The maturity of the disability fields and the Potentials of Socialpdagogy

Anne Mia Steno, lecturer and ph.d. and Hanne Meyer Johansen, lecturer and ph.d. – both from University College Copenhagen
On the basis of empirical cases from the disability field, we will put focus on the conditions that impresses the welfare efforts concerning people with psychological or physical disabilities in the contemporary danish society. Conditions that imply social injustice towards peoples with disabilities. The specialized social field is dominated by an economic-rational way of thinking that makes it necessary to fight for the appropriate help for people who need social support. At the same time self-help and self-sufficiency seems to be the most central goals in the work with support depending citizens regardless the scope of handicap. This dominating focus can be regarded as ambivalent, as a way to make people more self-determent in their life, but on the other hand as a way to reduce the finansiel expenses for this support. I recent years this endeavour has taken notable over (Kirkebæk & Møller 2020).
A concret example that illustrates this is the municipal of Copenhagen that has introduced a socalled conversion plan. The overall impression is that people with disabilities are regarded as a burden in society and the result of that is, that people with disabilities are unable to realise their rights despite that Denmark has signed The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of United Nation – a Convention that emphasizes that people with disabilities have the same rights as everybody else. The Disability field is regarded as some of the core areas of Socialpedagogy (Madsen 2005, 2021). The socialpedagogcal project has through been attributed different intentions and content. This professional approach that have moved between a tension field of the aim of control of social challenges on the one hand and an endeavour of human emancipation from socially unfair life conditions on the other (Freire 1973, 1994). This means a tension between having a confirming and controlling professional function and on reverse to develop a society based on equal rights for all citiziens (Schwartz 2014). In this presentation we want to include and (re)activate the normative and critical potential of socialpedagogy and discuss its potentials as a contributer of a more solidarity and fair society. So how can socialpedagogical professionals get a more active role as catalysts of installing hope and empowerment for people with disabilties to realise their rights to a self-determent life?
References:
Freire, Paulo (2014) Pedagogy of Hope: Reliving Pedagogy of the Oppressed Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Freire, Paulo (2017) Pedagogy of the Oppressed Penguin Books Ltd.
Kampmann, Jan (2008): ”Arven fra Freire – nostalgi eller fremadrettet kritisk inspiration”. DPT 4/2008
Kirkebæk, Birgit og Iver Hornemann Møller (2020): Afhægtet - Mennesker med udviklingshandicap og deres levevilkår. Samfundslitteratur
Langager, Søren (2013):”Det afmålte liv”. Fra Bonfils et al (red) Handicapforståelser: mellem teori, erfaring og virkelighed Akademisk forlag
Madsen, Bent (2021) Pædagogiske ståsteder og bevægelser – på tværs af almen-, social- og specialpædagogik. København: Hans Reitzels forlag.
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Schwartz, Ida (2014) Hverdagsliv og livsforløb. Tværprofessionelt samarbejde om støtte til børn og unges livsførelse. Aarhus: Klim