Challenging the Status Quo: Disability in Australian Children’s Picture Books

Authors

Karen Glasby, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Tracey Chamlin, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Martin Kerby, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Margaret Baguley, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Alison Bedford, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Eseta Tualaulelei, University of Southern QueenslandFollow
Emerson Zerafa-Payne, University of Southern QueenslandFollow

Author ORCID Identifier

0000-0002-4783-5094; 0000-0001-7935-1708; 0000-0003-4073-2559; 0000-0003-0098-6378; 0000-0001-6708-9896; 0000-0001-8393-7015; 0000-0001-6279-4027

Abstract

This article will analyze a range of Australian picture books that both explore the topic of disability and serve as educational tools for exploring diversity issues. The books were identified in a survey administered by the State Library of New South Wales (NSW) public library service, which identified 62 books that deal with diversity. Thirteen of the 62 books were assessed as having characters with a disability—including autism, mental illness, dementia, spina bifida, neurodiversity, physical disability, deafness, and implied but unidentified disabilities. This article will analyze the approach adopted in each of the picture books using Rudine Sims Bishop’s three categories of multicultural literature criticism—Social Conscience, Melting Pot, and Culturally Conscious. By doing so, the article will assess the extent to which picture books offer an authentic exploration of disability in step with broader educational developments.

Recommended Citation

Glasby, Karen; Chamlin, Tracey; Kerby, Martin; Baguley, Margaret; Bedford, Alison; Tualaulelei, Eseta; and Zerafa-Payne, Emerson (2025) "Challenging the Status Quo: Disability in Australian Children’s Picture Books," Kritika Kultura: No. 46, Article 4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.13185/1656-152X.2153
Available at: https://archium.ateneo.edu/kk/vol1/iss46/4