Martha Blue-Banning

Dimensions of Family and Professional Partnerships: Constructive Guidelines for Collaboration:

The development of collaborative partnerships between parents and professionals is too often unsuccessful. One reason for this failure may be the lack of empirical understanding of the components of interpersonal partnerships. Using qualitative inquiry, 33 focus groups were conducted with adult family members of children with and without disabilities and service providers and administrators. In addition, 32 individual interviews were conducted with non-English-speaking parents and their service providers. Indicators of professional behavior facilitative of collaborative partnerships were identified. These indicators were organized into six broad themes: (a) Communication, (b) Commitment, (c) Equality, (d) Skills, (e) Trust, and (f) Respect. The specific meaning of each theme is described, including similarities and differences between professionals and family members. Policy, practice, and future research implications are discussed.

From Parent Education to Partnership Education: A Call for a Transformed Focus

We strongly agree with the fundamental premise of Mahoney et al. (in this issue) that parent education can be philosophically compatible with family-centered approaches. We agree that parent education has fallen into disfavor over the last 20 years, and we welcome the opportunity to reexamine this important component of early intervention. Within this general agreement, we highlight some cautions about traditional parent education and offer a transformed focus of partnership education.

Parents' Facilitation of Friendships Between Their Children With a Disability and Friends Without a Disability

This article is concerned with parental facilitation of friendships between children with a disability and peers without a disability. Previous research on typical children has pointed out that parent facilitation has enabled them to establish a more active social life. We use Schaffner and Buswells facilitation framework (i.e., finding opportunities, making interpretations, and making accommodations) to organize the grounded strategies used by four Hispanic families, all of whom have a son or daughter with a disability who is experiencing a successful friendship with a peer without a disability. Data collection involved 13 semistructured group and individual interviews, with 31 respondents, including parents, children/youth with and without disabilities, teachers, and other family members. Evidence from these interviews shows that the selected families, particularly mothers, have actively facilitated friendships most frequently by finding opportunities (which always involved some level of interpretation and accommodation). They also generally facilitated friendships by exposing their children to a wide range of potential friends, rather than prioritizing a relationship with a specific person. Of the parents of children without a disability, two mothers, who were also service providers for the individuals with disabilities, specifically facilitated a friendship between the individual and their own son or daughter. The discussion highlights key issues for future research.

Hispanic Youth/Young Adults with Disabilities: Parents' Visions for the Future

The rapid increase of culturally and linguistically diverse populations in the United States has important implications for service delivery. Addressing the needs of individuals transitioning from adolescence to adulthood and their families requires that outcomes of service recognize the cultural differences of people with disabilities. The Hispanic population is one of the fastest growing of the culturally and linguistically diverse populations in the United States. To provide effective support services, a clearer understanding is needed of the perspectives of Hispanic parents of youth/young adults with disabilities concerning their hopes and expectations for their childs future. To address this issue, focus group interviews were conducted with 38 Hispanic parents of youth/young adults with developmental disabilities. The findings suggest that Hispanic parents have a diversity of hopes and expectations concerning future living, employment, and free-time options for their children with disabilities. Key recommendations focus on the implications for education and human service systems as well as directions for future research.

The Perspectives of Students with and without Disabilities on Inclusive Schools.

The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of students with and without disabilities being educated in inclusive schools, documenting their perceptions of the culture of their school, inclusion, and the practices that were implemented to support all students. Focus groups were conducted with 86 students with and without disabilities from six schools that were recognized as exemplars of inclusive schoolwide practices. Three major themes emerged: (a) students’ sense of belonging in their school culture, (b) inclusion and its impact on students, and (c) school and classroom practices, such as positive behavior support systems, co-teaching, and instructional practices related to student self-determination and direction, feedback and re-teaching, multiple means of representation and expression, and technology utilization. Implications of these findings for implementing inclusive practices in other schools are discussed.

Examining the Experiences and Decisions of Parents/Guardians: Participant Directing the Supports and Services of Adults With Significant Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Participant direction is a service delivery model in which the consumer of public benefits, or his or her surrogate decision maker, exercises some level of choice and control over the consumer’s supports and services. In this case study, the authors examined the decisions and experiences of parents/guardians who directed supports and services for an adult with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities (SIDD). Respondents included the parents/guardian of the adult as well as others in the circle of support identified by the parents/guardians. Data analysis revealed an overarching theme in which respondents perceived participant direction as a means to achieve an end, with the end being their desired outcomes for the adult with SIDD. Implications for policy include developing and providing supportive services to adults with SIDD and their parents/guardians due to the increased responsibilities associated with directing supports and services for the adult with a SIDD.

Fostering Family–School and Community–School Partnerships in Inclusive Schools: Using Practice as a Guide

Partnerships between school staff, families, and community members are vital for ensuring the success of all students in inclusive schools. This article reports the results of a synthesis of two original studies: one study that examined the perspectives of family members and another study that examined the perspectives of community partners in developing partnerships with school staff at six inclusive knowledge development sites located in five geographic regions within the United States. The current synthesis study analyzes the original studies’ overlapping themes to inform concentrated efforts aimed at strengthening family and community partnerships in inclusive schools. Themes of this synthesis study include positive, inviting, and inclusive school culture; strong administrative leadership driven by a clear vision of inclusion; attributes of trusting partnerships; and opportunities for reciprocal partnerships and involvement. Implications for practice and research are discussed.

Identifying and Defining the Structures That Guide the Implementation of Participant Direction Programs and Support Program Participants A Document Analysis

Participant direction (PD) programs offer the individual with a disability or his or her surrogate decision maker varying degrees of choice and control over the individual’s supports and services. We conducted a document analysis using grounded theory methods to identify the design elements of participant direction programs in long-term care. We analyzed 53 documents across multiple disabilities and funding sources. We identified and defined two major components of participant direction programs: policy and aid and assistance. The component of policy was represented by three structures that guide implementation of participant direction programs: (a) option to participant-direct, (b) participation stipulations, and (c) provider qualifications. The component of aid and assistance was represented by 11 structures that support program participants: (a) financial management services, (b) employer of record, (c) emergency back-up, (d) worker registry, (e) advice/counseling, (f) managerial assistance, (g) information dissemination products, (h) service quality monitoring, (i) service coordination, (j) participant training, and (k) provider training. Each structure was represented by one or more continua depicting the range of choice and control participants may have over the structure. The findings of this study have implications for improving the standardization of research on participant direction programs and the development of long-term care policy.

Increasing the Social Skills of a Student With Autism Through a Literacy-Based Behavioral Intervention:

Social skills instruction is as important for many students with disabilities as instruction in core academic subjects. Frequently, students with autism require individualized social skills instruction to experience success in general education settings. Literacy-based behavioral Interventions (LBBIs) are an effective intervention that instructors may use to increase positive social skills among students. This article describes LBBIs, provides step-by-step instructions for creating an LBBI, and describes the benefits of LBBIs.

Variables Within a Household That Influence Quality-of-Life Outcomes for Individuals With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Living in the Community Discovering the Gaps

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families face many important decisions as the individuals with IDD enter adulthood, including where to live. Although there are numerous housing options for individuals with IDD outside of institutions, there is a paucity of information available to inform them about how various characteristics of these settings can affect their quality of life. The purpose of this study was to determine key variables within a household that influence individual quality of life (QOL) of people with IDD living in community settings, thereby enabling these individuals and their families to make informed decisions regarding housing options available to them.