ECSE 421 Week 6

This week we continued to focus on the sub systems of the family. The two main focuses were fathers and siblings. These two sub systems within the family are very important because they are the daily interactions with the child who has a disability.

Fathers are important because they complement mothers in the family. We read several articles as a class that said fathers are invaluable and they are worthless in the family. I would argue this to the death because I know that without my father I would not be who I am today.

We also had students in the class talk about their siblings who have disabilities. There were many stages of the grief cycle displayed. It is important for siblings to share their experiences because they are able to show empathy for one another as well as learn from their experiences with their siblings.

The resource that helped me the most this week was my peers. They were the ones who shared raw experiences they have had and helped me gain a different perspective on how separate members of the family deal with someone who has a disability.

To apply this in the future I am prepared to take into account helping fathers feel included as well as helping siblings have a voices. The point of an IFSP is to provide the family with a plan to help them all cope with each other and the child who has a disability. My peers did great in making sure the discussion board was meaningful. They also shared their experiences in class which added to the class discussion.

“Push fear of the unknown out of your head and worry about today and what is right in front of you.” –Alex Parrott (Fathers PDF)

This week I have felt kind of stuck in my HWD project. As I talked to Sister Swenson I was able to expand my thinking beyond the jobs within Early Intervention, but also to the disabilities I will be working with. I will research 3 new disabilities that I am unfamiliar with and what they will need within early intervention. I am also getting ready to do my professional interview to gain more perspective into the field. I have 2 ideas of people I can interview and I will be contacting them this week.