Abstract
Parental involvement in the selection and implementation of children’s educational services is one of the most important tenets of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. However, parental involvement may be less welcome and less effectively supported in families from non-dominant groups (i.e., those with lower social status as a result of their race, ethnicity, social class, or immigrant status) compared to those with more resources. In this chapter, we explore several important conceptual tools related to diversity and stigmatization that support families’ equitable access to special education services for their young children. After reviewing how culture has typically been defined in the field of early childhood special education (ECSE), we introduce the critical sociocultural perspective and describe its clear implications for more effective parent-practitioner relations. We subsequently explore the notions of individual and institutional stigma, and show how early childhood practitioners can identify stigmatizing experiences that children with disabilities and their parents may have encountered. We then address the experience of families who are stigmatized for additional reasons other than the disability status of a family member, showing how children and families are located at the intersection of overlapping social identities rather than situated within a single homogenous racial, ethnic, or gender category. We conclude the chapter with specific suggestions for service providers to assist them in addressing stigmatization of individuals with autism, particularly those who are members of non-dominant groups, in the hope of moving the field of ECSE closer to its promise of a free, appropriate, public education for all.
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Holloway, S.D., Cohen, S.R., Domínguez-Pareto, I. (2018). Culture, Stigma, and Intersectionality: Toward Equitable Parent-Practitioner Relationships in Early Childhood Special Education. In: Siller, M., Morgan, L. (eds) Handbook of Parent-Implemented Interventions for Very Young Children with Autism. Autism and Child Psychopathology Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90994-3_6
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