Monday Coffee Break)