Disabled Student Development Essay

With the increasing information available in today’s 21st century education, administrators and educators must constantly strive to find ways to increase facilitation that can cultivate the needed skills and provide holistic development. At the same time, this endeavor must include disabled students who relentlessly try to cope with the standards of University education. Under this process, actors involved must look into actions provide that can cater to active content collaboration and promote standards of administration and interaction to the educational environment. In this context, the success of this endeavor must revolve around the collaboration of active parties namely (1) the state and government, (2) university, (3) parents and (4) community. Given this responsibility, it is essential that each actor become actively involved in the endeavor of reaching out and improving the welfare of special students within the campus environment. There should be active and available mechanisms that can incorporate lessons learned and cater to their needs not only with the academic but also in the interpersonal realm. Important Frameworks and Mechanisms for Change Recognizing the role of every actor in disabled education, there had been significant efforts to provide the needed new provisions and principles that see to it that these students get the most out of their education. This means that there have been numerous initiatives that have been implemented to adhere to the current needs of disabled students. Looking at it, the statistics showed a greater percentage of disabled students who have been reported to be undertaking higher education. It is said that â€Å"there are more students with documented disabilities in higher education than ever before — 140,142 freshmen reported having a disability in 1996† (Thomas, 2000, p. 1). Also, it is important to note that â€Å"there are 43 million Americans with disabilities, over 4 million students in the public school system have been identified as entitled to legal protection, and there are over 1. 5 million colleges students with disabilities on our campuses† (Lissner, 2003, p. 1). That is why there has been a renewed commitment to look into ways of improving the facilitation and instruction of disabled students. To supplement this endeavor, the state has enacted several laws that cater to the needs of the disabled. For example, the creation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is one important element that protects the welfare of disabled students. Under this framework, it â€Å"requires public schools to make available to all eligible children with disabilities a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment appropriate to their individual needs† (United States Department of Justice, 2006, p. 1). This then enabled the creation of several programs and initiatives that will adhere to the IDEA and ADA standards to help these individuals actively cope with instruction and still achieve learning despite these setbacks (King, 2006). Moreover, the creation of these frameworks have also placed the importance of other actors in the pursuing the objectives towards change and improvement Hindrances to Disabled Education Though there had been significant improvements in the way disabled education is facilitated, there continues to be setbacks as far as implementation and practice is concerned. One important element to note is the lack of commitment by educational institutions to bridge the tenets of a particular law towards application. This can be particularly observed from the educators and instructors who engage in such interaction. â€Å"Over the years, there has been considerable resistance by professors to alter the way they instruct, particularly if such alteration were to accommodate a student with a mental, as compared to a physical, disability† (Thomas, 2000, p. 1). Another setback towards effective application is the lack of appropriate funding to continuously support initiatives to improve and develop new programs for disabled students. Likewise, the increasing cost is a growing concern because of the increasing number of these students, the ratio among facilitators/administrators becomes huge. This means that the educational institution has to settle for lower standards in providing the needs of disabled students and come up with a compromise that would be beneficial for both parties (Thomas, 2000). In the end, these hindrances to disabled education must be taken into consideration to promote and foster improved capabilities of institutions and other important actors the needs of these students. By allowing institutions and perceptions about the issues to change, there can be more avenues wherein these students can tap into their individual potential and contribute further in their chosen professional careers. II. Description of the Project Operating on the standards set by the state concerning special education, this project is geared towards increasing the possibility and chances of these students achieving and actively competing with normal students as far as academic requirements are concerned. This program shall revolve around the capability of organizers to carry out support mechanisms that will intensify special student participation within the objectives and goals of the University. Such support arm shall be administered by providing bursaries to qualified individuals with the overall intention of shouldering the relative costs associated with special education. The objectives are as follows: †¢ Reach out to the needs of special students by providing financial assistance through bursaries to help these individuals adhere to the rising cost of University education †¢ Effectively appropriate the necessary funds to allocate on vital programs that are essential in the promotion of holistic growth of special students in the different specializations it wishes to study. †¢ Administering new support measures that will not only financially sustain the areas of study but also incorporate new arenas wherein special students can learn and function accordingly compared to normal University students †¢ Look for potential benefactors that will help provide the needed budget to help shoulder the cost of qualified individuals who have shown potential in providing the needed boost both in the academic and social realm. †¢ Carry out the responsibilities and end goals associated in the promotion and provision of the proposed program. Seeing this, the creation of end goals is also necessary so that potential donors and benefactors can actively decipher the overall capability of the program to function and meet its prescribed objectives. The inclusion of this agenda wishes to ensure that the overall initiative remains accountable and responsible in areas such as (1) monitoring, (2) administration and implementation and (3) feedbacks. Such processes can then give the proposal increased credibility and help sustain the elements necessary to bridge the gap between University education and its associated costs. This in turn can help special students feel competitive towards their counterparts and help meet the challenges of 21st century education. The following end goals are as follows: †¢ Provide bursaries to qualified special students in different specializations and foster the increasing diversity in University education †¢ Allow special students to learn and be educated without having to endure the burden of associated costs surrounding their respective education †¢ Help influence the community in carrying out better programs that will can help and generate changes in the way special education is practiced and facilitated †¢ Encourage new investments that will help further the cause of the proposed program †¢ Open up areas for cooperation and collaboration among the academic community and professional community by providing feedbacks and responses which can serve as measurement of its overall capability to apply its objectives in real scenarios. III. Projected Benefits and Results This section shall look into the projected benefits this program can provide special students and other actors involved. Since this agenda is geared towards giving opportunities for financial support, it is also necessary to outline the potential advantages this proposal can give to other concerned members particularly (1) parents, (2) the educational institution and (3) the community. By being able to draw out these inferences, the overall viability and feasibility of the program can be outlined and deciphered accordingly. Special Students Giving out bursaries for qualified special students is a good initiative toward widening the helping them out reach their potential. Since the impediments in pursuing the preferred profession revolves around physical disability and associated costs, special students find it difficult to cope with the standards of the educational community and opt to choose courses that is more suitable to their status. However, by giving them bursaries, it can help motivate individuals to persevere and struggle for acceptance because one obstacle is taken away from them. Likewise, the stress incurred because of costs in education are eliminated which helps students focus more on what is necessary. In here, they can actively start and provide the necessary goals that can harness increased achievement and competency in areas each one wishes to specialize. This then can allow them to focus more on what is necessary in obtaining their degrees and help them integrate it towards the realities in life. Parents This initiative is also an important boost for parents of special students. This is because it can alleviate them of the burden of having to shoulder all the necessary cost associated with special education. It can be argued that through the years, the expense of sending a disabled student to a University has been gradually increasing (refer to table 1). With this proposed program, parents can eliminate the stress associated with increasing cost and focus on their child’s educational development. Moreover, this initiative can help aide parents in better understanding the needs of their disabled children. This can encourage them to play a more responsible role in making sure that their children obtain the optimum amount of information necessary to make them competent and adhere to educational standards. Thus, this practice can help intensify the effort to increase proficiency and cultivate the potential of special students in University Education. Educational Institution Another important actor that can benefit from the proposed program is educational institution. Under this area, the University/College can help eliminate the relevant costs associated with special education and allocate it towards the expansion of content delivery and instruction among students and areas that need it the most. Like parents, there has been a considerable increase associated with helping disabled children cope up with the prescribed state and district standards (refer to table 2). This setback can in turn result to programs being implemented at its minimum level because of the many principles and guidelines it has to adhere. By taking away some costs associated with education, learning programs for disabled students can be maximized and implemented accordingly. This is an important area to consider because it can allow both educators and administrators to transcend with the needs of these students. Likewise, it can incorporate new methods and practices that can help boost and initiate the required elements in fostering not only student needs but also in adhering to the University’s vision and objectives. Community The incorporation of this proposed program has also relevant advantages towards the community wherein these disabled children belong. By allowing this initiative to function accordingly, it can generate the needed consensus among its members that help can be administered provided that a good proposal is given. This means that the community is committed towards its goals of increasing new avenues for development and harmonizes efforts in enhancing community building measures. In addition, the community is seen as an important actor in this agenda because they can serve as the main contributors in alleviating the costs associated with special education. By encouraging benefactors to actively invest in the process, not only shall they be serving the needs of these disabled students but also foster the required motivation for others to follow as well. Thus, these processes can encourage an open awareness and increase the possibility of finding tools to bring about change. IV. Pre-Application: Contributions and Funding To actively incorporate the needed objectives and goals of this program, the members shall serve as an intermediary for potential donors and contributors who wish to provide the necessary funding to support the programs’ overall initiatives. This means encouraging different sectors in the industry to actively invest in this agenda as a form of marketing strategy to help boost sales. Likewise, this is another way of tapping into several potentials in the University which they deem provide greater opportunities for their growth and sustenance. Likewise, local and district agencies shall also be requested to contribute a certain amount to help incorporate and pursue the objective of intensifying their efforts to reach out to the needs of disabled students. Their help can facilitate better avenues for achievement and growth within the University. Moreover, this can adhere to their strategy of bringing out the best out of each disabled student and harness the elements necessary for cultivation and growth. Lastly, civic groups are also welcome to carry out their volunteer work and encourage lobbying among state legislators to actively support the endeavor. In this process, they can act both as mediators and promoters of this proposed agenda. Our group shall actively coordinate with interested parties who wish to share their time and effort in catering to the needs of our target population. V. Application of the Program After establishing the required objectives and end goals, this proposed program shall now outline several parameters of its application and the areas of qualification that will induce the objectives given. At the same time, this section shall cover the screening process wherein the process of selection among potential candidates shall be highlighted. This is essential because it can help provide transparency and honesty in the way each candidate shall be judged. Lastly, a detailed budget plan shall be incorporated to help better understand the areas of support. This in turn shall help applicants who wishes to apply comprehend on the scope and limitations of such initiative. Qualifications and Screening A. Preliminary Phase Under the qualifications area, for the disabled student to be actively included in the screening process, there are several criteria to be followed. In this manner, this can help ensure that the committee-in-charge can actively judge who can go on to the next step of the screening process. The following qualifications must be shown together with corresponding documents: †¢ Official records coming from a medical professional concerning the disability of the student †¢ Classroom observations from educators and parent observations concerning a particular disability exhibited by the applicant †¢ Finished instructional materials with feedbacks and recommendations from qualified professionals who oversaw the process of facilitation under the mandate of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, State Education Agencies and Local Agencies (NIMAS, 2008). B. Interview Phase In this area, those individuals who qualify in the preliminary phase shall now be scheduled for an interview wherein the grant committee shall get to know the candidate a little bit more. In this process, the overall goal and intention is not to check the capability and experience of the person but rather check whether his vision and goals coincides with what the proposed program believes in. In addition, the interviewers wish to find out whether these disabled students can actively promote and seek out the needed areas for their personal improvement and growth. C. Processing and Implementation The last part involves informing of short listed applicants that they have been successfully chosen to be given bursaries on their preferred program. In here, they shall be given a formal orientation of how the overall process works and what areas shall be covered by the proposed initiative. At the same time, the required standards and expectations the plan entails on these students e. g. average grade minimum, amount of coverage, allowances, etc. This shall then be actively coordinated with the University/College a particular disabled student is attending and implementation shall be administered upon approval and verification of notice.