Hold up.
Just to be clear, this is not a feel-good, marshmallow-fluff kind-of-post. It is a hard post, one that was hard for me to write and one that is hard to read. You may not like it or agree with it. My finger lingered a long moment over that “publish post” button before I finally hit it. But, I did. Because even if it is met with scorn, my students need to hear this.
We (yes we – SLPs, teachers, administrators, counselors, psychologists) are failing our kids when it comes to employment.
Ah Employment. That one little word that is, or should be,the end all be all. It is the light at the end of the tunnel. The goal post at the end of the field. It’s a huge reason kids go through 13+years of school. It’s what our eyes should be steadfastedly (is that a word?) set on. It’s why we do what we do. We need to get our kids (yes, ours-the ones with language disorders, the ones with social difficulties, the ones no likes to be around) EMPLOYED.
Our shortcomings are perhaps no more emphasized than with our students with autism.
According to the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, young adults with autism spectrum disorders have worse employment outcomes in the first few years after high school than do peers who have other types of disabilities.
- “Not only was the employment rate low for young people with ASDs when compared with young adults with other disabilities, but pay for jobs — if they got them — was significantly lower compared to young adults with other types of disabilities,” said Anne M. Roux, senior research coordinator at the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute.
- They also report that just over half (53.4 percent) of the young adults on the autism spectrum they surveyed had ever worked for pay outside the home within the first eight years after leaving high school. In addition, only about one in five (20.9 percent) young adults with ASDs worked full-time at a current or most-recent job. Average pay was $8.10 per hour.
Okay, so we know it’s hard for our kids with autism to get employed. This piqued my curiosity-what about anyone with a disability? So, I researched some more and found this website for employment rates for any person in the U.S. with a disability in the year 2012 (this was the most recent year I could choose).
Here’s what I found:
- In the year 2012, an estimated 33.5 percent (plus or minus 0.28 percentage points) of non-institutionalized, male or female, with a disability, ages 21-64, all races, regardless of ethnicity, with all education levels in the United States were employed.
Uhhhh….33.5%???
That’s it!? I’m working hard. WE ARE ALL WORKING HARD. But something is not working.
When I was in college, I had the amazing privilege of working as a graduate assistant in our office for students with disabilities. I coordinated note-takers for students, helped get text-to-speech on their computers, provided test proctoring and (my favorite) gave individual advice to students on study-skills. I saw dreams being fulfilled, visions coming true and hard work pay off.
But…., I also saw the opposite. Because this was a public university, there are no restrictions on who is accepted. True story. For 2 years, I worked with a very sweet young man right out of high school with an IQ of 54 try to become a social worker. In high school, he had sat in IEP meeting after IEP meeting where everyone around the table said “You are such a nice young man. You can be anything you want to be.” So…this man, backed by his school and parents, set off for college. Two long years later, and now in debt up to his eyeballs, his grades finally reached the point where the university would not let him re-enroll. When I asked him what his plan was, he replied “Re-enroll next year when I’m allowed again.”
Society’s Fallacies
Our society has jumped on a few philosophies that I believe instead of helping our kids, are hurting them. They sound really good and are really nice to say, but in reality, are just marshmallow fluff. Our kids are inundated with these types of sayings. Here are few popular ones:
- “If you believe it, you can be it.”
- “Go for your passion, and you’ll never fail.”
- “Follow your dreams”
- “Your job should make you happy.”
Every year, to complete a section on their IEP, I ask each student what they would like to be when they are older. The most common two answers:
- Video-Game Designer
- Veterinarian
Cringe.
Yes, cringe. Actually, if I hear one more “I want to be a video game designer so I can play video games all day long” I think I may just scream.
This is where I may be hated. You may think I am literally the meanest, worst SLP ever for discouraging a sweet little child from their life-long dream. If you do, I would tell you to sit and talk to my college student (who…5 years later, I’m sure is still trying to be a social worker) and then we can see who is the cruel one. Check out this great response from Mike Rowe on Dirty Jobs for more about this topic.
Here’s why these sayings are just not working.
Belief/Passion Does Not Equal Reality. No matter how hard I believe I will be a great gymnastic, I will never be. I’m just not flexible and believing harder will not make it so. Trust me, when I was eight and enrolled in gymnastics, I truly believed that I would someday be great. I practiced and practiced and here I am today, still unable to touch my toes. And, on the flip side, when I had my surgery last year, I wanted my surgeon to actually know what he was doing, not just believe in his talent as a surgeon. “Okay so surgery is your passion? Great! Go for it!” Not.
And…I don’t always enjoy my job (GASP!). It’s true. I love it, I find enjoyment in it, but my job will never truly fulfill my happiness. Other things such as who I am as a person, the belief that I’m doing the best possible job I can, morality, and my faith are things that truly bring a person joy. Whether I’m an SLP, stay-at-home mommy (my true “dream-job”), or a janitor, I hope that it would not shake my joy and who I am as a person and I want to portray this to my students.
Our students need honesty-not cruelty, not fluff. Loving Honesty.
Is it possible my student will go on to be an amazing video game designer? Sure. But I want him going in with eyes wide open. So, I went on to Monster.com and searched for “video game designer.”
Currently, in the U.S., there are 5 job openings: 2 in California, 1 in New York, 1 in Michigan, and 1 in Nevada.
Clicking on one of these 5 jobs available, I’m taken to the job description and qualification page. As you can see, these skills are very difficult for anyone, but will pose even greater difficulties for some of our students.
When I did a search on veterinarian jobs in the U.S., 13 came up.
My point is not to discourage our kids from fulfilling their dreams. However, we (yes, we) need to be taking a hard look at what we saying and how we are helping our kids find employment.
So, I asked myself: How can we be more lovingly honest with my students?
- Ask questions. My students are my treasures. We need to know them-what they enjoy, what they like to do, their favorite subject in school and also their dislikes. We can use this information to start them thinking about the future.
- Be honest. Lovingly honest, but honest. Students need to know that a job (any job) requires hard work. What can they do now? Work hard. For now, school is their job. How they act in school will reflect someday of how they will treat a job.
- Make students aware of the job descriptions they seek. Look these up on the computer with them (so they know you’re not making them up). Highlight what skills they will really need to be good at and practice right now in school (be it math, reading, communication). Also let them know what they will NOT be doing (i.e. playing video games all day).
- Do a job search and make your students aware of the availability of specific jobs. (Is this job only available right in California? Tell them).
- Clearly communicate with parents in meetings (yes-very, very hard). As a new mom, I like to think my little girl will be able to be whatever she wants when she is older. And she can be, but she needs to pursue it with eyes wide open.
- Teach and communicate skills that are transferable to any job such as hard-working, taking responsibility for actions, and good social skills.
- Emphasize the true source of joy and the ability to be happy despite circumstances (whether this be in math class, at Disney World or your someday job).
This year I’m practicing loving honesty with my students. What about you?
Come as you are. Leave encouraged.
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Amy Roberts says
February 8, 2015 at 12:21 pmBEST. POST. EVER. Thank you!
Chelsea says
February 8, 2015 at 12:56 pmThank you for your loving honesty. It’s obviously apparent that you love and care for your students. Being real with our students and their parents can be tough but it’s a necessary part of our job!
Suzanne Roberts says
February 8, 2015 at 1:57 pmThe title of your post caught my attention immediately in my blog feed. I have been working in non-public special Ed schools since 1998. I work with the students whose needs cannot be met in the public school system. I completely agree with your post. I work in a great school where we have transition specialist as a part of the IEP team and we only offer a work based completer program for our high school students. This is what our students really need-specific training in how to have and hold onto a job. We still have students with unrealistic job goals, but at least we are trying to head them in the right direction. I think we need to be gently realistic with students as well as their parents. We are doing them a much better service in life if we are guiding them to a path where they most likely can be successful as opposed to a path where they might end up lost. Thank you for finding the courage to publish this post.
Leslie Herbert says
February 8, 2015 at 2:58 pmGreat article! I’m glad you shared it. I believe your opinion is worth practicing! Honestly!
Annie Doyle says
February 8, 2015 at 3:17 pmThis is an amazing post and I understand how hard it must have been for you to click that “publish” button. I agree with you wholeheartedly. Many have become afraid of telling the truth for fear that they will be viewed as discouraging or unsupportive. The other issue is I feel the high schools have, for reasons unknown to me, eliminated many of the trades sections. Our country NEEDS people to keep its infrastructure strong. Is a plumber a bad job? I think not. Tell that to the gentleman we just paid $400.00 to for less than an hour’s work! I’m dismayed by the direction education has moved and pray daily that the pendulum will start to swing back to center. Meanwhile, you keep doing what your heart and your brain tells you is in the best interest of your students. You are remarkable!
Mia says
February 8, 2015 at 5:09 pmIncredible post on such an important subject! There is a fine line between building confidence and being dishonest with our students and I tiptoe on that line everyday at my job. At some point, everyone needs to get realistic. I have the quote “Speak the truth even if your voice shakes” in my room but it’s hard thing to practice (like you, I also fear people will perceive me as mean). The story about the young man trying to become a social worker breaks my heart. Part of the problem is that so many schools (definitely where I work) no longer offer trade/skills classes since the push for academics is so huge. Tradespeople are crucial to our society, and we need to start encouraging that more, as well as teaching kids the difference between a hobby and a potential career. Besides, I’m pretty sure many of tradespeople make a lot more than we SLPs in the schools do!! It took a lot of courage to write this, and I sincerely applaud you for it. It’s clear you adore your students and they’re lucky you are in their lives.
Hope says
February 8, 2015 at 5:42 pmThank you for hitting the publish button. I agree with Annie that schools, and society as a whole, have decided that a college degree should be the ultimate goal for everyone, and most students have lost the opportunity to explore other types of careers. I feel for the student you worked with who wanted to be a social worker. Happiness comes from reaching our (achievable) goals. We are setting students up for long-term disappointment when we don’t help them set achievable goals. Keep up the good work in the best interest of your students!
Liz Boyle says
February 8, 2015 at 6:13 pmGreat post! Your intro was attention getting, but in a way it really is a “feel good” post. You start with what a student thinks they want, explore what it means, and find different ways they could get there. There is no need to ever tell a student that they “can’t” do something. Most of the time students randomly pick a job with little to no knowledge of what it entails. As language experts, it really should be our job to help walk our kids through the process. One of my schools is a high school and we explore career options as an awesome language based transition activity, but really I could probably do a better job exploring diverse careers starting with preschool! Thanks for exploring this important topic!
Nanette says
February 9, 2015 at 12:40 amThank you for being brave enough to post this well-written, informative piece! I agree that it’s hard to be the one at the table being honest with families and that is something that I really need to work on in the very near future. We don’t want to sound negative or imply that you cannot have dreams, but we can help be realistic about those dreams. I am hoping to be brave enough to share this with a family that I am working with now- wish me luck!
SLP Runner says
February 9, 2015 at 1:21 pmI’m glad you pressed the post button. Thank you. This is a very much needed reality check.
Chelsea says
February 9, 2015 at 2:43 pmSuch a great post! I agreed with every word!! Awesome job!
Meredith says
February 9, 2015 at 4:32 pmFantastic article! I love how you mention that work doesn’t and shouldn’t fulfill one’s happiness. Thanks so much for posting!
Hillary Rose says
February 10, 2015 at 2:32 amLove this post. And I think it’s definitely applicable to most students right now, not just those with disabilities.
Valerie says
February 10, 2015 at 3:00 amThank you for this post! This conflict between dreams and reality is an enormous challenge, and it is especially difficult in our culture, where if you’re not “shooting for your dreams”, you are not really living. You are right on the money in asking questions to help our students know themselves. What do you love to do? What career can help you have the time and money to do the things you love? Most of us are living out some form of an “If….then…” statement!! If I can keep this job, then I can have this extra time with my family/with my friends/with my videogames/with my art/with my sport…..”Vocation” and “passion” are (for most of us) different things, and wouldn’t it be great if we could help our students identify and pursue achievable goals in both?
Kat says
February 15, 2015 at 6:05 pmI agree– we should be realistic about the difficult skills required for certain professions our students are aiming for. I think a good alternative is providing ideas that are more attainable– for example, a video game designer requires knowledge of mathematical modeling, but a video game tester does not. A video game tester plays a level of a game hundreds of times to find bugs, this would suit the interests and love for routine a lot of my students have.
Nora says
February 20, 2015 at 12:34 amBest blog I have read in a very long time! I want to anonymously send it to some people I work with!
Erika says
April 5, 2016 at 10:13 pmAgreed! Thanks for the reminder. I will keep this at the front of my mind next term!
I appreciate how much you care about your students.
Jesslyn says
September 27, 2018 at 4:29 amAllison, I enjoy reading your blog! However, I have to respectfully disagree with your post. There is no need to tell a student that they can’t achieve a dream of theirs. Even if the educator’s intentions are pure in telling the student this, I feel it is a nice way of being discouraging. If students have the intellectual ability to WANT to pursue a career path and to imagine themselves pursuing that particular career, I believe they also have the intellectual ability to get themselves there. Although we can inform the student of careers that line up with their interests, the student should be allowed to decide on their own what they want to do. I read an article a couple of weeks ago about a girl with Down’s Syndrome that is aspiring to be a teacher. She was able to graduate with her associate’s degree, and is working towards her bachelor’s. She was also able to learn how to drive so she could be more independent. She may be doing this at a slower pace than others, but she was still able to work towards that goal. I believe she got to that point in her life because of the encouragement and support of her parents and educators. I think, who am I to tell a student they can’t pursue their dream job because they have special needs? With proper encouragement, instruction, tutoring, career counseling, and guidance, we can help the student to head in that direction.
Nicole Allison says
September 27, 2018 at 3:44 pmHi Jessica! I absolutely love your heart. I know without a doubt that you care deeply for your students and can see where you’re coming from here. I agree with your statement “There is no need to tell a student that they can’t achieve a dream of theirs.” I would never specifically say these words. But I also believe that students should go in with their eyes wide open. That they should know how hard they will need to work to find one of those “5 video game designer” jobs nationwide. They should need to know the many years they will be in school to achieve that veterinarian job and that their grades must be top-notch. Sadly, I’ve seen first-hand a lot of good intention, encouraging talk from educators in IEPs actually backfire once the student leaves the safety net of high school. Sadly, our society places a huge emphasis on deriving happiness from our careers, specifically, college-earned careers. I hope to be an encouraging voice for them that emphasizing happiness derived elsewhere–that you don’t need to necessarily go to college to find a successful career and be happy in life. Anyways, we may disagree about this and that’s okay! Thank you for reading my little space over here on the internet and hope you are having a great year!
Jesslyn says
September 28, 2018 at 5:59 amNicole, I totally see where you are coming from! I can tell that you genuinely care about your students and that you want them to do well in their professional lives. Thank you for helping me see and consider this issue from a different perspective other than my own. I’m glad that we can play a small, yet important, role in helping our students to really thrive as they enter the workforce.
Hope you are having a great year, too! 🙂
Michaela Torres says
November 24, 2018 at 3:01 pmGreat job Nicole, very well done. I agree with your whole-heartedly. My own typical 14 year old son’s dream job is video game design. Ugh.! My husband and I have spoke with him about these very issues. I think honest conversations about hobby vs. reality is so important. Many say too “I want to be a you-tuber!” I am very clear that that is a hobby, not a job. It is like winning the lottery, and lasts only a short while. Hard work and perserverance are what anyone needs to succeed in any job. Pride in your work – no matter the job, family, values, those things are what are most important and lead to a successful life. Being independent is the goal, and any job can help you do that. We need to help our families see that there are so many options if they are open and honest. It is difficult to have those conversations for sure. We can tap into their strengths and go from there with a “dream job” AND a “plan B”.
Nicole Allison says
December 3, 2018 at 6:10 pmI completely agree! These are hard conversations to have! THanks for reaching out and I wish you the best with your son!