MODULE DESCRIPTION:

The purpose of this module is to increase the reader’s level of understanding about issues related to self-advocacy and self-determination for students with disabilities.  Persons working on behalf of students with exceptional needs must believe that improved quality of life (outcomes) for such students is based on the students’ abilities to actively participate in all phases of decision-making concerning their opportunities at school, home, work, play and community.  The module content includes a variety of resources to assist students, parents, teachers and other team members in helping students with disabilities acquire knowledge and skills in advocacy and self-determination as needed in order to achieve their goals and dreams.

Instructional Proficiencies:

1. Locate and summarize the legal basis for students actively participating in their educational planning processes.
2. Reflect on his/her beliefs about the ability of students with disabilities to be self-advocates and to engage in self-determination.
3. Explore shifts that may need to occur in their roles and responsibilities as team members in the educational planning processes.
4. Create a lesson plan for teaching a prerequisite skill for self-advocacy or self-determination for a student with a disability and his/her parents (real or invented).
5. Identify resources for a student with disability to use to acquire or practice skills in self-advocacy and/or self-determination.
6. Identify resources for parents of students with disabilities to use to model advocacy and self-determination or to use to assist students in acquire or practice the skills themselves.
7. Identify resources for use by teams engaged in educational planning with students with disabilities.   

RELATIONSHIP TO IPSB STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS OF STUDENTS WITH EXCEPTIONAL NEEDS:

Upon completion of this module the user will have actively engaged in the following performances, knowledge and dispositions:

Standard 1           
          Performance-1, Knowledge -4, Disposition-3

Standard 2
          Disposition-3

Standard 3           
          Performance-9

Standard 4 
          Performance-5,6, Knowledge-4,5, Disposition-4

Standard 5           
          Performance-2,11, Knowledge-2, Disposition-3,7

Standard 6
          Performance-5,9,13

Standard 7
          Performance-2,5,9, Knowledge-2,5, Disposition-2

Standard 8
          Performance-6