A higher representation of students with disabilities choose to learn online because of accessibility, flexibility, the privacy to disclose disability or not, and the affordance to schedule around interruptions in health or challenges exacerbated by disability. However, inequities remain particularly for students with disabilities seeking writing support in the writing centre.

This presentation will address ableist attitudes in writing center instruction towards students with disabilities. One such attitude assumes that students eventually become independent writers, which may be unrealistic for students with lifelong disabilities or chronic illnesses and stigmatizes the need for ongoing support. Since disability is underrepresented in writing centre literature, it is time to hear from students with disabilities themselves. To address this issue, my research question asks in what ways can the participants' use of generating images help reframe pedagogical and practical approaches to disability in the writing centre? First, I will describe the parasupport framework as an inclusive alternative to dependence-based pedagogies. To substantiate this shift in pedagogy, I use two methodological approaches: the critical visual methodology of photovoice and the notion of restorying from the narrative inquiry methodology. Photovoice offers participants the opportunity to explore their experience visually to create meaning while restorying helps participants shift the narrative of their experience with disability in an academic context. These methodologies pair well with critical disability theory because of the shared focus on social justice for oppressed populations.

The presentation will describe a study in which four post-secondary participants with disabilities generated images that explore open-ended prompts on ableism, their self-perception as writers, the issue of dependency, and what they need from a writing centre. These prompts allowed the participants to visually explore their experiences in response to socially constructed notions of disability in a writing centre context. Since academic contexts may also be sites of trauma, I will present a trauma-informed approach to ensure a safe setting for participants. The implications of this research highlight the importance of integrating these perceptions of experience in writing centre pedagogy to ensure best - and inclusive - practice.