Gail Teachman, PhD

Education

  • Postdoctoral Fellowship (McGill)
  • PhD (Toronto)
  • MSc (Toronto)
  • BScOT (Toronto)

Graduate Program Supervision

  • Health and Rehabilitation Science MSc | PhD
  • Occupational Therapy MScOT

Research In Profile

Gail Teachman is an Assistant Professor at Western University’s School of Occupational Therapy where her research is focused on examining the social, ethical and political contexts that shape how childhood disability is understood and acted on, with a view to expanding possibilities for children identified as disabled to flourish. Professor Teachman’s research is informed by critical disability studies, childhood ethics, critical social theory and occupational science perspectives. She is committed to ensuring that her research contributes knowledge that has been directly informed by children’s perspectives on living with disability so that their views can be given due weight in the design of programs and services that directly impact their lives. To advance knowledge of the participation, inclusion and occupations of disabled children and youth and improve understandings of how their lives, identities, and moral experiences are influenced by rehabilitation practices, professor Teachman is developing innovative participatory research approaches.

Featured Publications and Projects

Chapters and Reports

  • Montreuil, M., Teachman, G., & Carnevale, F.A. (2019). Recognizing the voices of all children, including those with ‘cognitive impairments,’ in research. In M. A. Cascio & E. Racine (Eds.), Research Involving Participants with Impaired Cognition: Ethics, Autonomy, Inclusion, and Innovation (pp. 135-148). Oxford University Press.
  • Teachman, G. (2017). Optimizing interviews with disabled children and youth. In Liamputtong, P. (Ed.) Handbook of Research Methods in Health Social Sciences (pp1-18) Singapore: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2779-6_124-1

Articles in Peer-Reviewed Journals

  • Dash, M. J., Wilson, J. Hamdani, Y., Laliberte Rudman, D. & Teachman, G. (2023). Representations of Parents of Autistic Children: A Critical Interpretive Synthesis. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy
  • Teachman, G., & Gladstone, B. (2020). Guest Editors’ Introduction: Special Issue: Constructions of ‘children’s voices’ in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1609406920980654
  • Facca, D, Gladstone, B., & Teachman G. (2020). Working the Limits of ‘Giving Voice” to Children: A Critical Conceptual Review, International Journal of Qualitative Methods. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1609406920933391
  • Teachman, G., McDonough, P., Macarthur, C. and Gibson, B.E. (2020), Interrogating inclusion with youths who use augmentative and alternative communication. Sociology of Health and Illness, 42, (5), 1108-1122.
  • Fadyl, J., Teachman, G., & Hamdani, S. (2020) Return to normal or social change? The impact of rehabilitation as a social practice. Disability & Rehabilitation, 42(20), 2959-2966.

Visit Google Scholar for a comprehensive list of publications.

Current Grants and Research Projects

  • Exploring the complex interplay between childhood disability, impairment, and chronic pain: Co-producing knowledge with children (WSS CIHR Seed Grant, 2023-24; VOICE Innovation Research Grant 2023-25; with Dr. Katie Mah, PDF and Dr. Fiona Webster)
  • Reframing childhood disability: Bridging political and disciplinary boundaries to improve disabled children’s lives (SSHRC Insight Development Grant 2020-22).
  • Listening to children in health matters: Examining the intersection of family-centred care, best interests, and children agency (WSS CIHR Seed Grant, 2020-21)
  • Partnering with disabled youth: A participatory study of youth engagement in health research and governance' (CHILD-BRIGHT Training Innovation Grant; VOICE McGill sub-grant; WSS Catalyst Grant 2019 - 2021)
  • Beyond Giving Voice: Advancing theory and methodologies for qualitative research with children (SSHRC Connection Grant, 2020-21)
  • Clarifying the best interests standard in children's medical decision-making: Toward a consistent and reliable practice (SSHRC Insight Development Grant, PI: Dr. Jacob Shelley)
  • Conceptualizing paediatric concussion recovery: A pilot patient-oriented multimedia storytelling project (VOICE Innovation Grant and Mitacs funding with Dr. Katie Mah, PDA, Western and Dr. Barbara Gibson, Bloorview Research Institute, Toronto)

Featured Graduate Student Projects

Reframing Childhood Disability: Pushing Boundaries in the Rehabilitation Sciences

  • Cox, Emily (2022). MSc, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Program, Occupational Science Stream.

Piloting a study to examine children’s understandings of chronic pain and coping

  • Ferreira, Kristina (2022). MSc, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Program, Occupational Science Stream.

Visit Scholarship@Western for a list of completed student theses and dissertations in the repository.

Graduate Student Opportunities

Students working in the Childhood Rehabilitation Ethics and Disability (CRED) Research Lab will have a strong background and/or interest in how social theory can add value to critical qualitative health research and/or the study of childhood and occupation.

Contact professor Teachman at gteachma@uwo.ca for information.

Additional Information

Academic Appointments and Research Affiliations

  • Adjunct Scientist, Bloorview Research Institute, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto
  • Core Member, VOICE (Views on Interdisciplinary Childhood Ethics, McGill University
  • Member: Centre for Research on Health Equity and Social Inclusion (CRHESI)
  • Academic Fellow, Centre for Critical Qualitative Health Research (CQ), University of Toronto

Media Highlights

Awards

  • Doris Stuppard Leadership Award (2021). Ontario Society of Occupational Therapists (OSOT) – conferred with Lifetime membership for sustained contributions to professional leadership.
  • CIHR Postdoctoral Fellow (2016-18)
  • Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar (2011-2014)
  • Joan Eakin Award for Methodological Excellence in a Qualitative Doctoral Dissertation (2017)
    Honorable Mention, Centre for Critical Qualitative Health Research, University of Toronto
  • Governor General’s Gold Medal (2016)
    School of Graduate Studies, University of Toronto
  • Peer Mentorship Award (2016)
    Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
  • Faculty of Medicine Award for Research Innovation (2013)
    Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

Professional Activities

  • Board Member, Canadian Society for Occupational Science.