Pedagogical Practice to Engage Pre-Professionals in Sensitive Topics: Exploring Disability and Sexual Wellbeing in Qualifying Social Work Education Programmes

This paper discusses the educational value provided to learners and teachers when collaborative pedagogical practice is used to facilitate social work students’ engagement with the sensitive topic of disability and sexual wellbeing. Value for students includes the creation of safe, relational spaces where this sensitive topic can be explored and its relevance to professional practice discussed. In addition, the opportunity to gain increased understanding of an issue identified by disabled people and other research as important to human wellbeing is valuable to the learners’ future practice. Value for the co-teachers (the co-authors of this paper) include their increased confidence and sexual self-esteem flowing from the acknowledgement that sexual wellbeing is important to human wellbeing no matter the person’s age or disability. The authors argue that disabled and older people’s experiences of sexual exclusion discussed in the paper is a form of social exclusion, whereas incorporating sexual wellbeing into health and social care education is a form of ‘quiet activism’ that challenges the stereotypes, discrimination and oppression that lead to social exclusion. The authors do this in their pedagogical practice by modelling discussions of sexual wellbeing throughout the lifespan, as well as through promoting the expectation that disabled and older people can experience sexual pleasure, desire, agency, choice, consent and decision-making. Through narrative accounts from the co-authors and perspectives of students, the paper challenges negative stereotypes that view age and disability as inhibitors of sexual wellbeing and instead offers positive accounts of growing confidence through involvement in research and teaching.