Without access to a public social welfare system in parts of China, some families face invidious decisions about the lives of their children with disabilities. In other places, children with disabilities can now expect to participate in their families and communities with the same aspirations as other children. Understanding how Chinese policy has changed in the places that have addressed these stark situations is vital for the rights of the children and their families who still struggle to find the support they need.
This book examines family experiences of child disability policy in China, and is the first to compile research on this area. It applies a child disability rights framework in four domains - care and protection, economic security, development and participation - to investigate families' experiences of the effectiveness of support to fulfil their children's rights. Questioning how families experience the interrelationships between these rights, it also considers what the further implications of the policy are. It includes vivid case studies of families' experiences, and combines these with national data to draw out the likely future policy directions to which the Chinese government has said it is committed.
Bringing together a wealth of statistical and qualitative data on children with disabilities, this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of Chinese social welfare, social policy, society and children's studies, as well as policy-makers and NGOs alike.
"This comprehensive introduction to China's disability policies and programs focuses on children with disabilities and their families and covers almost every aspect of the lives of children with disabilities, including their right to life and protection, health care, education, social participation, and so on. In each chapter, the authors (both, Univ. of New South Wales, Australia) use abundant data published by China's government and international organizations as background footnotes and case studies of children with disabilities and their families to reveal a deep gap between ideals and reality in their daily lives. Despite noting substantial improvement enabled by national and local disability policies and programs, the authors emphasize what is still lacking in the care and protection of disabled children with specific examples of the difficulties and barriers that prevent such children from obtaining sufficient health care, protection, education, and social development opportunities. The authors also provide insightful suggestions that could help families, local and national governments, educators, health care workers, and so on improve the care and protection of children with disabilities in the future." Summing Up: Recommended. -- A. Y. Lee, George Mason University, in CHOICE
