Stuttering,advocacy,and resilience in early childhood

Abstract

This study examines stuttering, ableism, and maternal advocacy in early childhood using DisCrit Mothering, autoethnography, and critical storytelling. Focusing on the lived experiences of a mother and child who both stutter, it explores how familial advocacy disrupts deficit-based narratives and builds resilience. The findings emphasize the power of DisCrit Mothering to challenge exclusionary educational practices and reframe stuttering as a valid form of communication. The study calls on early childhood educators to adopt anti-ableist pedagogies, collaborate with families, and affirm communicative diversity. Implications highlight the importance of integrating family narratives into disability studies and expanding intersectional approaches in early childhood education. This work advances disability justice by framing resilience as a transformative act of resistance.