Application of Self-Determination by Students with Disabilities in Acquiring STEM Internship Accommodations
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| Title: | Application of Self-Determination by Students with Disabilities in Acquiring STEM Internship Accommodations |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Bradley S. Duerstock, Carlos Taylor, Sharon Field |
| Source: | Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability. 2024 37(3):207-215. |
| Availability: | Association on Higher Education and Disability. 8015 West Kenton Circle Suite 230, Huntersville, NC 28078. Tel: 704-947-7779; Fax: 704-948-7779; e-mail: JPED@ahead.org; Web site: https://www.ahead.org/professional-resources/publications/jped |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 9 |
| Publication Date: | 2024 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Descriptive |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Self Determination, Students with Disabilities, Internship Programs, Academic Accommodations (Disabilities), Physical Disabilities, Employment Potential, STEM Careers, Work Environment, College Students, Partnerships in Education |
| Geographic Terms: | Indiana |
| ISSN: | 2379-7762 2328-3343 |
| Abstract: | Many students with physical disabilities graduating with a postsecondary STEM degree do not acquire full-time employment. Work experiences can provide undergraduates with authentic experiential learning to help them better prepare for successful STEM careers. Internships provide an important transitional learning phase for students with disabilities to practice necessary job tasks and determine what accommodations or assistive technologies they need to effectively accomplish the requirements of a specific job. As students with physical disabilities transition from a postsecondary education institution with student support services to work environments with different protocols for obtaining accommodations, they may not know what accommodations are truly needed or how to obtain them. We propose that college students with disabilities who are exposed to principles of self-determination (SD) theory during Gregory S. Fehribach Center internships are better prepared to identify and utilize effective job accommodations in STEM and other work settings. This practice brief discusses the importance of developing critical learning skills rooted in SD during internships, which has resulted in beneficial results for both interns with physical disabilities and employers who may have never worked with a physically disabled employee. The accommodation processes implemented during the Fehribach Center internship program are correlated with the steps of the Action Model for Self-Determination (Field & Hoffman, 1994, 2015). We believe that these SD skills for acquiring accommodations can be applied by students during other transitional learning phases such as going on to graduate school or seeking other jobs. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2024 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1446099 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Many students with physical disabilities graduating with a postsecondary STEM degree do not acquire full-time employment. Work experiences can provide undergraduates with authentic experiential learning to help them better prepare for successful STEM careers. Internships provide an important transitional learning phase for students with disabilities to practice necessary job tasks and determine what accommodations or assistive technologies they need to effectively accomplish the requirements of a specific job. As students with physical disabilities transition from a postsecondary education institution with student support services to work environments with different protocols for obtaining accommodations, they may not know what accommodations are truly needed or how to obtain them. We propose that college students with disabilities who are exposed to principles of self-determination (SD) theory during Gregory S. Fehribach Center internships are better prepared to identify and utilize effective job accommodations in STEM and other work settings. This practice brief discusses the importance of developing critical learning skills rooted in SD during internships, which has resulted in beneficial results for both interns with physical disabilities and employers who may have never worked with a physically disabled employee. The accommodation processes implemented during the Fehribach Center internship program are correlated with the steps of the Action Model for Self-Determination (Field & Hoffman, 1994, 2015). We believe that these SD skills for acquiring accommodations can be applied by students during other transitional learning phases such as going on to graduate school or seeking other jobs. |
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| ISSN: | 2379-7762 2328-3343 |
