Date of Award
12-2016
Thesis Date
12-2016
Degree Type
Honors Thesis-Unrestricted
Degree Name
B.S.
Department
Education
Degree Program
Special Education and Human Development
Director
Janice Janz
Abstract
This thesis’s purpose is twofold. The first purpose is to present both information about what twice-exceptionality is and to make recommendations based on the existing research as to how parents or guardians can become more effective advocates and advocate for effective programming and services for their children who are twice-exceptional. While this thesis focuses on a specific subset of twice-exceptional students, those who are both gifted and have autism, a good deal of the material presented will be applicable to children who are gifted with learning disabilities. Effective parent advocacy looks the same across exceptionalities: producing the best educational experience based on the child’s unique needs. Strengths-based programming has been demonstrated to benefit twice-exceptional students no matter the disability, however the areas of deficit will vary depending on the specific disability a child has and his/her unique learning profile. The resources for information on special education law and twice-exceptionality will be useful to parents regardless of the twice-exceptional child’s disability.
The second, and I feel most important, purpose of the thesis is to provide those parents/guardians with a “Quick Start Guide to Advocacy” to help them get started on the path to becoming the most effective advocate they can be for their child(ren). While educators and school administrators are expected to have a solid understanding of the rights and responsibilities of all stakeholders, many times parents are thrust into the world of special and gifted education with no preexisting knowledge. The aim of this thesis is to help bridge this gap for parents and guardians of this unique subset of students.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Kennedy, Tara, "Research Based Recommendation: Effective Parent Advocacy for Students who are Twice-Exceptional, Academically Gifted With Autism" (2016). Senior Honors Theses. 79.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/honors_theses/79
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this honors thesis in whole or part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the honors thesis.