Search Results for "assistive technology dora raymaker"
A Resource for Transitioning to College
Published February 15, 2009 @ 12:24PM PT
The site Going to College: A Resource for Teens with Disabilities is a great resource for building self-advocacy skills for students who are transitioning to college. And while it's geared toward high school students, frankly this site would have been helpful to me when I was embarking on my most recent graduate school stint in my mid-thirties, so the information may be useful to a wider audience.
College for folks on the spectrum is a particular area of interest of mine so I'm always looking for an excuse to blog about it. I've had to trial-and-error my way through post secondary education, learning about my rights and picking up self-advocacy skills by myself, and unfortunately mostly through making (sometimes terrible) mistakes. I'm old and have had a strange life, and the transition programs available for kids today were not available to me. The struggle was well worth it though. Finally getting proper accommodations was the difference between flunking about a third of my classes and barely graduating, and succeeding at my coursework with a GPA of 3.8. It was also the difference between never communicating with a single student or teacher, and finishing up a program with a wonderful bunch of friends and professional contacts. I don't, however, recommend the "trial and error" method to get there! Real self-advocacy training is a must, and happily more available today.
Back to the Going to College site which provides that sort of training, the "My Place" section is all about building self awareness and self-advocacy skills. The "Campus Life" section is all about disability accommodations, including disclosure issues and assistive technology. The "Planning for College" section is about some of the college stuff most people have to deal with such as standardized tests, and strategies for dealing with them. The site is easy to navigate, even I understood all the language on it, and all video media is captioned and has transcripts available. Best of all, the site is written to target the actual audience of self-advocates.
On the downside, the site is by necessity limited and may not include specifically some of the things of most use to autistic students; for example the assistive technology page does not mention any AT for communication. Students on the spectrum may need to use the site as a place to get examples rather than specific idea.
[As a side-bar to a lot of things, check out the site's definition of "self-advocacy" as it is the one that is always in my mind when I write about self-advocacy or refer to myself by that term (using the term "speaking" to really mean "communicating" of course as speech is not the only way to go!).
What does self-advocacy mean?
It means speaking up for yourself and communicating what you need to others. It involves knowing your strengths and weaknesses, knowing what your rights are and effectively communicating through speaking and listening.
Critically important in college, in employment, in the community, and even among friends, family, and just doing stuff by yourself!]
Don't End Equal Access to Put Up a Coffee Shop
Published February 13, 2009 @ 10:15AM PT
More and more, autistic students in the U.S. are being given an opportunity at a college education. One of the things that makes this possible is the availability of assistive technology for education. Screen readers, speech-to-text systems, and speech devices are just some of the assistive technology that enables autistic students and others with communication, movement, or learning disabilities to succeed at college. Since purchase of this technology can be prohibitively expensive, and is often not covered under insurance, free AT labs like Assistive Technology Center (ATC) at my university may be the only thing enabling students to get the education they deserve. So imagine my outrage when I learned that there were plans to abolish the ATC and put in--are you sitting down?--a coffee shop.
The ATC was started by students in the 1980's and became staffed by employees of Accesss Technologies, Inc. in 1995; Portland State University (PdxSU) pays for half the operating costs of the center and provides the lab space. The ATC provides free technology (including training) for students with a wide variety of disabilities, including learning, orthopedic, and visual.
And ATC does not limit itself just PdxSU students either. It provides free assistive technology training, evaluation, and other services for the community at large. ATC has helped me and others to get or use speech devices, something many of us would never be able to afford otherwise. I've also worked with ATC to test my research group's web pages for accessibility using popular screen readers. ATC's benefits reach far beyond a single student.
So when I got an email from the head of the ATC that said,
Due to the changing economic climate on the [PdxSU] campus, we are under increasing pressure to demonstrate to various administrators what the assistive technology center is doing for students. If you are a former or current [PdxSU] STUDENT and you feel strongly that the assistive tech center is important to your success as a student. Please consider taking time out of your busy schedule to write a paragraph or two about what we have done for you...
Now is the time.
I kind of flipped out.
"How desperate is this, what is going on," I wrote back--
The answer, "They are talking about sizable cuts, as well as moving or shutting down the lab (the library wants a coffee shop of all things)."
A coffee shop of all things. Indeed.
Because, you know, those 270 other coffee shops in, on, and next to campus are of course not enough. Apparently access to coffee is more important than access to education. How foolish I was to think school might be about learning, bad Dora!
(how to take action in progress, stay tuned)
Smithsonian Exhibit on the Disability Rights Movement
Published January 23, 2009 @ 04:00PM PT
The Smithsonian National Museum of American History has recently added an online exhibit The Disability Rights Movement. It's a short and shallow (but relatively broad) look at the recent history of the disability rights movement in the U.S. From the exhibit description:
The ongoing struggle by people with disabilities to gain full citizenship is an important part of our American heritage. The disability rights movement shares many similarities with other 20th-century civil rights struggles by those who have been denied equality, independence, autonomy, and full access to society.
This exhibition looks at the efforts - far from over - of people with disabilities, and their families and friends, to secure the civil rights guaranteed to all Americans.
Autism is not referenced specifically (intellectual disability is), but many of the themes in exhibit are shared by the autistic rights movement. Issues of identity, of human rights, of civil disobedience, of institutionalization, of eugenics, of right to access and the role of assistive technology, and yes even the work done by parents to demand an education for their children.
I doubt this exhibit will be very enlightening to those of us who are currently living the work "exhibited" (yes indeed, those efforts are "far from over") but it is, I feel, a good sign that the exhibit is there at all.
The web pages are pretty accessible with clear descriptions of images and audio playback on many of the pages, but I felt the user interface was rather confusing. I recommend just using the "next" buttons to navigate through the whole exhibit if you find the rest of the user interface clunky.
photo from the National Museum of American History exhibit
Pragmatic Employment Practices for the Whole Spectrum
Published January 19, 2009 @ 09:59AM PT
The Institute for Community Inclusion recently published an astonishingly useful article Supporting Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Quality Employment Practices. The article discusses workplace accommodations and modifications to support communication, sensory, social, and organizational needs, as well as strategies for job development and hiring that are specific to autism. The article provides useful web links to resources for assistive technology, a list of questions to help in determining work environment and accommodations, and a bibliography--which includes some writing by and for autistic self-advocates--that is well worth following up on.
Beyond that, this article also impressed me for its ability to address the huge diversity of abilities found on the spectrum without making assumptions. For example, both people with good spoken communication and people with no spoken communication are considered equally in both the concrete examples and the general employment strategies. As a person with extremely uneven skills, I really appreciated an article that respectfully discusses both AAC and highly skilled jobs in the same space.
While the suggested audience for the article is listed as "direct support professionals" I couldn't help reading through the filter of self-advocacy, thinking, "what can I use for getting my own needs met in employment?" The ideas for accommodations and modifications, many of which I have used myself and found helpful, are an excellent starting point for self-advocates wondering what accommodations to ask for at a job. Self-advocates having trouble with job developers, VR councilors, or employers who just don't "get it" can also use the information in this article to better educate staff and employers.
Self-Advocate Voices at the IACC
Published June 10, 2009 @ 04:00PM PT
On May 4th at the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) meeting, autistic self-advocate (and artist!) Katie Miller gave the following testimony (captioned, though a little poorly).
In her testimony, Katie touches on key concerns to many in the self-advocacy (and broader) community, such as alternative and augmentative communication, health disparities, and the need for inclusion of all stake holders in the conversations about autism research. She discusses quality of life, services, education, transitions, and community support systems as key areas for attention--all items that have direct, immediate, and profound impact on the quality of our lives today and tomorrow. She emphasizes the need for respectful language. And closes with a warning about eugenics.
It is encouraging that the IACC has begun including us in discussion of the things that affect us most, and hopefully is an indication of greater inclusion in times to come.
Thank you Katie for the excellent testimony, and thank you IACC for the opportunity to present it. Nothing about us without us!
(Side note: The self-advocate presentation Katie references is mine, which you can see here (PDF ~1.8 MB). For the entire proceedings from the meeting in video or podcast see here.)
EDIT: Katie has graciously provided me with the written transcript of her testimony, so for anyone not loving the peculiar subtitles, the text is behind the more cut.
Interagency Committee on Disability Research Seeks Public Comments
Published April 01, 2009 @ 04:00PM PT
The Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) is a committee mandated by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to coordinate between federal departments and agencies on disability related research and research programs.
The ICDR just initiated a new web-based tool to solicit ideas and comments from stake holders in the general public,
This year for the first time, the federally mandated Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) is utilizing an innovative Web-based approach to collect online disability research comments to assist in developing a federal disability and rehabilitation 2010 research agenda. This technology-driven approach gives the public a three-week time frame from March 27th through April 17th to submit their recommendations.
Additionally, registered participants will be invited to review all comments submitted and vote on their top ten concerns in each topic area during the one-week period from April 22nd through April 29th. Public comments from stakeholders are the focal point of the disability research recommendations in the ICDR Annual Report to the President and Congress.
All disability-related research topics are welcomed, including discussion about concerns important to the veteran and military communities. The ICDR is seeking comments with special emphasis placed in the following areas:
* Collaboration and coordination among federal agencies;
* Health information technology and/or electronic health records;
* Health disparities;
* Health promotion in the workplace;
* Employment and health; and
* Other critical research issues.
The comment period closes April 17th, so if you're interested, consider acting soon.
Changing People to Fit Jobs, or Finding Jobs to Fit People?
Published March 30, 2009 @ 09:53AM PT
In the less empowering events of my last week, I attended a career workshop that, if nothing else, provided many excellent examples of the gross rift between well-meaning service staff and the people they are supposed to be assisting.
"Say you have a client who only wants to talk about Batman," the presenter set up the discussion.
The audience, primarily consisting of service providers and parents who referred to the few autistic audience members in third person throughout the day, all had a good, hearty laugh at that. (I was not amused.)
The discussion continued, Oh noes! Only wants to talk about Batman! Whatever shall we do!
Enter: behavior modification, job coaching, rules and rules and rules, hooray!
*head desk*
So shift the context. A person without any sort of disability is seeking career advice. "What are you interested in?" is likely one of the first things asked.
"Well, it's kind of silly, but I really like comic books, especially Batman."
"OK, great, have you considered working in a comic book shop?" would be a likely reply.
"Yeah, I considered it, but I don't really like retail, I've never done well with the public."
"What about working for a comic book manufacturer? Do you have any interest in learning more about printing pre-processing?" the session might continue. Not, "Yes, liking Batman a lot is silly. And don't talk about Batman to your co-workers either. How about a nice job washing dishes?"
Like anyone, I succeed best at a job that is connected to my interests. I thrive in a corporate environment that is suited to my personality and temperament, and doesn't require me to conform to mainstream social behavior.
Matching autistic employees with jobs that suit their interests and personalities isn't radical stuff. Boston University's ICI reference Supporting Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Quality Employment Practices starts out saying the same thing,
It is imperative to match the job to the unique set of strengths, interests, and passions that the person with ASD brings to the situation.
From the self-advocate side, Joel Smith has an excellent collection of materials from his 2004 Autreat presentation Making Employment Fit.
So why did the "expert" at the career planning workshop never mention finding work that suited a "client's" interests? Or finding a corporate environment which is well suited for a person without needing to make large behavioral changes? Or even mentioning jobs outside of custodianship, food service, stockrooms, or assembly lines, all of which have typically mainstream social or corporate cultures?
No way to know for sure, but it's likely influenced by defect (medical model) thinking about disability. Seeing deficiencies instead of a human being will lead to considering every part of that person, including their interests, as pathology to be avoided or corrected. It will lead to not seeing a person who can benefit from the same type of career counciling as any other person. It will close off creative problem solving process. It will see only limited, stereotyped solutions.
If an autistic job seeker is considered to be just like a non-disabled job seeker with respect to finding a job that suits their interests, skills, and personality, then a comic book shop or printer might be recommended first for the Batman lover, instead behavior modification that denies the person their legitimate interests.
From skimming recent news stories, Wiz Kid Hacker Now Works to Stop Botnet Menace: Hired as Cyber-Crime Expert is one story of what can happen when an autistic person's interests are channeled into employment that is well suited to their interests and abilities. This story about an autistic man once diagnosed with intellectual disability who is now an Internal Bank Auditor with a Master's in Accounting is another. And this blog post is yet another.
