Why We Need More Than Inclusion

Reaching full potential. Becoming independent. We want these things for our children. For kids with disabilities, providing the assistance they need while trying to achieve these goals is like walking a tightrope. Help from even the most well-intentioned people, often is not helpful. It's not just educators, parents unintentionally hold their children back as well. Dr. John McNaught has made it his life's work to reshape how we teach students with disabilities. Early on, he realized parents need to be educated too. The lesson plan: SELF-DETERMINATION. He has witnessed first hand the transformation that happens when you give children the tools to make decisions for themselves. He has watched students move from self-contained classrooms, to general education classrooms, and onto college campuses. Take a listen and learn how powerful self-determination and meaningful inclusion can be when done right. The Odyssey: Parenting. Caregiving. Disability. The Center for Family Involvement provides informational and emotional support to people with disabilities and their families. All of our services are free. We just want to help. We know how hard this can be because we're in it with you. You can learn more about I'm Determined here. You can read the research article Dr. McNaught's mentioned about struggles students face because they don't understand their disability here. TRANSCRIPT Welcome to The Odyssey. Parenting, Caregiving, Disability. I'm Erin Croyle, the creator and host. The Odyssey podcast explores the turn our lives take when a loved one has a disability. My first child was born with Down's Syndrome in 2010. His diagnosis hit me like a freight train. It's the most common chromosomal condition diagnosed in the United States. Yet so little is known. I was a new parent with a newborn son who was the first person I ever met with Down syndrome. I had so much to learn. So I started right there next to him in the neonatal ICU. Now I'm here working with the Center for Family Involvement at VCU's Partnership for People with Disabilities. This podcast digs deep into the joys and hardships we face. We're going to celebrate how amazing the odyssey of parenting, caregiving and disability is. But we won't shy away from the tough stuff either. Something a lot of families struggle with are the many roadblocks our children face throughout their lives. These roadblocks are in our communities, our workforce, our schools, even in ourselves. Thankfully, more and more bridges to independence are being built for our children. One of those bridges is a program called I'm Determined. This state directed project funded by the Virginia Department of Education. Works with youth, especially those with disabilities, to help them steer the course of their lives rather than being the passenger. It's all about self-determination. The program isn't just for youth, though. There's a family component that helps parents learn how to better listen to and support their children. And there are resources for educators as well. Joining me today is Dr. John McNaught. he was one of the first people in Virginia to implement student directed IEP meetings. His focus has always been bringing the student voice to the forefront. He's also the founding member and principal investigator of the I'm Determined Project. so. John, I'm so excited to talk to you. I've known about I'm determined for years, but last year was the first time I was able to attend the summit working with its communications team. I have to be honest, while I've known about I'm determined for ages, it's hard to fully grasp what it's about without being there. I would love to start with you as a founding member. Summarizing, I'm determined in a nutshell, So in a nutshell, I'm determined is all about opportunities to practice self-determined behaviors in an environment that supports those behaviors. And so it's that simple. I think a lot of times we where we fail with self determination is we do a little bit of an instruction and we toss a kid into an potentially unsupportive or scary environment. And what if we approached life that way? What if the first time you drive a car, you know there's no instruction or there you read the manual and then you just get in the car and drive by yourself with nobody there. And so it's all about scaffolding supports providing that environment, right? You become competent in your ability to do things like advocate or problem solve, and you do it around people who are, you know, supportive. And that gives you the ability and the confidence then to go try that somewhere else like school. So that's how you know, in a nutshell, that's how I would describe it. There's a lot of probably 10,000 intertwining pieces that make that happen. But that's the best case. John, before we dive in deeper, there's something that kind of always intrigues me reading your full bio, right? I wonder...