You are here

  1. Home
  2. Conferences
  3. Conference 2016
  4. What is important to remember and why?

What is important to remember and why?

Carley Stubbs

In this workshop we will use drawing exercises and games to play with the idea of 'Timelines'. We will try to map our personal histories by creating large, colourful, multi-textured timeles on the floor. We will talk about the games and exercises and try to answer the question "What is important to remember and why?" (Please note: this workshop will be fairly active; the activities are not table-based.)

[[[image-0 right]]]This conference asks "Why History?" History is a word that means "the things that have already happened".

[[[image-1 right]]]This is sometimes called "The Past". So this conference is asking us to:

  1. think about the past
  2. think about why/if remembering the past is important.

[[[image-2 right]]]The Past is a 'temporal orientation'. This means the past has a certain position in time; e.g. most people would describe the past as being behind us.

[[[image-3 left]]]But Time is an abstract concept. This means we can't see it, we can't touch it, it is hard to describe, it is hard to understand and it might seem different to different people.

[[[image-4 right]]]There are lots of big ideas about Time out there. These ideas are called 'philosophies'. It is important that people with Learning Disabilities have the opportunity to "think big" (or philosophise) about Time and about their place in it.

[[[image-5 right]]]In this workshop we will explore different ways of imagining, understanding and describing Time. We might ask:

  • what does Time look like?
  • what does Time feel like?

[[[image-6 right]]]In this workshop we will use inclusive arts activities and drama games. This will help us to make a playful and interactive space to help us explore some possible answers to these questions.

Speaker biography

Carley Stubbs is an AHRC funded PhD candidate at Leeds University working in connection with the Living Archive of Learning Disability History project led by the Open University. Carley has 7 years professional experience as both a Support Worker in inclusive settings and as an Applied Theatre facilitator. Carley’s research interests include Critical Disability Studies, Applied Theatre (theatre for social change), Play theory, with a recent interest in inclusive, participatory and embodied research methodologies. Carley’s PhD is a practice based project, exploring the qualitative and experiential world of the Support Worker with a specific interest in how cross-disciplinary connections and interactions can be used to reimagine the way Support Work is framed and practiced in Learning Disability settings.

Contact us

About the Group

If you woud like to get in touch with the Social History of Learning Disability (SHLD) Research Group, please contact:

Liz Tilley 
Chair of the Social History of Learning Disability (SHLD) Research Group
School of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care
Faculty of Wellbeing, Education and Language Studies
The Open University
Walton Hall
Milton Keynes
MK7 6AA

About the website

If you have any feedback or would like to report a problem with the website, please contact WELS-Research-Admin@open.ac.uk.