Topic outline
Disability Smart: Creating Congregations of Belonging
Disability Smart (3 credits)
Instructor: Barbara J. Newman
Adjunct Professor: Professor Victoria White has been managing this course and assignments since the passing of Professor Barbara J. Newman.
Introduction: People with Down syndrome, autism, ADHD, learning differences, dementia, medical challenges, and other differences of ability are treasured by God and should be treasured in every church. This course provides the framework and practical tools to shape a congregation where people of varying abilities and disabilities can participate and belong.
Course Overview: Disability Smart refers to interacting wisely and well with people of differing abilities. Although widely used, the word "disability" can be misleading if understood negatively. God endows people with differences of ability. So the word "disability" is often less helpful than phrases such as "differences of ability" or "all abilities." Although the course is titled "Disability Smart," to keep it short, the subtitle better expresses the purpose of this class: Creating Congregations of Belonging for People of All Abilities.
As church leaders oversee worship, education, fellowship, and service opportunities for people in their congregations, it’s important to recognize that the congregation consists of people of all abilities. Children’s programs may include a child with Down syndrome or autism spectrum disorder. Adult programs may include individuals who are struggling readers or a person diagnosed with dementia. When we worship as a community, there will be people gathered who represent a wide variety of abilities and disabilities. This course will equip you to make your congregation a community where each one can participate and belong. Pastors, worship leaders, children and youth leaders, and others involved in leading church programs will benefit from this course.
Course Outcomes:
- Learn a framework (known as the 3-part plan) for effective ministry with people of all abilities.
- Explore the Puzzle Piece Perspective (Part 1 of the plan), as a Scriptural understanding of God's design of individuals and communities.
- Learn and apply principles of Universal Design for Participation (Part 2 of the plan) in various ministries within your congregation.
- Learn and apply principles of Responsive Design (Part 3 of the plan) that will allow you to plan for individuals.
- Discover some areas of difference, such as autism spectrum disorder, dementia, mobility differences, and medical conditions, and how to apply the framework (3-part plan).
- Learn how to embrace the God-given gifts of each person God has arranged as part of your community and strategies that allow individuals to use their gifts.
- Recognize that learning and spiritual growth can happen differently for different individuals, but each one is designed to fill an important part of the Kingdom.
- Discover ways to introduce people to Jesus who take in information differently than you do.
- Learn how to worship with persons with dementia, address challenging behaviors, and discover important cultural dimensions of ministry with people of varied abilities.
- Be confident that the setting you oversee can provide places of belonging for people of all abilities.
Resources: This course includes written materials by Barbara J. Newman (with contributions by Betty Grit).
Assignments: Your Cumulative Writing Project for the course will be an ongoing writing assignment. Not every week has an assignment to add to this cumulative project, but most do. You should complete the assignment during the week it is paired with a video topic, but you will not submit any of the writing until the end of the course. Therefore, keep all of your writing in one document, which you add to as you complete each assignment. When you get to the end of the course, submit the entire document with all of the writing assignments.
View all online lectures and read all the articles on each topic. CLI computer tracks whether you do this. After viewing all lectures for the unit, take the quiz based on the lectures. At the end of the course, submit the writing assignment for credit. However, please note that portions of the writing assignment are best completed during specific weeks; therefore, you will want to review the assignment and take note of the weeks each portion pertains to.
Grading Scale:
A 95-100% A- 90-94% B+ 87-89% B 83-86% B- 80-82% C+ 77-79% C 73-76% C- 70-72% D+ 67-69% D 63-66% D- 60-62% F 0-59%
Your average for the course must be at least 60%. Otherwise, you will fail the class and will receive no credit.Deadline: You have 180 days to finish the course. Complete all assignments before the final deadline, or you will be automatically unenrolled, and all coursework will be removed. You will have to start over and take the class again to receive credit.
We lovingly remember Barb Newman, the professor of this course who has gone to be with the Lord.
Day 11 - 20 Week 2
- Go to the link and read through each of the "Tips" on that webpage. There are videos as well, each one less than 3 minutes.
Day 21 - 30 Week 3
Day 31 - 40 Week 4
Day 41 - 50 Week 5
Day 51 - 60 Week 6
Day 61 - 70 Week 7
Day 71 - 80 Week 8
NOTE: There is no written assignment for this week. Your work on a cumulative writing document for the duration of the course will resume in week 10.
Day 81 - 90 Week 9
NOTE: There is no written assignment for this week. Your work on a cumulative writing document for the duration of the course will resume in week 10.
Day 101 - 110 Week 11
Instructions:
Your Cumulative Writing Project for the course contains your writings from weeks 1-7, and week 10. There is no writing assigned for weeks 8 and 9. You should complete the assignment during the week it is paired with a video topic, but you will not submit any of the writing until the end of the course. When you get to the end of the course, submit the entire document with all of the writing assignments in a single Word document.
Week 1 Assignment:
I introduced myself to you. Introduce yourself to me. Begin the Cumulative Writing Project (document) with these 4 items:
1. A picture of yourself and the place where your congregation meets. (copy and paste picture here)
2. 3-5 Sentences describing where you live – your geographic location and some information about that area (rural vs. urban, population, climate, interesting facts).
3. 2-4 sentences describing why you signed up for this course and what you hope to get out of the experience.
4. At least 4 “true” statements, similar to what I shared in the video. You may need to research to find some statistics related to disability in your geographic location. For example, what percentage of the population where you live has some sort of disability? What areas of disability are most prominent? What other statistics are important to this topic?
Add this to your Cumulative Writing Project for the course. Do not submit any of the writing until the end of the course. When you get to the end of the course, submit the entire document with all of the completed writing assignments.
Week 2 Assignment:
1. As you think about greens (areas of strength, your gifts/talents) and pinks (areas of challenge, things that are difficult for you to do) in your own life, write a paragraph describing a few of your greens and pinks.
2. Consider someone you know who has some form of disability. Write a paragraph describing that person’s areas of green and areas of pink.
3. Write a paragraph describing how that individual’s areas of green (gifts) might be used in your congregation.
Week 3 Assignment:
1. Cultural context is an important part of having discussions and putting together supports. After watching the video this week, write at least 4 paragraphs discussing persons with disabilities in your own cultural context.
a. You may want to write about these and other themes: If someone in your community gives birth to a child with a disability, what would be the community’s reaction? What emotions are connected with the word “disability” in your culture?
Week 4 Assignment: Put an idea in place
2. As you think about universal design within the children and youth context, decide on 1 idea you will put in place within that setting in your congregation. Describe what you have chosen (in 1-2 paragraphs) and then include a photo of that universal design feature in action in your setting.
Week 5 Assignment: Accessibility Audit
1. Choose from one of the Accessibility Audits mentioned in the video and conduct one in your place of worship.
2. Write about what that showed you about your worship space and what changes you would like to make now.
The audits are listed here for you to review and select from:
· Erik Carter’s Congregational Assessment Tool (https://allbelong.org/media/Erik-Carter-Assessment-tool-1.pdf)
· UMC Disability Ministries Accessibility Audit (https://umcdmc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/umc-accessibility-audit-2019-fillable.pdf)
· Joni and Friends offers this audit as a supplemental resource for their booklet "Start with Hello" (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zODqJZVSkoT70SAYUe801 PMsUsxBLSbF/view)
· Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod Disability Ministry Assessment Tool (this link takes you right to a download (http://lcms.org/Document.fdoc?src=lcm&id=184)
· Mennonite Church Congregational Accessibility Network (https://canaccess.org/accessibility/quick-checklist/)
Week 6 Assignment: Get to Know Me
1. Think about a person you know with a disability. Fill out a “get to know me” page about that individual. Submit the completed page.
a. The "Get to Know Me" page is found in Appendix A of Accessible Gospel, Inclusive Worship: https://allbelong.org/media/Appendix-A_puzzle-piece.pdf. You can use the PDF, adding right to it with the “fill & sign” feature, or you can simply type in the questions and answers on your working document, without the individual’s name (to protect confidentiality).
Week 7 Assignment: Reflect on Tools for ASD and Universal Design
In talking about tools that work well for persons with ASD, you may have noticed that some of those tools would be good to have in place for an entire congregation. Why make a video preview for only 1 person when many others would benefit from that tool?
As you reflect on the tools that support individuals with ASD,
1. List one or two tools mentioned that you believe would make good “universal design” tools that you would put in place for the entire congregation.
2. List which tool or tools might be good to reserve for use with one specific individual
3. Explain your answers in 2-6 paragraphs.
(No assignments for weeks 8 and 9)
Week 10 Assignment: Who is Already Here?
This week we have discussed several areas of difference you may encounter in someone who attends your congregation. In fact, you may already have individuals present who have differences in hearing or who may have unique medical situations.
1. Write several paragraphs discussing
a. Who is already part of your congregation (1-2 paragraphs)
b. What tools you have put in place so that individuals can connect with worship, education, fellowship, and/or service. (1-3 paragraphs)
2. Write a paragraph (3-5 sentences) discussing what tools you discovered in this course, that you do not yet have and would like to put in place to best support persons with an area of disability.
Day 111 - 120 Week 12
As you complete this tuition-free course, let's pray for and thank the Vision Partners! Their sacrificial giving supports these tuition-free courses so that those will little or no extra resources can access high-quality ministry training.
Unit 12: Our Eternal Home
Day 121 - 150
Do you want to help bring free ministry training to the world?
Here's How!
- Pray for more open doors, protection from attack, and the resources needed to expand this mission.
- Consider supporting and sharing with others this Christianity spreading opportunity.
- Order credentials from the Guidance and Credential Panel and products from the Christian Leaders Store.
- Enroll at the College for the Degree program.
- Share this free training opportunity with new potential students. Help recruit a new generation of Christian leaders.
Day 151 - 180
The course has ended. Please make sure all quizzes have been completed. If your work is incomplete, it is considered a drop, and you will have to take the class again in order to receive credit.
Our staff will be using this time to review your work. Your grade should appear on your "My Home Page" in the "Course Overview" section. Please contact Helpdesk if you have any questions or did not receive your grade.