Self-Advocacy
What is Self-Advocacy?
A little background first... You as a student, have rights and responsibilities. We have all probably had a few teachers who have spoken at length about all of the things you need to be responsible for, behaving, working hard, etc.. Hopefully, you have also had some teachers who have told you about your rights; you should be treated respectfully, you should have access to interesting learning that meets your needs and helps you be ready for life as an adult.
It gets tricky for teachers when they have a room full of students with a diversity of needs and not always enough time to really tailor the learning activities to suit each learner. We as teachers recognise that you learn best when learning activities are appropriately challenging for the individual to maximise growth. Have you noticed how teachers at times make small to large adjustments to learning activities for different students, or groups of students? This is often done subtly and you may not notice. At Smith's, we are even working in teams of teachers to further develop our knowledge and skills in this area to better meet student needs. It is incredibly rewarding for us to see students buzzing with excitement as they grow in their learning.
You, as a learner, have an incredible opportunity to collaborate with your teachers through self-advocacy, while it may be difficult, self-advocacy can help you skillfully communicate your needs needs, interests, and challenges effectively.
What Can Self-Advocacy Look, Sound and Feel Like? Meet Summer Farrelly - 15-year-old Autistic Advocate
Summer posted to her Facebook Page on the 8th of March, 2023 the following image and text that was shared widely:
I have a confession
I stim dance
I love movement.
When in public I often wear my iPhone ear buds.
To on lookers it may appear that I am dancing to music or singing along to a song.
Truth is no music is playing , I just like moving randomly when I feel the urge to stim dance, which helps me self regulate, process information or focus on a task.
I also like to repeat words or sentences over and over, sometimes out aloud.
I find people are more accepting if they can understand the WHY
Concluding that I am simply a teenager listening music, getting carried away.
Summer
There is a wonderful sense of self-acceptance in these words and image. It is inspiring to see a person so poetically advocate for themself and be a role model to so many people. Summer is only 15, and they are already an "autistic advocate, public speaker, inclusion & education consultant" and much more (Source: Summer's Website).
Note 1: stim, or stimming, involves repetitive movements or vocalisations that increase sensory input and that many autistic (and non-autistic) people do to self-regulate (Source: Autism Spectrum News).
Note 2: The image and text by Summer Farrelly were published on this site with their written permission. Copyright of the image and text remains the property of Summer Farrelly.
Self-advocacy is the process of recognising and meeting the needs specific to your learning ability without compromising the dignity of yourself or others. (Brinckerhoff, 1994)
Self-advocacy, in the context of school for students, means speaking to teachers about how your learning is going when you need to. That might be as simple as any of the following:
"that was a good level of challenge today, I've learnt new things"
"I feel like I understand the work we are doing, are there any more challenging aspects to the topic that I might be able to explore?
"I'm finding this topic fairly challenging, can you help me find a way of understanding it better?"
It is important that you try to be respectful to yourself and your teachers when you self-advocate. Being respectful to yourself can be as simple as acknowledging that everyone has times when they either need less or more challenge in their learning, and that's perfectly okay. Being respectful to others means having consideration for their feelings as well; around you, there might be some students who find the same work easy or hard, and that's okay; and when you speak to your teacher discussing some possible variation to your learning, it can be a positive dialogue that opens a discussion. This might sound like "I would like to try exploring some of the more challenging aspects of this topic..." or "I'm finding this really challenging, how can I work towards understanding this better...?".
Next, we will think about what good learning feels like. To do this we will look at the Learning Zone Model; it will give you some language that you can use, plus it can be a tool for when you are reflecting on your learning experience as a learner.
Mind Tools. 2020. The Learning Zone Model, https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/learning-zone-model.htm
What Does Good Learning Feel Like?
The Learning Zone Model was produced by psychologist Lev Vygotsky. It categorises learning as being in three zones:
Comfort Zone: great for reflection, great for demonstrating what you already know, but stay here too long and you will not stretch yourself, experience growth, take risks or probably experience excitement.
Learning Zone: It probably feels challenging at first, you may need to take some calculated risks and this can feel like an adventure! You are stretching your abilities, you are learning new things and ways of working. Let yourself be curious, exert effort, and push because you'll have challenges to overcome -but you shouldn't be pushed into panic and it feeling insurmountable.
With more time in the Learning Zone, your mastery of new skills will increase and some of these skills will then pass into your Comfort Zone.
Panic Zone. Here you move beyond the familiar and beyond a reasonable expectation of what you can learn. Panic zone learning may also occur when your workload exceeds your ability to complete it in a reasonable timeframe -this can be a result of internal or external factors including stress, anxiety, lack of suitable places to work, and competing responsibilities. All of these factors lead to an unhappy place, feelings of not coping, stress building, and even panic. This can be damaging and demotivating.
What can you learn from this? Recognise the importance of embracing challenges including working hard and pushing beyond what you already know to enhance and grow your skills. When you are pushed into the panic zone -that is when it is important and sensible for you to speak up and self-advocate by speaking to your teacher so that your learning activities can be adjusted to help you get back into the Learning Zone, the sweet spot!
When you are challenged too greatly and the learning is too hard...
It can be true that sometimes we all need to persist and practise things to make a breakthrough, but there can be times when the learning task is too challenging because it is either too difficult or too much work for you to complete in a reasonable timeframe. Possibly if you stay up all night you might get that concept, or get through all the workload... but that isn't the best for your mental health and wellbeing. We all need time for exercise, downtime for relaxing, time to read books of our own choice, and time to socialise. When your workload is too much or too hard, speak up and let your teacher know; doing this is normal, sensible and a good idea. Chat with them, send an email, communicate in whatever way you can and be honest. Your teacher is concerned for your wellbeing, as well as your academic progress.
Signs of this might be:
You feel overwhelmed.
You are not getting through all of your work in a reasonable time.
You are often skipping exercise or social time to get through the set work.
Ordinarily, you like or love the subject, but now you feel flat about it.
Strategies to cope:
Communicate with your teacher.
Ask your teacher if they can break down learning activities into three categories:
Must-Do
Should-Do
Could-Do
On your good days, get through as much as you can; on days when you feel challenged, be kind to yourself and try to get through the Must-Do if you can, but leave the rest and go and do something that feels like self-care to you... be that exercise, a nap, chat with loved ones, or read a nice book!
Maybe add any unfinished tasks from the Must-Do category to a To-Do list for tomorrow, but when that list gets big, reach out and let your teachers know -your mental health is more important than your academic progress!
Remember to reach out for help from the wellbeing team when you need to.
Barriers to Self-Advocacy:
Perfectionist tendencies. People with perfectionist tendencies may find it very difficult to admit that they are not coping. Learning how to ask for help, learning that it is not always possible to be on top of everything is a major life skill for people with perfectionist tendencies.
Motivation. When you are struggling in life and feeling flat, the idea of self-advocacy can seem like an impossible effort -but self-advocacy may be part of what gets you back on track to feeling better and more motivated.
Introversion. Many people feel shy about speaking up about themselves for a variety of reasons. If it helps, speak to a person you trust and feel comfortable and maybe they can support you with encouragement.
Embarrassment. It can feel awkward to admit that you are struggling to keep up, or that you are not finding the work challenging. But try not to this stop you, try the tips below, it may get easier once you've tried it.
Being Emotional. You may fear becoming overly emotional or shutting down when you are uncomfortable with a situation.
Not Me. It may be difficult for you to be honest with yourself about your weaknesses.
10 Tips For Talking to Teachers
It may appear that barriers are going to prevent you from being able to advocate for yourself, but if you try some of the tips below, and combine these with your existing skills, get some support from a loved one, and you may be surprised that it goes well.
(The following is adapted from Deb Douglas)
Contact your teacher in a way that feels safe for you, email is a good starting point.
If you know other students who feel the way you do, consider approaching the teacher together.
If you have a meeting with your teacher, think through what you want to say before going into your meeting with the teacher.
Choose your words carefully.
Don’t expect the teacher to do all of the work or propose all of the answers…make suggestions, offer solutions, bring resources.
Be diplomatic, tactful, and respectful.
Focus on what you need, not what you think the teacher is doing wrong.
Don’t forget to listen.
Bring your sense of humor (not joke-telling kind, but ability to laugh at misunderstandings and mistakes).
If your meeting isn’t successful, get help from another adult.
10 Examples of Question Starters for Conversations for Learners Who Think and Learn Differently
(The following (1-6) are copied and in part adapted from Understood.org, 2014 - 2022)
"Can you please help me prep for reading aloud in class? Let me know before so I can practice reading it to feel prepared"
"Is there maybe an audiobook version of this, maybe I can try reading along to it, or is there a graphic novel? The novel is a tough read and I want to be able to participate in class."
"I couldn't get all the notes down during class, could I have a copy of the notes please?"
"Can we set up a time to talk about this task please, my IEP (Individual Education Plan) has some ideas about how I can do assessments?"
"The teacher who normally takes this class knows about my accommodations, I usually..."
"When you have time, can we chat about me having to talk in front of the class?"
"I know some days I can do this sort of thing, some days I just find it more difficult, I'm still trying my best."
"I really appreciate how much feedback you have given me in this assessment task, but I'm finding it overwhelming, when you have time, could you please help me turn your feedback into a plan so I can work through your suggestions step by step?"
"I found the topic of ________ really interesting, can you recommend any further readings or ways of learning more about this topic please?"
"I feel like I have already got a pretty good understanding of the question in the assessment task, when it suits you could we find a time and talk about whether we can adjust the level of challenge in the task so I can push myself?"
Are you interested in learning more about self-advocacy from Deb Douglas, listen to the podcast below:
Learn more about The Neurodiversity Podcast and find links mentioned in the episode here.
Self Advocacy Workbook 004L.pdfSelf-Advocacy in the Classroom Workbook
You can view or download a copy of the Self-Advocacy in the Classroom workbook. The workbook contains a reference list. As acknowledged in the workbook, the workshop is largely influenced and at times copied from Deb Douglas, creator of the GT Carpe Diem workshops for gifted learners.
References
References for this webpage:
Brinckerhoff, L. C. (1994). Developing Effective Self-Advocacy Skills in College-Bound Students with Learning Disabilities. Intervention in School and Clinic, 29(4), 229–237. https://doi.org/10.1177/105345129402900407
Understood (2014 - 2022). Self-advocacy sentence starters for kids who learn and think differently. https://www.understood.org/en/articles/self-advocacy-sentence-starters-for-kids. Retrieved on 14/12/22.
References for the "Self-Advocacy in the Classroom" booklet:
Brinckerhoff, L. C. (1994). Developing Effective Self-Advocacy Skills in College-Bound Students with Learning Disabilities. Intervention in School and Clinic, 29(4), 229–237. https://doi.org/10.1177/105345129402900407
Davidson Academy (2021). Types of Challenges Gifted Students Face. https://www.davidsonacademy.unr.edu/blog/challenges-gifted-students-face/
Davidson Institute (2022). Gifted Traits and Characteristics. https://www.davidsongifted.org/prospective-families/gifted-traits-and-characteristics/
Douglas, D. (2023). GT Carpe Diem, http://www.gtcarpediem.com/carpe-diem-workshops Retrieved on 26/03/2023.
Mind Tools. 2020. The Learning Zone Model, https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/learning-zone-model.htm.
Understood (2014 - 2022). Self-advocacy sentence starters for kids who learn and think differently. https://www.understood.org/en/articles/self-advocacy-sentence-starters-for-kids. Retrieved on 14/12/22.
If you need support to deal with difficult feelings after reading this page, students at SHHS can access support through the Learning Hub, the school office, your Year Advisor, trusted teachers and parents and carers. Also support is available from the following free support services:
Beyond Blue Support Service
Telephone 1300 224 636, 24 hours, 7 days a week.
Chat online 3pm to 12am AEST, 7 days a week.
Email for free, short-term counselling, advice and referral services.
Website: Beyond Blue Support Service.
Lifeline Crisis Support
This confidential service provides support when you are feeling overwhelmed, having difficulty coping or thinking about suicide.
Speak to a crisis support worker by telephone on 13 11 14, 24 hours, 7 days a week.
Chat online 7pm to 12pm, 7 nights a week.
Website: Lifeline Crisis Support.
1800RESPECT
For support if you are affected by sexual assault or domestic and family violence or abuse.
Telephone 1800 737 732, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Chat online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Website: 1800RESPECT.