Promoting Self-Determination in Students with Developmental Disabilities: (What Works for Special-Needs Learners)

Growing evidence suggests that self-determination is a significant factor in improving educational and transition outcomes in students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This volume reviews the breadth of available methods for teaching components of self-determination--including choice making, problem solving, decision making, goal setting, self-advocacy, and self-regulated learning--and provides best-practice recommendations that teachers can put to immediate use in the classroom. Grounded in theory and research, the strategies presented here have been shown to enhance students' involvement in educational planning and support them in meeting their goals in school, the workplace, and the community.

Table of Contents:
I.Introduction 1. Overview of Self-Determination and Self-Determined Learning II.Promoting Self-Determination 2. Assessing Preferences and Promoting Choice Making 3. Teaching Problem Solving and Decision Making 4. Teaching Goal Setting and Attainment 5. Teaching Self-Advocacy III. Promoting Self-Determined Learning 6. Antecedent Event Regulation 7. Consequent Event Regulation 8. Self-Instruction 9. The Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction IV. Curriculum Modifications and Student Involvement 10. Technology and Universal Design to Promote Self-Determination 11. Student Involvement in Educational Planning

About the Author :
Michael L. Wehmeyer, University of Kansas, USA, Co-Authors: Martin Agran, University of Wyoming, USA, Carolyn Hughes, Vanderbilt University, USA, James E. Martin, University of Oklahoma, USA, Dennis E. Mithaug, Columbia University, USA, Susan B. Palmer, University of Kansas, USA

Review :
"I really like the way Wehmeyer links science to practice, combining theory and research with practical instructional methods and strategies. This volume will be useful for anyone involved in teaching self-determination skills to students with disabilities. It also is an appropriate text for graduate students and an excellent resource for faculty members." - David W. Test, PhD, Department of Special Education and Child Development, University of North Carolina, USA "At last, a book that offers the best of what we know from research on how to promote self determination in students with disabilities. This much-needed book delivers proven, practical strategies for classroom instruction. It should be required reading for teachers and other professionals supporting students in the transition from school to adult life." - David R. Johnson, PhD, Department of Educational Policy and Administration and Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota, USA "The examples given in the book can be adapted and applied to students of all ages and abilities. The text could be used by university professors to demonstrate how teachers can provide students with a learning environment that includes choices. School districts could use the book in professional learning communities as well as for new teachers and mentors. This book is awesome, and I hope teachers take a look at the research." - Chuck Howard, MAE, teacher, Special School District of St. Louis County, Missouri, USA "Self-determination has been a foundation of my curriculum for my students over the last two years, but I had not articulated the specific subsets involved in this concept before reading this book. Wehmeyer breaks self-determination down into the necessary skills of choice making, decision making, goal setting and attainment, and self-advocacy. He shows how to provide opportunity and instruction to support students in successfully meeting their unique transition goals. As a teacher of students with disabilities, I am grateful for this vital contribution to the field." - Tom Szambecki, Lead Teacher, Maize Transition Skills Network, Sedgwick Country, Kansas, USA