Self-Advocacy and the importance in Executive Function Coaching

By Sarah Gossman, Engaging Minds Instructor

Self-advocacy is the ability to effectively communicate what your needs are to others. It consists of 3 main elements: understanding your needs, knowing what kind of support might help, and communicating these needs to others. Just like any other executive function skill, it takes time and practice to fully understand and develop self-advocacy skills. Executive functions live in the pre-frontal cortex of the brain, which is the last part of the brain to fully develop. Despite the slow maturation of this zone, there are targeted strategies and supports we can put into place to help students with their executive function skill development. Let’s take a look more specifically at what we can do help students further learn how to self-advocate:

The Importance of Self-Awareness: What Do I Need?

The first step in the process is to help students understand their needs. What are your relative strengths? What are your relative weaknesses? To enable this kind of self-awareness, try facilitating ongoing reflective conversations. Help students see that we all have relative strengths and weaknesses, and that identifying them is an asset. Here are some tips for tapping into this kind of thinking:

As a parent, talk to your child about your own relative strengths and weaknesses. This will help destigmatize the topic and underscore the fact that no one is perfect
Ask open-ended questions. This might look like a simple rephrase; Convert “How did that test go?” into “What strategies helped you feel ready for that test?” The latter will promote a more fleshed out, thoughtful response rather than a one-word answer.
Look for opportunities to engage in reflective conversations. This could be “zoomed in” to reflecting on one specific task (exs. A test, project, paper, etc), or “zoomed out” to a more general progress check-in (ex. Upcoming parent-teacher conferences) The more frequently you can help your child tap into reflective thinking patterns, the more practice you are giving them engaging in this type of thought process.
When it comes to articulating specific challenges, help students avoid the “I don’t know” trap by prompting them to dig a bit deeper. If your child says they “don’t get” the math homework, for example, ask them to identify which part they don’t get, and which exact step they got stuck on. That way, they will be able to share the details with a teacher and/or peer when they move into the communication phase below.
If your child is on an educational plan, such as an IEP or 504 plan, help them understand their learning accommodations. This way, students know what they need to be successful and can advocate for themselves when appropriate.

Choosing the Right Type of Support

When students run into a challenge, ask what they think would help. Try to let them answer for themselves! If they’re stuck or unsure, offer structured choices and allow them to choose what solution is best for them. This also provides a good learning opportunity if the solution they chose did not work, creating a “teachable moment” for them to reflect on their choice and how to make a better one in the future.

Support can look like:

Asking the teacher for help: this can be done in person or via email! Asking a teacher or professional staff such as a guidance counselor or support teacher is a great way to ensure a student has a solid understanding of the material.
- Pro tip: Help your child save teacher email addresses in a Google Doc or notes app for easy access!
- Pro tip: Help your child read class syllabi and/or teacher websites. These provide important information on how to reach teachers with questions, concerns, etc. If the teacher offers regularly occurring office hours or tutorials, that information will likely be listed as well.
Asking a trusted classmate: maybe the student has a quick clarification question that can be easily answered by another classmate. In this case, you can encourage your child to lean on peers for support!
- Pro tip: Help your child make a group chat with trusted classmates to have a digital space to ask questions.

Constantly reinforce that asking for help is a good thing. Students benefit from positive feedback and reinforcement. Encourage them to practice and continue asking for help when needed.

Praise students when they do speak up and ask for help. For some, asking for help is daunting- especially with a teacher, tutor, coach, or anyone in a position of authority.
M odel asking for help yourself. Demo how you ask for help from subject matter experts when appropriate. This could involve simple tasks like asking the librarian for help finding a book, asking for directions when you are lost, etc.

Communicating Your Needs:

Asking for help can be intimidating to students! It can be awkward or uncomfortable to some admitting they need further support or guidance. Many of us feel unnecessary pressure to figure things out on our own. This doesn’t have to be the case! If we assist students with the language of self-advocacy, it can go a long way in creating a comfortable environment for students to navigate these conversations.

Give example language! Here is a resource that has some language students can adopt and modify to their liking. Other helpful tips include:
- Having example emails/ a general framework for email communications with teachers or professional staff
- Practice asking for help! Roleplay certain conversations and scenarios. The more comfortable a student feels asking for help, the more likely they will do it independently!

Self-advocacy is an essential life skill for all age groups! The better that we can assess our needs and communicate them, the better self-advocates we become. Self-advocacy skills are crucial for a students’ development in and outside of the classroom. It may take a few tries to fully feel comfortable, but the more we practice, the more confident we become!

Links:

https://thriveworks.com/help-with/communication/self-advocacy/

https://www.bgca.org/news-stories/2023/July/what-is-self-advocacy-tips-for-speaking-up/