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Answer:
It is wonderful that you are beginning the year with a
proactive outlook. Encouraging a sense of self-determination (S-D) during
the transition process is critical to promoting successful transitions
for students whether they are disabled or non-disabled. For starters,
remember that the key to a basic understanding of self-determination is
self-awareness. Your students will need a basic understanding of their
strengths and weaknesses, preferences, values, and belief system. This
will be their foundation or driving force for future choice and decision-making,
leading to successful goal achievement. Our DCN web site online parent
training at http://www.dcn-cde.ca.gov/dctrain/home.htm
offers options for your students to explore self-awareness.
Imbed self-determination skills into your existing curriculum so that
your strategies become a natural part of the learning process. Remember,
too, that many special needs students retain information best through
hands-on activities. Consider practicing self-determination strategies
through the use of peer-to-peer activities, role-play, videotape and student
evaluation. Here are some tips for you:
A. Help your students define self-determination
They should know that self-determination can be defined in a variety of
ways:
- Having attitudes, abilities, and skills that
let people figure out goals for themselves and then take the initiative
to reach them
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- Having the ability to make informed choices
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- Determining their OWN course of action without
being influenced by negative peer pressure
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- Defining and achieving their goals based on self-awareness,
self-knowledge, and personal values
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B. Teach your students the characteristics of a self-determined
individual
Paul Wehmeyer lists several components of self-determination for those who
work with students to consider when developing classroom and community activities.
His model includes:
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- Goal setting and attainment
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- Self-reinforcement skills
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- Internal locus of control
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- Positive attribution of efficacy and outcome
expectancy
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C. Create an environment that encourages self-determination
It is up to you to create an environment that encourages self-determination
by providing opportunities for choice making and decision making, chances
to learn from experiencing consequences of their actions, and to support
risk-taking. A supportive environment will provide that very important safety
net your students' need.
Some school environmental variables (classroom and school-wide factors),
affecting self-determination include:
- Availability of self-determined role models
Modeling can be formal or informal. For example, you sound like
the type of teacher who models a proactive, positive, and problem
solving style in your classroom which in turn allows your students
many opportunities to learn about self-determination. Don't forget
to use mentoring programs, peer tutoring, and cooperative learning
strategies to promote positive lessons about self-determination
through modeling.
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- Curriculum variables
Your students will benefit by acquiring their self-determination
skills in the context of their curriculum. Remember, I talked
about informal/formal role modeling? Well, self-determination
skills should be imbedded and modeled in your daily curriculum,
not as a separate entity. Several curricula have been developed
to promote self-determination in students. Examples include Laurie
Powers' Take Charge curriculum (see web site at end of this section),
Steps to Self-Determination and A Practical Guide to Teaching
Self-Determination. Visit http://www.cec.sped.org/bk/catalog2/self.html
for descriptions of these curriculums.
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- Opportunities for choice
Your students need opportunities for choice if they are to practice
and acquire their self-determination skills. Making choices can
be risky for students so you want to minimize the risks in a supportive
environment. Start by having the students make choices about small
decisions (e.g., what to eat, what to wear) and gradually let
them assume more responsibility for larger decisions (e.g., what
course to take, which career to pursue).
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- Patterns of response to student behaviors
How do your and other school personnel's responses to your students
actions affect their level of encouragement to express themselves,
initiate actions and take risks. In other words, "What do you
say or do when they make inappropriate decisions?" Do you over
react or have you created an environment that communicates, reinforces,
and supports self-determination? For example, is active listening,
appropriate use of humor as a communication device to deflect
criticism used to encourage student responsibility and risk taking?
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- Availability of student supports
Your students will need support and guidance that offers information,
active listening, identify\ies options, and asks open ended questions
to helps them reflect on and learn from self-determination strategies.
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For an exhaustive list of self-determination/self-awareness
curricula, visit http://www.rfgreen.com/sdsp/sourcelist/curriculum_list/saware.rtf.
One more resource before I conclude this section is titled Steps to
Self-Determination: A Curriculum to Help Adolescents Learn to Achieve
Their Goals. Find more information on this curriculum at http://www.proedinc.com/store/index.php?mode=product_detail&id=7799).
Finally,
E. Evaluate yourself
- Evaluate your teaching style by completing a
Teaching Style Inventory (one of many such tools) located at http://snow.utoronto.ca/Learn2/mod3/tchstyle.html.
You will be surveyed on the following teaching methods:
| 1) Instructional planning |
| 2) Teaching methods |
3) Teaching environment
3.1 student groups
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3.2 room design
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3.3 teaching environment
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| 4) Evaluation techniques |
| 5) Teaching characteristics |
| 6) Educational philosophy |
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While I am not promoting this or any other inventory, I have
found this format offers you a way to determine how your teaching style
impacts your students learning. Based on the results, you can create an
environment that supports the development of self-determination in your
students. You may want to expand this idea by keeping a journal as part
of your ongoing self-evaluation of what is or is not working. Your teaching
style profile can serve as a baseline.
Best of luck as you begin your new school year.
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