Simulation as a Learning Method to Facilitate Disability Awareness

ithin the traditional classroom and other learning settings, educators have often used disability simulation as a method to develop awareness and promote positive attitudes toward per­sons with disabilities. As a general teaching strategy, simulations have been used because they are reported to: (a) facilitate interaction among participants, (b) pro­vide opportunities to practice decision-making skills and resulting behavioral consequences, (c) convey important social messages, (d) facilitate exploration of personal values, and (e) foster empathy and insight regarding events and issues being simulated (Hyman, 1978). As applied to acquiring greater sensitivity to dis­ability issues, simulations allow learners to duplicate particular roles so that better awareness and insight result regarding the problems, strengths, weaknesses, and lifestyles of persons with disabilities (Patterson, 1980). For example, an individual without a disability may use a wheelchair to simulate paraplegia, place cot­ton balls in both ears to approximate a hearing impair­ment, use light-filtered glasses that block the center of a visual field to fabricate blindness, or remain silent for an extended period of time to create the experience of mental illness. As opposed to passive learning activities such as watching a movie or reading a book about dis­ability, simulations allow learners to bridge the gap between passive learning and direct personal experi­ence (Patterson, 1980).