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Julia Bahner. Foto: Linnea Bengtsson.

Julia Bahner

Associate professor

Julia Bahner. Foto: Linnea Bengtsson.

Cripping sex education: lessons learned from a programme aimed at young people with mobility impairments

Author

  • Julia Bahner

Summary, in English

This paper analyses sexuality and relationship education (SRE) in a Swedish college programme aimed at young people with mobility impairments. Interviews and focus groups were conducted to explore students’ experiences of the structure, content and usefulness of SRE, and college personnel’s SRE practices. Results show that, although many of the issues covered are pertinent for all young people, being disabled raises additional concerns: for example how to handle de-sexualising attitudes, possible sexual practices, and how reliance on assistance impacts upon privacy. Crip theory is used as an analytical framework to identify, challenge and politicise sexual norms and practices. Students’ experiences of living in a disablist, heteronormative society can be used as resources for developing cripistemologies, which challenge the private/public binary that often de-legitimises learners’ experiences and separates them from teachers’ ‘proper’ knowledge production. Crip SRE would likely hold benefits for non-disabled pupils as well, through its use of more inclusive pedagogy and in work to expand sexual possibilities. Crip SRE has the potential to disrupt taken-for-granted dis/ability and sexuality divides as well as to politicise issues that many young people presently experience as ‘personal shortcomings’.

Department/s

  • Social Vulnerability and Inequality
  • Child, Youth and Family

Publishing year

2018-11-02

Language

English

Pages

640-654

Publication/Series

Sex Education

Volume

18

Issue

6

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Topic

  • Social Work
  • Pedagogical Work
  • Gender Studies
  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary

Keywords

  • crip theory
  • disability
  • Sexuality
  • special education
  • Sweden
  • young disabled people
  • Disability
  • Funktionshinder
  • Sex- och samlevnadsundervisning

Status

Published

Project

  • Normer kring sex- och samlevnadsundervisning på riksgymnasium

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1468-1811