Thursday, 04 February 2010
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Autism, Self-Advocacy and the Social Curriculum
I read a post over on Autism Learning Felt about an interview with Dan Burns (author of Saving Ben) and felt inspired by a line in the article about self advocacy. My definition of self-advocacy: a skill-set encompassing knowing what you want, communicating what you want, planning for yourself, and refusing things you don’t want. If kids (with and without autism) want to be able to make choices about their adulthood, they have to know how to do these things. In fact, these skills are part of the ‘hidden curriculum’ aka the ‘social curriculum’ of high school!
So, is it a mystery that kids with autism miss the hint on these highly-valued, but rarely explained skills? No.
It might be nice if schools taught these skills, but they don’t. Plus, kids are only in school for about 35 hours a week and they are at home for 133 hours per week. So it’s on us!
How we can learn to be better self-advocates? How can we break a skill like ‘knowing what you want’ into bite-size, practice-able bits?
The same way we teach everything else! Explain it, write about it, cartoon about it, talk about it, praise it, model it and narrate, and most of all, don’t give up on someone just because they ‘age out’ of school. Do neurotypical people stop learning stuff after high school? I sure hope not.
QUICK DISCLAIMER: I have not read Saving Ben, nor met Ben, so I cannot recommend or dis-recommend the book. Burns’ son, Ben, is 22 and has ‘aged out’ of school and government community supports. Burns writes in the interview about his wish that he, and by proxy, Ben had depended less on the school system, and focused more self-reliance and self-advocacy. I couldn’t agree more
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About the Author
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- From: EmpowerAutism
- Name: EmpowerAutism
- About Me: I am neurotypical, and have known people with autism for about 10 years. I really enjoy working with a wide variety of thinkers, including people with autism. I believe that people with autism have a lot to offer the world, and so do the rest of us. My vision for the future includes neurotypical people appreciating (socially and financially) the autistic mind. You can follow me on twitter @empowerautism. I have a blog at www.empowerautism.com. Come check it out!
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Comments (6)
Thanks for clarifying the steps of self-advocacy. In my early forties, that's something I'm still working toward fully expressing and upon reading your four steps, I immediately recognized all the trouble I got into during my teens and twenties over not being able to accomplish those steps in my life.
I remember a defining moment of realizing how to do this. I was just about to turn 29, my mom had died about six months prior, and I was realizing just how "on my own" I really was. I remember purposefully deciding that I didn't want to continue to just "sit back" and "let life happen" to me anymore. So, I started thinking about things I wanted to do but had either put off doing, been afraid of doing, or hadn't had the skill, time, or money to do... and I wrote it down and put at the top of the list, "Things I want to do before my 30th birthday."
In that year: I took the kids camping by myself. I learned to fire a gun. I worked more on my book. I got the paperwork for getting my passport. (one of my goals was to visit somewhere outside the U.S.) I researched several martial arts and finally decided on one I want to take.
I didn't accomplish everything on the list, so the next year I said, "I'm turning 30 again this year." So while I was actually 30: I moved to Florida. (Not on the list, but a major decision.) I kept our apartment clean for just over a month. (Believe me that is a RECORD.) I rode my bike every day for three months. I went swimming with the kids and got up to 30 minutes strait treading water. (didn't lose the weight I wanted to though.) Cut milk, red meat, and most other animal products out of my diet. (I'd already been "Kosher" since age 16.) I decided what degree I wanted to finish. I had 76 credits from a Bible college, but no clear major.
So... This year so far: I've gone back to school to finish my Communications degree. I'm maintaining a 3.925 GPA at the moment, taking online classes... MUCH better than real classroom stuff. I've built a computer. We're moving to Tennessee. I'm all but signed up to take Krav Maga when I get there. (Money is set aside from student loans for "physical education.")
I'm just going to keep turning 30 until my (ever growing) list is accomplished. I have yet to go scuba diving or leave the US. My book isn't finished. So, I continually have goals that have a deadline... March 23... its a race to see what I can do. I'm turning 30 for the 3rd time this year... count it like centuries... I'll be 32.
Oh... the other things I've "done". I've made friends. I've been "making" myself interact with people and though it's been sometimes uncomfortable... I'm glad I have done it. I'm now friends with someone who has been teaching me sign language. (Which I love and am sorry I'm moving away from her.)
I just watched a video on You Tube posted by a mother of a severely autistic boy titled "autism spectrum seems out of control" and "autism epidemic out of control?" interesting
Of course, what a great site and advisory posts, Can I add backlink - import your rss feed? Regards, Reader.
OMG!! this is absolutely gorgeous!
It is and always has been completely fantastic.