This teacher-friendly resource offers a variety of instructional strategies for teaching students the specific skills they need for more satisfactory, self-directed lives--skills like: - assertiveness - goal setting - self-advocacy - self-management - decision making - problem solving - self-awareness Practicing and prospective educators will find objectives and key terms at the beginning of each chapter and vignettes and case studies sprinkled throughout, making the book an ideal text. This is an invaluable resource for meeting IDEA 1997 requirements while motivating high school students with disabilities to prepare for successful transitions to adulthood.

"There is not available a more comprehensive book in the area of self-determination." —Melinda Pierson, Department of Special Education California State University, Fullerton "Unique because it provides direction for teaching and supporting self-determined behavior across all age groups and also within the general education classroom and curricula." —Marianne Mooney, Senior Research Associate TransCen, Inc., Post-Secondary Learning and Careers Give students with disabilities powerful tools for success in school and in life! Michael Wehmeyer and Sharon Field present research-proven instructional strategies that empower special needs students at all grade levels to make their own decisions. Self-Determination offers detailed and current practitioner-oriented approaches in combination with extensive teacher reproducibles—all within the context of inclusion, standards-based reform, and access to the general curriculum. Linked to the IDEA requirement for individualized transition plans, this user-friendly resource assists practitioners in teaching the skills necessary for making decisions about employment, job skills, further schooling, and independent living. Educators will discover how to: Encourage students to become their own advocates by practicing assertive behavior Use needs-assessment techniques to determine the level of instruction required for each student Teach effective choice making, problem solving, and goal setting Support both families and fellow educators in their efforts to teach self-determination skills Special education teachers, general educators, and administrators will find this handbook an invaluable guide for helping students establish their own goals and plan for a strong and healthy future!

Affordable and complete, this book provides evidence-based strategies to promote self-determination, and is the first volume to combine both theory and practice in this area. Because self-determination is a key issue for students with moderate and severe disabilities, this is an ideal resource for middle and secondary special educators, school psychologists, and other school practitioners.

Targeted at special education teachers/special population instructors, work experience coordinators, vocational assessment personnel, and guidance counselors, this guide examines the relationships among career development, transition, and self-determination for students with disabilities. The guide uses a question-and-answer format to identify and respond to key topics that practitioners need to address to promote student self-determination in their service settings, and provides detailed reviews of over 30 curriculum materials and assessment tools in the area of self-determination. Specific chapters address: (1) the importance of self-determination and school and family-based interventions to support the development of self-determination; (2) student involvement in the Individualized Education Program and transition process and specific strategies to prepare students for participation and to increase student participation; (3) assessment of self-determination; (4) instructional practices that promote self-determination and family and school administrator roles in promoting self-determination in students; (5) self-determination instructional materials review; and (6) key issues and future directions in self-determination. Curriculum and assessment resources available to educators and service providers are described throughout the guide along with appropriate contact information. In addition, an appendix includes an annotated bibliography of recent articles and books written on the topic of self-determination. (Each chapter contains references.) (CR)

Children are born learning machines who want to learn and can organize and manage their own learning. Unfortunately, today children have little choice over what they do in school and how and when they do it. Children prepared in this "other-determined" manner will be poorly equipped to navigate an adult world requiring that they act autonomously and self-direct learning to acquire skills in rapidly changing environments. In Teaching Students to Become Self-Determined Learners, Michael Wehmeyer and Yong Zhao explore the how and why of self-determined learning—which emphasizes autonomy and choice, turning over ownership for learning to students by supporting them in engaging in activities that are of personal value to them, thus enabling them to act volitionally. You'll learn * How to promote self-determined learning in your classroom or school * The importance of autonomy supports, competence supports, and relatedness supports * Conditions that enable self-determined learning * Teaching strategies for self-determined learning * Assessment strategies in self-determined learning * The role of technology in self-determined living The practical strategies, case studies, advice, and resources here will help you help your students to motivate themselves and become self-determined learners

Self-determination has a powerful positive impact on post-school outcomes for young adults with disabilities--but how can educators teach students the skills they need to make their own choices and achieve their goals as they enter adulthood? This empowering guidebook shows the way. Packed with practical, research-validated guidance on explicitly teaching self-determination skills , this book helps educators support students in communicating their interests and needs, setting and reaching goals, and managing their own lives. Ready-to-use worksheets and activities will help students take an active role in their transition planning, and true case stories highlight the benefits of self-determination instruction: smoother transitions, improved behavior, and fulfilling lives beyond the classroom. DISCOVER HOW TO Assess a student's current level of self-determination Teach essential skills that strengthen self-determination Embed individualized supports and instructional activities within a student's existing education program Create repeated opportunities for students to practice their self-determination skills Collaborate effectively with students and families Develop strong person-centered support teams with the student taking a lead role in transition planning Build support for self-determination across entire schools and communities Teach essential self-determination skills: Expressing preferences Making choices Self-management skills Goal setting and attainment Self-advocacy skills This book is part of the Brookes Publishing Transition to Adulthood Series

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of explicitly teaching self-advocacy skills to three middle school students with mild/moderate disabilities by having them memorize a script and request accommodations in a training and generalization setting. The intervention components included 16 lessons comprising discussion and reflections about their disabilities and educational rights under IDEA, a four-part script and a promoting procedure. The script included (a) greeting teacher and asking if it's a good time to talk, (b) expressing concern with assignment, (c) asking for accommodation, and (d) thanking teacher. The dependent variables were (a) frequency, measured by the number of cumulative requests made over the course of the study, and (b) accuracy, measured by number of steps aligning with the pre-rehearsed script. Results, evaluated between the intervention and the dependent variables. Results suggest that special education teachers can effectively teach self-determination skills, allowing students with disabilities to self-advocate for accommodations in the general education setting. Further research is needed to confirm current findings.