Diane+Phelan-module+5-self+determination

Diane Phelan-Module 5 Self Determination

This module was very thought provoking for me. I sit here and think about the definition of self determination. Self determination talks about being motivated to accomplish what you set your mind to do. No one really pushes you into doing something that you don't want to do. As a parent and a professional, I have to motivate myself everyday to deal with the situations that arise within my family and within my surroundings at work. I think about my daughter and the challenges that she has every day. But after watching some of the videos within this module, I wonder about those families that think about the unknown.

After reading Autism's First Child by John Donovan and Caren Zucker, I wonder how those parents dealt with the unknown. They did not have any guidance relating to their son's disability because there was no one who could help them plan for transitioning. They were taking risks and making choices for their child without the help of professionals, PPT meetings and IEPs. Now fast forward to 1981 and we have the Dream Plan for Aaron. I found it fascinating that the mother wrote a plan for both her children, one with disabilities and one without disabilities. Even though the term self determination has a different meaning for each individual, the mother wrote a individualized plan for both children. She knew that is was a basic human right to be in control of one's life and have the ability to make choices. She became self determined after she went to see Wolf Wolfensberger's presentation on Normalization. This allowed her to write up a plan for Aaron that allowed him to take risks and step into the unknown. Michael Kennedy's article entitled, Self Determination, talked about this life in an institution. There were no choices to be made during this time. The outlook for individuals was dismal at best. They had no voice and no idea how to make decisions They were not given an opportunity to be an individual. When one is always viewed as a group, the basics are only accounted for. As time went on Michael Kennedy realized that he needed to run his own life. He needed to step into the unknown. He makes an incredible point in this article. He said that it may seem like some people can't understand how to make decisions for themselves, but they really never had the opportunity to learn how to do it. Again, self determination means different things to different people. For Michael, it does not mean you have to do everything yourself, but it does mean that you have to be in charge of your life. Individuals determine what they can and cannot do. This leads us to the point that you have to be in charge of your life to the fullest extent that you can possibly be. For Roger Williamson, an ordinary life is his extraordinary dream. He knows that he cannot do very many things for himself, but he does know that he can control what he does with his life, he can have a voice and he can make choices living life with dignity and taking risks.

Since I do not work directly with students or clients, I need to touch upon my own self determination and my daughter. When a diagnosis is given, you at least have something to go on. You now take that self determination and head into the unknown. You listen to professionals, make choices and move along to the best of your ability. You help to develop skills and self determination in your child so that they are able to ask questions, make choices and make mistakes along the way. I think back to the days when children were not given a voice. I can't imagine my daugher not being able to ask for what she needs. While we have come a very long way, there is still a long way to go.

//From Joe - what can I add to this? Thanks for such excellent reflection on the videos and the readings and for weaving them together in such an eloquent way.//