Assembly of the Structure

Goal 2: Demonstrate the abilities to design and implement program and curriculum that promote essential school-to-employment skills for students with IDD.

One of the goals I set for my OTD study was to develop a program for my students to assist them as they transition to adult life. However, as the only OT in my school, the idea of designing a program from scratch by myself was overwhelming. I took the initiative to talk to the teachers in my school and shared my initial thoughts. Surprisingly, they all supported my idea. They also gave me valuable feedback, such as how the program can fit into the school schedule. Most importantly, they pointed out that I don’t need to do it all by myself. They were eager to help. Thus, I designed a pilot program, called Working Bee, and implemented it in our school. This program also laid the foundations for the design and development of my competence project: the Bridge to the Future curriculum. During the process of developing this career exploration curriculum, I have experienced enormous support and encouragement from many teachers in my school. Also, as I presented the pilot program at the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) conferences, I was provided with invaluable feedback from my colleagues and professors. For that, I am enormously grateful.

During the process of designing and piloting Working Bee program and Bridge to the Future curriculum, I learned that it is important to provide students with hands-on experiences. This realization came from an encounter I had with my student during one of the program session:

Me: “What would you do if your co-worker is having a medical emergency?”

Student: “Call 911” the student responded correctly.

Me: “OK. Let’s practice with the phone.”

Me: “911, What’s your emergency?”

Student: “Me? You don’t need to help me” and hang up the phone.

Similarly, during the career exploration, individuals with limited or no previous vocational experience might not be able to make valid, meaningful and informed career decisions. Thus, students should experience different job conditions and environments. Otherwise, their expressed preferences might not truly reflect an informed decision. This understanding changed the way how I work with my students. Now, I advocate and use all kinds of opportunities to expose my students to real work environments and observe their performance in that environment. For example, I took my students to job fair during the school career day to have an actual job interview for a summer internship. This is something I might have hesitated to do before.

Artifact 1: Pilot Program – Working Bee Program