Critical analyses of a journal article.

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Introduction

Engel-Yeger, B. and Hamed-Daher, S. (2013) ‘Comparing participation in out of school activities between children with visual impairments, children with hearing impairments and typical peers’, Research in Developmental Disabilities, 34(10), pp. 3124–3132.

The study compares participation in out of school activities between children with hearing impairments, children with visual impairments and what they called “typical peers”, and the relation with socio-demographic parameters. This article is pointing out the fact that additional knowledge is needed in order to create programs and strategies which could help the inclusion of these children as they have limited participation in a wide range of activities inside and outside school hours. Thus, the aim of the author is to extend the knowledge and understanding about participation, particularly in out of school activities of children with sensory impairments.

The knowledge based on the study comes basically from a medical model prospective, as it focus on the difficulties and obstacles that children with sensory impairments encounter in social and sport activities, I will summarize the main arguments of the article, analyze it in a critical way, and I will support my arguments with further references, engaging critically with these ideas.

I chose this article because I am interested in children with sensory impairments, and the difficulties that they have living in a society full of barriers and impediments. The findings of the current study will be discussed in more detail later in this critical essay.

Summary

Batya and Shaima (2013) conducted a study in northern Israel, where there were 70 children participants between the ages of 6–11, 25 with hearing impairments, 20 with visual impairments and 25 called typical peers, and all these children were chosen from a special school for children with visual and hearing impairments. Two instruments were used in this study, a demographic questionnaire and The Children’s Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment (CAPE).

This study reveals that children with hearing or visual impairments have limited participation in a variety of activities resulting in lower participation intensity and shows children participating  in more activities made at home with someone else´s aid. Furthermore, the participation is correlated with some socio-demographic parameters.

The results of the study coincide with the two first hypothesis, the first one was that similar participation in out of school activities would be found between children with hearing and visual impairments, and these two groups would show less participation than the rest of the others students. The second hypothesis was that the child´s participation would be related to socio-demographic variables.

The two hypothesis were confirmed but children with visual impairment participated less than children with hearing impairments in out of school activities, and also the need for outside help was elevated in children with visual impairment. Furthermore, the participation was correlated with socio-demographic variables, although several weaknesses must be taken into account by interpreting the study findings.

Methodology

The study is based on an empirical research and on an historical review of literature, and it is a quantitative research, as it involves analysis of numerical data. The writing style and text structure is academic and it´s well organized.

Two instruments were used, the demographic questionnaire for the parents and the child´s self-report which shows how children take part in daily activities outside school hours, and both methods for measuring the results are clearly explained and appropriated throughout the study.

There are some limitations in this subjective study as there is a small number of participants from one specific geographical area, and it refers just to a specific age group. The participants were a small sample (n = 70) of individuals, thus they were not representative members of all the community.

Discussion

This analysis will be based on a social perspective.  

What is the social model of disability? (2014),  the social model of disability defends that disability is not caused by a person’s impairment, it argues that disability is caused by the way society is organized and regulated, and by some people´s negative attitudes. The aim of this model is to find ways of removing barriers, inasmuch as barriers limit many life opportunities for people with disabilities. Disabled people need to be equal in our society, despite the fact that they need support and aid, they need to be independent simultaneously.

The traditional medical model of disability is an old and deficit model view of disability, as it doesn´t develop inclusive and favorable ways of living. By this perspective disability is seen as a problem of the individual, the problem just belongs to the person who is affected.

The society should have available and suitable structures to support people with impairments, disabled people should be able to do the same activities as someone without disabilities, always providing them the appropriate support and aid.

In the current study there are some evidences which help us to realize that it´s not based on a social model of disability. For example, the title of the study says “typical peers” making reference to the children who don´t have disabilities, it suggests that just children without impairments are the common and usual people in our society.

In addition, throughout the essay it could be argued that there are more examples in where you can realize how the study focus on the difficulties that children with hearing and visual impairments experience in a wide range of activities, such as in the participation on social or sports activities. These difficulties are explained in the study, as if they were caused by the way in which the bodies of children with sensory impairments are formed. Nevertheless, it is true that it makes good points telling the benefits of participation in sports or in social contexts for children with hearing or visual impairments, but at the same time they speak about the wide difficulties they find in these type of activities. Any of these difficulties make reference to the society and the structures used, which are the ones that have to change to allow a better and further participation of these children in our communities.

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