PBS Learning Media - The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Curb-Cut Effect | Interactive Lesson
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Curb-Cut Effect | Interactive Lesson by PBS Learning Media
*This lesson was developed by PBS Learning Media and links to an external source.
Summary:
Students explore the history of curb cuts, from early disability rights advocacy in the 1940s through the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, and examine how accessibility features designed for disabled people often benefit far broader communities. Through an interactive lesson and writing prompt, students consider how civic engagement by a specific group can shape policy in ways that serve everyone.
Our Recommendation when using these lessons:
The lesson uses the phrase 'confined to a wheelchair.' Wheelchairs provide mobility and freedom. A more accurate and respectful framing is 'wheelchair user' or 'person who uses a wheelchair.' Consider using this as a brief teaching moment about how language shapes our understanding of disability.
The lesson discusses the curb cut effect, meaning that features designed for disabled people often benefit many others. This is a useful concept, but take care not to let the discussion slide into implying that accessibility only matters when it helps non-disabled people. Accessibility matters because disabled people have a right to access, full stop. The fact that others benefit is a bonus, not the justification.
The lesson includes good examples of the curb cut effect. You may add: audiobooks (originally created for blind readers, now widely used); closed captions (created for deaf viewers, now used in loud environments and by many others); automatic doors.
This lesson pairs well with DEE's lessons on the ADA and the Capitol Crawl: www.DisabilityEqualityEducation.org/lesson-plans/access-is-a-civil-right-capitol-crawl
Subject and topic: Civics/History
Grade level: 6th - 8th and 9th to 12th
Duration: 45-60 minutes
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