Good afternoon all,
      I have been following this very interesting discussion over the
past week or so and certainly agree wholeheartedly with everyone's
comments. It also encouraged me to respond with comments about a subject
we find extremely important to our students. I am a postsecondary
instructor and I work with adults with disabilities at a technical
center. An area that we find so many of our students severely lacking in
skill development is that of self-advocacy-----the very skills necessary
to become the informed consumers that you spoke so well about, Glenn,
who are aware of their options and strong enough to pursue them. It is
truly amazing to see the difference in students with disabilities who
have had self-advocacy training at the high school level and students
who have not. Students who possess well developed self-advocacy skills
know that self-identifying and getting the additional assistance that
they need most definitely works in their favor. The ease and level at
which we can talk with these students about their disability and how it
affects them in the classroom, testing situations, and life in general
makes decisions about needed accommodations so much easier. They have
learned to accept their disability and put it in the proper perspective.
As Marshall Raskind points out in his study on success
attributes-------they do not let it define who they are! The program
success rate for these students is so much greater than for those who do
not have these skills. Well developed self-advocacy skills (and
opportunities to practice them) are among the greatest tools we can ever
help our students attain as they are such an important key to living a
successful adult life. If our students have not attained these skills in
high school, then we, as adult educators, need to understand the
importance of teaching them in our classrooms.These are critical, not
just valuable, life skills for our students. I would like to share the
following list that we found very helpful and have begun to
incorporate:
Ten Steps to Successful Self-Advocacy
 
          1. Accept your disability
          2. Admit your disability to others
          3. Understand your learning style
          4. Realize how "other issues" might interfere with your
self-advocacy
          5. Anticipate your needs
          6. Know your rights and responsibilities
          7. Be aware of the accommodations that are needed
          8. Be willing to compromise
          9. Know where to go for support
         10. Plan for the future
(from the LD Self-Advocacy Manual---Uncovering the Mysteries of Your
Learning Disabilities, by Scott L. Crouse)
Students with disabilities need to be encouraged to develop these
skills-----to seek out the help they need-----and more often than not
(at least I hope this is the case) they will find someone who is more
than willing to assist them in accomplishing their goals! 
I really enjoyed the success stories and would love to hear more. We
have 2 former students who self-identified early on, received the
accommodations they needed, successfully completed their programs----1
in Computer Systems Technology and the other in Culinary, and did so
well that they are now both employed in positions at our school!!!!
Thanks to all for sharing great information and good thoughts.
Diane Long
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Diane Long
Instructor/Dept. Chair
Specialized Student Services
Lorenzo Walker Institute of Technology
Naples, FL 34104
Phone: (239) 377-0942
Fax:      (239) 377-1001
Email:    longdi at collier.k12.fl.us 
 
 

Pursuant to School Board policy and administrative procedures, this
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Diane Long
Instructor/Dept. Chair
Specialized Student Services
Lorenzo Walker Institute of Technology
Naples, FL 34104
Phone: (239) 377-0942
Fax:      (239) 377-1001
Email:    longdi at collier.k12.fl.us 
 
 

Pursuant to School Board policy and administrative procedures, this
e-mail system is the property of the School District of Collier County
and to be used for official business only. In addition, all users are
cautioned that messages sent through this system are subject to the
Public Records Law of the State of Florida and also to review by the
school system. There should be no expectation of privacy. 
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