Self-advocacy

The authors of the article focused on students who had more severe intellectual and developmental disabilities and how they can develop their self-advocacy skills. The authors outlined the different steps they took to help these students communicate their needs along with help from teachers and other school staff. Much of the other research on self-advocacy and self-determination focused on students with less severe disabilities. These marginalized students often do not get their voices heard so the researchers hoped that their model would help change that, even the non-verbal students. The authors pointed out how being able to communicate is a big factor in being able to self-advocate. So it was important to have a speech and language pathologist…

Disability Rights and Culture: An Overview Throughout the semester, we learned that Disability Rights refers to the equal rights and opportunities granted for people with disability. Public facilities should be granted to everybody within the society. It is essential to include and consider everyone in the society no matter what race, sex, gender, social class, disability, sexuality, educational attainment, age, and religion they are. It is not fair that people with disability are left out or…

born into attributes to what becomes that person’s norm. Children are very impressionable and it has been my experience that children are typically very similar to their parents. Even though children tend to be products of their environment, it is possible to break the cycle. Being in a position of leadership, I find it imperative to embrace the potential to make a difference in the life of others. Positively influencing one person can leave a lifelong lasting impression. By focusing on one’s…

disabilities. This isn’t because the disabled are not as smart as normal people. 90% of disabled children in foreign countries are not educated and do not go to school. This is because the leaders of their government are too lazy to accommodate these children and think that since they are disabled, they aren’t useful anymore. There are only 100,000 disabled people in India with a job out of the 70 million people who live in India. Often times, employers assume that disabled people are not…

The Importance of Knowing the Whole Truth Before You Judge a Child Have you ever viewed a child with a disability differently than a normal child? Did you do that because of a common stereotype? A stereotype by definition is a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image of a particular type of person or thing. It is commonly known as a generalization of a person or group, based on truths. Often stereotypes only contain some truth, and are exaggerated. A misconception is a view or opinion that…

community. Therefore, my desire is to help them realize that they are here for a reason, to make a difference in the world and make it a better place. Second, it is my duty to help people with disabilities become more involved in the community. As a DSW, I will reassure and recognize their value and worth as individuals, regardless of their disabilities, and their rights and responsibilities as members of the community. In other words, I will help them build their self-esteem, self-confidence,…

Parenting a child with a learning disability can cause a lot of stress on an individual’s life. The parent has to worry about their child and how they will succeed in society, learning about getting the proper care, and the coping mechanisms for the disability. One of the main issues that a parent deals with when having a child with a disability is learning patience. It takes a lot of persistence and time to help a child with a disability, especially since you want the best for them in life.…

The Washington Ice Dogs is an organization that gives young people with developmental disabilities the opportunity to play ice hockey. Not only does it give them the opportunity to play ice hockey, but the opportunity to learn skills that can help carry them through their lives. Run by volunteers, the Washington Ice Dogs need the support of others to help anchor the organization and allow them to make a difference in lives of these young players. With sacrifice, compassion, and dedication, lives…

I am terrified of the reflection that full length windows show. I glance into these windows and I see how I walk, a stride that is slightly off balance and resembles that of a drunk person. This walk is a lifelong reminder that there was a lack of oxygen to my brain during my birth—the evidence that I have Cerebral Palsy. As I prepare to graduate in May from Vanderbilt University, I find myself conflicted between recognizing that I am incredibly fortunate to have a Vanderbilt education, but…

In our world today quality of life is focused on many factors relating to many types of people. However, we still have a long way to go as far as providing high quality care to those who cannot advocate for themselves. A theme that has come up often both in our readings and in our class discussions is the idea of care and the quality of care that should be provided for all people. In institutions, the quality of care has been far from acceptable over the years and has caused traumatic…