This subject provides the theoretical underpinnings of the current disability landscape. It gives students a strong conceptual foundation for thinking about the contemporary position of people with disability in society and its comparison with an earlier historic period, understanding the aims of current disability policies and the nature of specialist disability and mainstream service systems available to people with a disability. Students will consider different models for understanding disability and the way these frame the 'problem' of disability, policy aspirations and services. The key features of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and the National Disability Strategy (NDS) as major reforms and their implications for professionals working in mainstream or specialist services will be explored. Students will examine the conceptual differences between impairment and disability, the interplay between these, and the rationale for impairment specific knowledge in adjusting social settings such as schools, places of employment or community groups to be inclusive of people with disabilities.

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