This article examines cultural beliefs and values about disability in one Tanzanian community and the influence of those beliefs on a school for children with disabilities. The larger ethnographic study examined the role of beliefs in the community and the development of the school curriculum. This study used the models of disability as a framework for classifying and understanding the different belief systems present. The study was conducted in a rural community in Tanzania at a school for children with developmental disabilities. In this community, multiple models of disability were present, but the socio-cultural and pluralistic models were most prevalent. Beliefs centred about the causes of disability, God's plan or role in the community, and a mixture of Christian, Muslim, and traditional beliefs. Participants saw the school staff as integral to influencing beliefs about disability in the community through their presence and outreach efforts.
J onah is a 5-year-old student with autism who uses a communication device to help him communicate. Last school year, he used a Tech/Talk with six levels and was doing well with his vocabulary, but his parents requested a meeting with his teachers to discuss the need for a new device and wanted to explore the option of the iPad because it was easily transportable between home and school and more socially acceptable. He likes electronic toys and games, as well as playing with his toy trains. He uses about 15 words to communicate verbally and then uses signs or his communication device to communicate more complex messages. He understands many picture symbols and recently started to use an iPad with all of his symbols on it. After meeting, the individualized education program (IEP) team decided it was a good time to transition to an iPad as his assistive and augmentative communication (AAC) device. Because he liked to play games on his older sister's iPad and he responded well to the timer his teacher used on the iPad at school to help him transition to new activities, his team thought he would be successful using the iPad on a regular basis. To start the transition process to an iPad, his multidisciplinary team made a list of the goals they had for him when he uses his iPad. They listed the IEP goals he could work on while utilizing the iPad, focusing on his communication and literacy goals. The team wrote IEP goals aimed at beginning reading and writing skills.
TL was 2.5 years old when he presented with a recent diagnosis of regressive pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS; Table 1). PDD-NOS falls into the autistic spectrum of disorders (ASD) and is sometimes referred to as atypical autism. According to his parents, TL's symptoms began at age 22 months, shortly after receiving the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. TL was previously meeting normal developmental milestones and had a vocabulary of 20 words. He was a happy and responsive baby who smiled regularly. Over the months since the vaccine, TL had developed aphasia, was irritable and intolerant of certain sensory stimuli, and had difficulty maintaining eye contact, interacting with others, or responding to his name. He developed foul-smelling bowel movements (BMs), itchy ears, dark circles under his eyes, and red blotchy skin. He refused all but soft-textured foods. Comprehensive neuropsychiatric and developmental evaluations were conducted (listed below). Based on the results, full-time special education with speech and occupational therapy was recommended. While pregnant with TL, his mother consumed tuna regularly and had two amalgams. They lived in a large east coast city, in an apartment building known to have lead paint. The building also required periodic insect exterminations, although never in the family's own unit. TL's delivery was by emergency cesarean section at 36 weeks because of placental abruption. His birth weight was 6 lbs, 10 oz, and his Apgar score was normal.
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