Prior to entering college, most students with disabilities are taught to rely on parents, teachers, doctors, and others to arrange for educational accommodations. In college, the job is theirs. As such, it is imperative that they learn self-advocacy prior to entering college. In this article, the author discusses how disability educators can help…

We examined facilitators and detractors of academic success of 25 deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) students selected from a pool of 187 students attending general education classes and enrolled in a study of academic progress. Interviews with their teachers of DHH, general education teachers, principals, parents, interpreters, and students themselves…

Students with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in the nation's community college population for multiple reasons. These include low expectations, poor high school preparation and transition planning, lack of communication or support services, and ineffective or poor support from school services personnel and faculty. This paper…

Four steps in self-advocacy for disabled persons are described: (1) targeting individual or family needs, (2) preparing to work with service professionals to meet the targeted needs, (3) influencing decision makers, and (4) following up to ensure that agreements are kept. (CL)

Social empowerment is designed to prepare individuals to reconstruct their political, economic, psychological, and social environments. Addressing empowerment for lesbian and gay male populations is critical because of the numerous stereotypical situations that result in their powerlessness. The application of social empowerment strategies as…

In this article, the authors trace the possible political potential of their post-modernist, feminist approach to life story research with people with the label of "learning difficulties." As a self-advocate with an ally, they define tagging along with each other as discovery science. The authors reflect on how they openly and critically write…

Many students with Asperger's Syndrome have the cognitive ability and specific interests to be successful academically at the college level. However, these students often have difficulties navigating social systems, and higher education presents great challenges. The purpose of this study was to explore parent perceptions regarding the: (a)…

While graduation from high school may be common for students with learning disabilities, successful completion of a four-year degree program at the postsecondary level is not as common. This article contains the stories of the first three high school students with learning disabilities taught by the author who successfully graduated from…

As more and more children are being diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (AS), more parents are wondering what the future will be like for their child. Because of the challenges faced by youth with AS, it is important for parents and teachers to work together to guide high school students with AS through a successful transition to the adult world.…

This paper looks at the history of self advocacy in England. Self advocacy has helped many people with learning difficulties to speak up and gain more confidence. But now it is associated with Government policy. After Valuing People, people expect self advocacy organizations to speak up for everyone with learning difficulties. This might mean…

The Indian Institute for Cerebral Palsy (IICP) has been providing education and other services in Kolkata, Eastern India, for children and young adults with cerebral palsy and related disabilities for over 30 years. IICP started by providing education for just two children, and was highly dependent on western expertise. Described is the history of…

The purpose of this study was to explore those factors impacting successful transition of American Indian students with mild to moderate disabilities to postsecondary academic settings and other lifelong learning opportunities. Thirty-five individuals from three Southwestern tribes were interviewed about personal factors during transition, and…

In this paper I describe how self-advocacy has grown in the Czech Republic. First, I talk about how services for people with learning disabilities have begun to change in the last few years. This is because voluntary groups have lobbied and campaigned for change. I learned about self-advocacy during a visit to the UK in the 1990s. I went back to…

Service-user groups whose goals include the promotion of self-advocacy for people with an intellectual disability aim, among other things, to encourage service users to identify problems and find solutions. However, service users' contributions to group sessions may not always be full and spontaneous. This presents a dilemma to the facilitator. In…

This study provides a model of academic identity development for college students with learning disabilities from the integrative self-determination themes of persistence, competence, career decision making, and self-realization. Nineteen self-determined and high-achieving participants were interviewed. The participants' stories illustrate how…