Self Advocacy and Agency
Teacher Award NCTE Prize
Congratulations to Upper School English Teacher Dr. Claire Cothren, who has been named a recipient of the National Council of Teachers of English’s Paul and Kate Farmer English Journal Writing Award. She will be presented with the award at the NCTE annual conference in November.
Dr. Cothren wrote her article “Taking C.A.R.E. To Integrate Disability Studies in the Secondary School Classroom” as part of Hockaday’s inaugural SMU Research Fellow program. “In it, I talk about how the words we use to describe disability shape the way we see and value disabled people,” said Dr. Cothren. “Starting with a reflection on how medical language often frames disability as a "problem" to be fixed, it calls for a shift toward social and cultural models that recognize disability as a natural part of human experience.”
The piece introduces the C.A.R.E. Framework (Centrality, Agency, Respect, and Expertise) as a way to analyze how disability is represented in literature and to guide more inclusive classroom discussions.
The Hockaday School
Within the private school community, The Hockaday School is an independent college-preparatory day school for girls from grades PK–12 located in Dallas, Texas. Students realize their limitless potential through challenging academic curricula, arts, athletics, and extracurricular programs so that they are inspired to lead lives of purpose and impact.
The Hockaday School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, creed, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law in the administration of its educational, admissions, financial aid, athletic, and other policies and programs.
The Hockaday School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, creed, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law in the administration of its educational, admissions, financial aid, athletic, and other policies and programs.