Advocating for Students with Disabilities at the School Level

Abstract

Advocating for students with special needs at the school-and classroomlevel is an extremely important role of a special educator. Special education professional advocacy guidelines are governed by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC). Five professional standards identified by CEC that all educators must use in their advocacy are (a) working toward improving how government services are provided to individuals with exceptionalities, (b) working in collaboration with various professionals to ensure individuals with exceptionalities are receiving appropriate services, (c) maintaining objective and documented evidence of any inadequate services or resources afforded to individuals with exceptionalities, (d) ensuring appropriate placements are provided to individuals with exceptionalities, and (e) adhering to federal and local legislative mandates to ensure individuals with exceptionalities receive a free and appropriate public education (FAPE; CEC, 2008).In alignment with the CEC professional standards, special educators accept their professional responsibility to advocate for their students with dis-abilities; however, they also report a belief acquired through experience that personal and professional risks are inherent in doing so (Gartin, Murdick, Thompson, & Dyches, 2002). Figure 1 provides a summary of CEC professional standards for advocacy.Advocating for a student can cause inherent risks for special education professionals (Peters & Reid, 2009).

Legislative Advocacy for Special Educators

“…All teachers should advocate for effective policies and evidence-based practices that improve programs, services, and outcomes for SWDs. Whitby and colleagues (2013) stated advocacy can take place during conversations with other educators or in more formal settings, like professional learning communities (PLCs) or individual education program (IEP) meetings. Advocacy is a professional role of the special education teacher and is needed to meet the needs of SWDs at the school, district, and state levels.…”

“…Do not burn any bridges, because alliances may shift (McLaughlin et al, 2016). Whitby and colleagues (2013) stated special educators should use diplomacy and create win-win situations when faced with conflicts. Special education advocates need to listen and be respectful while trying to find commonalities with the opposing opinion.…”

How to Be an Advocate for Rural Issues: Working With State and National Legislators

“…If you approach others about your issue, including those who may disagree with your stance, after you have developed a level of personal relationship with them, it can make for more positive outcomes. Whitby, Marx, McIntire, and Wienke (2013) presented guidelines for advocating in schools. They recommend that teachers get to know those that will be working on both sides of the issue and create a positive and respectful climate of interaction.…”

Reflections on Recruiting, Supporting, Retaining, Graduating, and Obtaining Employment for Doctoral Students From Diverse Backgrounds

“…We find that the first key to our success has been to ensure that the students who disclose their disabilities provide us with more than just the paper documentation needed; we try to gain a strong sense of personal understanding as to what they need, so that we can provide the support. We look for scholars who are empowered to support themselves in the process through their strong self-advocacy skills (Whitby, Marx, McIntire, & Wienke, 2013). One interesting phenomenon we have noted is that at times we have found students in our program with disabilities seem to think that because they are getting a doctorate, support is no longer needed.…”