Learning with Amanda

Paton S¹*, Homan J²*

1. Amanda’s Friend
2. Foundation Member Disability Council of Queensland and Amanda’s Father

Currently there is a great deal of rhetoric around the issues of equal opportunity, equal rights and community engagement. There is little demonstration that this talk is being followed through with action in the field of intellectual disability.

The political and social debate associated with community engagement, when it touches on disability at all, focuses primarily on those with a physical disability. People with an intellectual disability appear to be largely forgotten or ignored.

This paper reviews the effectiveness of a variety of approaches utilised to support a vibrant and dynamic intellectually disabled young woman to lead a meaningful and inclusive life. It pleads for the right of the intellectually disabled to be fully engaged with community to the extent that their individual capacity and potential permits. It looks at the limits placed on a whole section of the society by social constructs and fixed mindsets.

The authors, one the parent of a disabled daughter and both with a background in disability and community interaction, examine the constraints placed on intellectually disabled individuals by commonly held perceptions. They argue the need for a catalytic shift in thinking that permits a new focus on the support required to develop individual potential and effective community engagement rather than on disability as a generic condition where one size fits all.

The perspective that a flexible organic systems approach to support is more appropriate in many circumstances than a standardised institutional model of care is discussed.

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