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RightsEd: Disability Rights: Accessibility and Liveability

Education
RightsEd: Disability Rights: Accessibility and Liveability

Contents

Lessons

Resources

Introduction

Almost 4 million Australians live with disabilities. If we add families, friends and colleagues, the number of people affected by disability is larger still.

These lessons fit within the Year 7 Geography Curriculum, Unit 2: ‘Place and liveability’. These lessons are based on the Australian Human Rights Commission’s 20 Years: 20 Stories film project, which celebrates 20 years of Australia’s Disability Discrimination Act 1992. The Act provides protection from discrimination for people with disabilities.

Focus

It was a simple attempt to cross the road to get a cup of coffee that sparked Mark Hopper’s passion for accessibility. Mark simply couldn’t get his wheelchair onto the road safely. He complained and won. In his Victorian hometown, Mark scrutinised every building, every footpath, every access point and tested it against the standards which had been in place since the Disability Discrimination Act’s introduction. Mark Hopper is a true action hero.

This unit uses stories like Mark’s to address the issues surrounding the liveability of places for people with disabilities. This includes urban planning for accessibility and liveability, community inclusion of people with disabilities, and strategies to improve the liveability and accessibility of places and services for people with disabilities.

Students will explore the following inquiry questions:

  • What effect does the uneven distribution of resources and services have on the lives of people?
  • What approaches can be used to improve the availability of resources and access to services?

Mark Hopper sits in a wheelchair underneath a tree

Image Caption: Mark Hopper, Ramped up, 20 Years: 20 Stories Film Project, Australian Human Rights Commission

Teaching and Learning Activities

These lessons can be taught as a unit or as individual lessons:

  1. What makes a community liveable for diverse groups of people?
  2. Assessing the liveability of your local suburb
  3. Disability rights and accessibility
  4. Assessing and improving the liveability of your school environment for people with disabilities
  5. Examine the role that transport plays in people’s ability to access services

Learning Outcomes

As a result of this unit students will:

  • Investigate the concept of liveability, factors that affect the liveability of a place.
  • Explore how the liveability of a place can be limited by its accessibility.
  • Analyse how places have varying degrees of liveability and accessibility depending on a person’s perspective and situation; focusing specifically on how people with a range of disabilities may face difficulties with accessing places.

Three children with head phones and a microphone performing

Image Caption: Photograph by Renate Hottmann –Schaefer, Australian Human Rights Commission Photography Competition

Australian Curriculum Links - Geography

Content Description Elaboration
Geographic Knowledge and Understanding, Unit 2: Place and Livability
ACHGK043 The factors that influence the decisions people make about where to live and their perceptions of the livability of places
  • investigating students’ interpretations of the concept of livability and choices about where to live, including considerations of a broad range of disabilities (physical, sensory, psychosocial and intellectual).
  • comparing student access to and use of places and spaces in their local area and evaluating how this affects perceptions of livability
ACHGK044 The influence of accessibility to services and facilities on the livability of places
  • examining the role transport plays in people’s ability to access services and participate in activities in the local area
ACHGK046The influence of social connectedness, community identity and perceptions of crime and safety on the livability of places
  • discussing the different types of places where people can feel included or excluded, and evaluating how this affects perceptions about the livability of places.
  • investigating the extent to which people in their place are socially connected or socially isolated and its effect on livability
ACHGK047 The strategies used to enhance the livability of places, especially for young people, including examples from Australia and Europe
  • developing a specific proposal to improve an aspect of the livability of their place, taking into account the needs of diverse groups in the community, including people with disabilities
  • researching methods implemented in Australia to improve the livability of a place, and evaluating their applicability to their own locality
Geographical Inquiry and Skills, Observing, Questioning and Planning
ACHGS047 Develop geographically significant questions and plan an inquiry, using appropriate geographical methodologies and concepts
  •  
  • developing questions about livability and accessibility of places and services for people with disabilities.
Geographical Inquiry and Skills, Collecting, recording, evaluating and representing
ACHGS048 Collect, select and record relevant geographical data and information, using ethical protocols, from appropriate primary and secondary sources
  • gathering relevant data from a range of primary sources, for example, from observation and annotated field sketches, surveys and interviews, or photographs about the impacts of and responses to a hydrological hazard, or the factors influencing decisions people make about where to live
  • collecting geographical information from secondary sources, for example, population pyramids, reports, census data and the media
  • applying ethical research methods
Geographical Inquiry and Skills , Communicating
ACHGS053 Present findings, arguments and ideas in a range of communication forms selected to suit a particular audience and purpose; using geographical terminology and digital technologies as appropriate
  • presenting a report, supported by graphic representations, to communicate a reasoned argument, for example, to propose actions to improve livability of the school environment


General Capabilities

The general capabilities emphasised in this unit of work are Ethical Understanding, Personal and Social Capability, Literacy and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Capability.

Disability Rights: Accessibility and Livability

Unit description:

These lessons fit within the Year 7, Unit 2: ‘Place and livability’. These lessons address the issues surrounding the livability of places for people with disabilities. Issues discussed include urban planning for accessibility and livability, community inclusion of people with disabilities, and strategies to improve the livability and accessibility of places and services for people with disabilities.

Teaching and Learning Activities
These lessons can be taught as a unit. Alternatively, teachers can select particular lessons to teach at their discretion.

  1. What makes a community livable for diverse groups of people?
  2. Assessing the livability of your local suburb
  3. Disability rights and accessibility
  4. Assessing and improving the livability of your school environment for people with disabilities
  5. Examine the role importance of that accessible transport

Key inquiry questions:

  • What effect does the uneven distribution and accessibility of resources and services have on the lives of people?
  • What approaches can be used to improve the availability of resources and access to services?

Learning Outcomes
As a result of this unit students will:

  • Investigate the concept of livability, factors that affect the livability of a place.
  • Explore how the livability of a place can be limited by its accessibility.
  • Analyse how places have varying degrees of livability and accessibility depending on a person’s perspective and situation; focusing specifically on how people with a range of disabilities may face difficulties accessing places.

 
Resources Vocabulary

Videos
Ramped Up, Twenty Years: Twenty Stories (5mins 34secs) 
Access for All, Twenty Years: Twenty Stories (4mins 57secs) 
Room for Change, Twenty Years: Twenty Stories (5mins 49secs)
Dee’s Place Twenty Years: Twenty Stories (5 mins 17 secs)
Graeme Innes vs. Railcorp, Twenty Years: Twenty Stories (2mins 18secs) 

Transcript and audio description are available

Activities 
Activity Sheets: Picture Difference (Pictures A and Pictures B)
Activity Sheet: Defining Liveability
Activity Sheet: What makes a community liveable for different groups of people?
Activity Sheet: Disability Discrimination Act and Access to Premises
Activity Sheet: Ramped Up
Activity Sheet: Dee ’s Place
Activity Sheet: Room for Change
Activity Sheet: Access for All
Activity Sheet: Checklist for assessing school’s accessibility based on Disability Access Standards
Activity Sheet: Proposal Template
Activity Sheet: Sydney Morning Herald Opinion Piece. Clear announcements cannot stay in RailCorp's too hard basket
Literacy Activity Sheet: Sydney Morning Herald Opinion Piece. Clear announcements cannot stay in RailCorp's too hard basket

Resource sheets: 
Resource Sheet: Hypothetical discrimination scenarios
Resource Sheet: Disability Discrimination Act and Access to Premises
Resource Sheet: Sydney Morning Herald Opinion Piece. Clear announcements cannot stay in RailCorp's too hard basket
Resource Sheet: Glossary

Additional Resources
Access to buildings and services guidelines and information
The good, bad and ugly design and construction access 

 Accessibility
Disability
Discrimination
Infrastructure
Livability
Social connectedness
Social inclusion



 

 

Tags Education