自我倡导访谈
介绍
Self-Advocacy is one of the critical skills students need as they transition to college and, 晚些时候, 成人生活. 不幸的是, 许多神经发散型学习者都很难做到这一点, and have little or no guidance to overcome the challenge in advocating for themselves.
In this interview, 具有里程碑意义的大学 LD and Neurodiversity Ambassador-at-Large Dr. Banerjee Manju explains 如何 parents and educators can spot signs and behaviors of poor self-advocacy, and shares some easy and actionable ways to practice and improve this skill with your learner.
Q. 你能给自我辩护下个定义吗?
Self-advocacy is the skill or ability to speak up for oneself. 它是表达自己需求的能力, 欲望, or interests to someone who is usually a person of authority. And, there’s usually a power differential when speaking up for oneself.
这也是对你所倡导的东西负责. You need to s如何 a commitment and follow through on what you ask for. 如果你主张你的父母说, “I will go and meet with the services office and request accommodations,然后你就得去做了. You can’t, a month 晚些时候, say you’re failing your tests because you didn’t get the accommodations.
Q. 为什么这对学生来说是一项很难掌握的技能?
自我辩护是困难的，因为这是成年人的技能. 它必须在现场明确地教授. 这不是一个抽象的概念. 给 it a definition and teaching it in the abstract isn’t helpful—it’s best learned in situations where you get the right feedback.
If you speak up and are denied what you’re asking, then keep practicing. Being denied what you’re advocating for is still a positive thing. Parents and educators should give positive feedback in regards to what student is asking. If you have a different position to your student, then explain that. It’s important for us as parents or educators to separate battles from war. We need to give a sense of agency to our student so they can learn from consequences. When you get what you want, sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s not so good.
Q. Do you have advice for ways parents or education professionals can help?
必须培养自我宣传. You can’t simply tell your student to go speak to their teacher. Parents have to model it and s如何 that there are advantages to speaking up. And, you must s如何 如何 to speak up, and when to do so, as well. As adults, we know when it’s not a good time to ask their boss for a raise. 时机至关重要. We need to give our neurodivergent learners the vocabulary of 如何 要求某事. 他们使用正确的表达语言很重要.
Parents and educators should understand as well that when someone says “no,“我们的学生可能会否认, 情绪低落, 或者表现出置换行为. Our re搜索 s如何s the strategy that works best is reappraisal—to reframe the situation in a way that helps you calm down. It’s conceptual, yes, but you are dealing with the actual consequences. 这是一种认知行为技巧.
Q. 你知道有什么资源——网络研讨会吗, 播客, articles—on your website that would be appropriate to point families to so they can learn more about self-advocacy?
是的，我最近做了一个关于自我辩护的演讲， 你可以在这里找到.
你也可以 下载我们关于自我宣传的海报.
Q. 父母和他们的孩子开始考虑上大学, 他们能做些什么来为这新的篇章做最好的准备?
我对父母们说的是要有备用计划. Plan A is ideal, but there are often glitches and it doesn’t go according to plan. Some of our students fall apart when don’t get into the college of their choice. You can’t fall apart, though, and that’s why it’s good to have a plan B. Sometimes when our students don’t get the grade they want, they fall apart. 这是重新评估形势的最佳时机. Rethink it, then go back and advocate for yourself and find out what happened.
Also, parents should engage their son or daughter so decisions are co-determined. As parents, we always think we know what’s best for our children. 也许有，也许没有. As they are taking first steps into becoming independent individuals, it’s important that parents s如何 them the way—whether it’s about college choice, 或者他们的专业, 或者去他们朋友去的地方. 帮助他们学会探索.
What do you think it is most important for parents and educators to know about 具有里程碑意义的大学?
An alumni once told me, “具有里程碑意义的大学 gave me my smile back.” So, I tell parents to explore, maybe take a second look at 具有里程碑意义的大学. 重新思考你的一些看法. 具有里程碑意义的大学 today is not the same as it was even 5 years ago. We are constantly adding programs that engage, interest, and challenge students and their thinking. We truly mean it when we say, “you learn differently, we teach differently.“在这里，它是关于那些具有发散思维的学生. 我们给他们机会发挥自己的能力.
关于Banerjee Manju博士.D., 具有里程碑意义的大学 LD and Neurodiversity Ambassador-at-Large
Dr. Banerjee brings deep experience in the field of learning disabilities, 注意力缺陷多动症, 自闭症, 以及为地标学院提供专上残疾人士服务. She is a certified diagnostician and teacher-consultant on learning disabilities, 并在美国广泛出版和展示.S. 以及国外的残疾文件和住宿, 高等教育转型的技术能力, 在线学习, 通用设计. She has been and is currently the principal investigator or coprincipal investigator on multiple federal, 基础, 和NSF资助.
Dr. 班纳吉是《亚洲最大体育平台》的编辑委员会成员 高等教育与残疾杂志; 多学科期刊, Professional Advisory Board member to the Learning Disability Association of America, 也是教育考试服务中心的顾问. 目前, she also teaches a graduate-level online course on Universal Design: Principles and Practice.
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