Parent Advocacy, the Professionals\u27 Role—From a Parent\u27s Perspective

One might ask, what is advocacy? How do parents learn how to advocate for their child\u27s needs. If a parent doesn\u27t advocate for her child\u27s needs, who will? Can advocacy skills be taught? If so, how do you teach someone to become an advocate? What are some for the tools that are useful when advocating? As a parent, where do you start? As a professional, how do you guide the parent and lead them to fulfill their role as an advocate? Let\u27s step back for a moment and consider some possible answers to these questions. What is advocacy? Bartleby\u27s American Heritage Dictionary defines advocacy as the act of pleading or arguing in favor of something, such a cause, idea or policy; active support (2008). Therefore, the parent advocate can be defined as a parent who argues in favor of technology, intervention, services, and educational accommodations that they believe best meet the unique needs of the individual child. Can advocacy skills be taught? The best answer to this question is one that comes from the voice of experience. Nan Ellen East, parent of a 40-year-old son with hearing loss and executive director of the Arkansas Disability Rights Center shares her perspectives on parent advocacy