Mainstreaming Disability

A Handbook on Mainstreaming Disability is a 2006 publication of Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO). VSO has been described in Wikipedia as an international development charity that works through experienced volunteers living and working as equals alongside local partners.

This handbook offers practical guidance and support to development organisations to mainstream disability in their work. It is drawn from the experience of VSO DREAM-IT (Disability Rights, Empowerment, Awareness & Mobilisation Indonesia & Thailand), a five-year disability programme carried out jointly by VSO Indonesia and VSO Thailand. Each chapter addresses a key issue: discrimination and stigma; organisational commitment; sensitisation; workplace mainstreaming; programme mainstreaming - both to include disabled people in programme management processes and in other programme areas and sectors; and policy.

VSO recommends that Chapter 1 be read first as it gives an overview of disability and mainstreaming, and explains why VSO believes it is important to mainstream disability. It outlines a process for getting started and managing disability mainstreaming.

Here are some excerpts on how to interact with people with mobility and hearing impairments.

Interacting with people with mobility impairments

Treat people with courtesy and respect. For example, don’t leave someone behind by walking off too quickly.

Just as you wouldn’t lean on a person you are talking to, don’t lean on someone’s wheelchair or other mobility appliance.If you are offering assistance, ask before you do anything. In general, move the obstacle (whatever is in the way) rather than the person.

If you are asked to carry someone, check with her where it is OK to hold her (or her wheelchair/ appliance). Always do what she asks you, not what you think is best.

Interacting with people with hearing impairments

Treat people with respect. If the telephone rings or there is a knock at the door while you are talking to a Deaf person, excuse yourself and explain what you are doing. Don’t leave her sitting there with no explanation.

Find out how the person likes to communicate – there are a variety of different ways, including speech, sign language, finger spelling, writing or gestures and body language. Each person will use the combination that suits her best.

If you are talking to a person who is lipreading, some simple tips to remember are:

• Get the person’s attention before speaking – by calling her name, touching her arm or waving.
• Make sure that the person knows the topic of conversation: this is particularly important for lipreading, as many words look very similar, and Deaf people who read lips depend on context to pick out key words.
• Speak slowly and clearly – but don’t shout or exaggerate words, as this will make it much harder to lipread.
• Look directly at the person and maintain eye contact.
• Don’t cover your mouth or put anything in it while talking. Stand so that your face is clearly lit – not in shadow or in front of a bright light, as this makes it harder for the person to see your mouth.
• Use short sentences.
• Use gestures, body language and facial expressions to help get your message across.
• If you aren’t making yourself understood, repeat yourself once. If this doesn’t work, try again using different words. If that doesn’t work, write it down.

Use open questions that require more than a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. The response to an open question will allow you to make sure that the Deaf person has understood you.

Many Deaf people communicate with hearing people by speaking. If you find it difficult to understand something a Deaf person has said to you, ask her to repeat it or offer her a pen and paper to write it down. If you are communicating by writing things down, some of the same principles apply:

• Establish the topic of conversation first.
• Use short sentences or phrases – it isn’t always necessary to write down every word.
• Write legibly and clearly – printing each letter separately is usually best. If you are in an office setting, it may be possible to use a computer instead.
• Use open questions.
• Face each other after writing down each phrase – eye contact and facial expressions will make your communication much easier.
• Use drawings and diagrams to get your message across.

Even if you are communicating through a sign language interpreter, it is important to remember that you are still talking to the Deaf person. Talk directly to her, not to the interpreter – for example, ‘what do you think?’ not ‘what does she think?’

Remember that sign languages are languages in their own right – for many Deaf people, their first language is a sign language. Different countries have different sign languages, and in many cases different regions have their own dialects, as with spoken language. Learning some simple signs, such as greetings, is a basic courtesy like learning any other language.

Click here to visit VSO Bahaginan website.

Click here for Mainstreaming Disability Part 2.

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