Why is advocacy important in education

My previous school in Manchester had changed so I could not go back there. I stayed at the residential special education needs until I was sixteen. I actually felt like a prisoner at this residential special school. It was bad enough during the week when classes were on and hardly anyone took any notice of me.

The evenings and weekends were dire. I had no real friends at school. All I did in the free time was go around school in my electric wheelchair not talking to anyone.

I could not concentrate on anything. At home I would watch the television with my family but at boarding school I just could not get motivated even to do this. It is clear from the introduction that I needed someone to speak up for me, particularly at boarding school. If someone had told me what it was going to be really like for me at residential special school I never would have gone. Having said this though, I still do not know, even to this day, whether I did have a choice of going to residential special school.

Sometimes, as the man I am now, I wonder whether I should have told people what I thought of boarding school, but I was never encouraged to do this. By reading the last sentence you might think that I blame myself for going to residential special education needs school and not doing well.

Looking back I think that I did have the capacity to speak up for myself but, as I said before, this was never discussed nor encouraged. As I said in the introduction many children and young people have been in residential special schools and colleges for almost their entire lives. They literally may not know what goes on outside the walls which contain and control them. This so-called protection does not do anyone any good. First, children and young people who are stuck in residential special schools and colleges will have no idea of what it is like to live alongside people who do not have disabilities.

Second, non-disabled children and young people will not have any understanding of people with disabilities. All the things that I have said here require some form of advocacy. Take myself as an example: before I went to residential special school, I had no idea what this would entail.

It was after asking my mother and father that I knew where and how far Kent was. Nobody at my special school in Manchester told me just how far Kent was and how much I would miss my family. One could say that they were not to know, but it was evident to everyone that my family are very close. When I think about it now I cannot remember any of the teachers at the school in Manchester talking to me about going to boarding school.

Some kind of guidance on this transition may have stopped me from going to residential special school and my positive educational prospects might have begun earlier. Thinking back it was a frightening ordeal being at residential special school on your own more or less. If sending an email, be concise and direct, and always respectful. If communicating in person or by phone, prepare by listing issues you wish to discuss. It is a good rule to follow up after the meeting with a note recapping the meeting.

At times you may become frustrated- do not take it out on the teachers- always be respectful. It can, for many, be intimidating to go to a school meeting and sit at a table surrounded by school personnel. Ask a friend to go with you and take notes. It will be comforting and you will have an extra set of eyes and ears at the table.

If you decide to do this, inform the school staff before the meeting. It is never too early to learn to self advocate. Teaching your child advocacy skills starting in middle school will make it easier for their child as they grow older and become more independent. This is self-advocacy, too. The first step is to become more aware of your strengths and challenges. Ask yourself: What am I good at? Where do I struggle? What do I like and not like?

Use this self-awareness worksheet. Go through a list of strengths. Take a quiz about careers to see what you enjoy doing. This comes naturally for some people once they know their challenges.

For others, it may take time to get the courage to speak up. Develop a growth mindset where you believe you can improve. Watch a video of a college student advocating for her rights. Get tips on how to ask your boss for support. But even young ones can learn how to speak up for their needs. Here are things you can do to help:. Keep in mind that some kids may feel awkward or even guilty about asking for support. Try these tips to build self-advocacy in:. The most effective style of advocacy is developing a collaborative relationship with the school and demonstrating that you respect their expertise but that you know your child and will be there to support an appropriate education for them.

This requires educating school personnel about TS, possibly every year. Unfortunately, too often schools have experienced family members who come to meetings ready for a fight and family members have experienced school personnel who are not interested in learning about Tourette syndrome.