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What is the Importance of Life Skills?
Life skills are essential to job functioning,
and they must be included in instruction for students with special needs.
Several million individuals with learning problems are still denied the
opportunity to engage in meaningful employment in the United States. Large
numbers of students with disabilities, both high school graduates and
dropouts, earn very low salaries (Edgar, 1988). These students do possess
the potential to live and work in the community if they receive appropriate
life skills instruction (Rusch & Phelps, 1987). However, without this
instruction they often fail to hold their jobs. A life skills curriculum
approach blends academic, daily living, personal/social, and occupational
skills into integrated lessons designed to help students learn to function
independently in society.
What are Life Skills?
Life skills include a wide range of knowledge
and skill interactions believed to be essential for adult independent
living (Brolin, 1989). At present, many students with handicaps have special
needs that are not being met. These students require education and support
to learn these necessary behaviors. They must be able to dress and groom
properly, use appropriate table manners, make decisions about money, and
use transportation to get to work. The three major skill areas that need
to be addressed are daily living, personal/social, and occupational skills.
What are Daily Living Skills?
Many students with disabilities will marry
and raise families. The majority will probably earn modest salaries; therefore,
it is crucial that they learn how to manage a home, family, and finances
as effectively as possible. Some states require that these skills be taught
to students with special needs. Instructional responsibility lies with
special educators, regular educators, parents, and peers. The following
skills are some that have been identified as essential for independent
adult living (Brolin, 1989):
Managing Personal Finances
- Count money and make correct change.
- Manage a savings and checking account.
- Maintain a personal budget and keep records.
- Demonstrate personal finance decision-making skills.
- Make responsible expenditures.
- Calculate and pay taxes.
- Use credit responsibly.
- Pay bills.
- Deal with renting or leasing.
Selecting and Managing a Household
- Perform or arrange for home maintenance.
- Perform housekeeping tasks.
- Plan and prepare meals.
- Fill out warranty cards for new appliances and mail
them.
Caring for Personal Needs
- Exhibit proper grooming and hygiene.
- Dress appropriately.
- Obtain health care.
- Avoid substance abuse.
- Demonstrate knowledge of common illnesses, prevention
and treatment. Maintain physical fitness, nutrition and weight.
Safety Awareness
- Identify safety signs.
- Identify unfamiliar odors.
- Identify unfamiliar sounds.
- Demonstrate knowledge and ability to evacuate a building
in an emergency. Read and understand basic safety procedures. Obey safety
rules when walking during the day or at night.
Raising, Preparing, and Consuming Food
- Purchase food and plan meals.
- Clean food preparation areas.
- Store food properly.
- Prepare meals, read labels, and follow recipes.
- Demonstrate appropriate eating habits.
- Plan and eat balanced meals.
Buying and Caring for Clothing
- Wash clothing.
- Purchase clothing: Demonstrate knowledge of prices
and sales.
- Iron, mend, and store clothing.
- Demonstrate use of dry cleaners and laundromat.
Exhibiting Responsible Citizenship
- Demonstrate knowledge of civil rights and responsibilities.
- Get legal aid.
- Report a crime.
- Register with Selective Service at age 18.
- Demonstrate knowledge of local, state, and federal
governments.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the law and ability to follow
the law.
- Demonstrate knowledge of citizen rights and responsibilities.
- Vote.
Using Recreational Facilities and Engaging
in Leisure Activities
- Demonstrate knowledge of available
community resources.
- Choose and plan activities.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the
value of recreation.
- Engage in group and individual
activities.
- Plan vacation time.
- Plan a social event.
- Engage in hobbies, sports,
music, arts and crafts.
Getting Around in the Community
- Differentiate between right side and left side, front
and back, to demonstrate location.
- Demonstrate knowledge of traffic rules and safety.
- Demonstrate knowledge and use of many means of transportation
including carpools.
- Understand and use a map. Drive a car; obtain a learner's
permit, then a driver's license.
- Obtain car insurance.
What are Personal and Social Skills?
Personal and social skills are critical
in keeping a job and maintaining friendships. Learning to get along with
others is a challenge for everyone. Lack of appropriate personal and social
skills is one of the most frequently cited causes of termination of employment.
Students with learning problems often do not learn by observing. Skill
instruction in this area should include the following:
Achieving Self-Awareness
- Identify physical and psychological needs.
- Identify interests and abilities.
- Identify emotions.
- Demonstrate knowledge of physical self.
- Demonstrate proper care, use, and maintenance of
prosthetic devices or sensory aids required. Use appropriate methods
to cope with stress.
Acquiring Self-Confidence
- Express feelings of self-worth.
- Describe others' perception of self.
- Accept and give praise.
- Accept and give criticism.
- Develop confidence in self.
- Identify and distinguish the proper way to answer
and use the telephone. Wear appropriate apparel, using clothes or uniforms
to fit social and work situations.
Achieving Socially Responsible Behavior
- Develop respect for the rights and properties of
others.
- Recognize authority and follow instructions.
- Demonstrate appropriate behavior and social etiquette
in public places and when dating or eating out.
- Demonstrate knowledge of important character traits.
- Recognize personal roles.
Maintaining Good Interpersonal Skills
- Demonstrate listening and responding skills.
- Establish and keep close relationships.
- Make and keep friendships.
Achieving Independence
- Do things without help.
- Accept responsibility for actions.
- Get around the community and be able to travel.
- Cope with changes in travel schedule.
- Cope with being lost.
- Follow travel safety procedures.
- Choose friends.
- Get to school on time.
- Decide what to wear.
Acquiring Problem-Solving Skills
- Seek assistance when needed.
- Recognize problems.
- Anticipate consequences.
- Develop and evaluate alternatives.
- Develop goals, solutions, and plans.
Communicating With Others
- Recognize and respond to emergency situations.
- Communicate with understanding.
- Demonstrate knowledge of social cues and the subtleties
of conversation, both verbal and nonverbal.
- Listen to others.
What are Occupational Skills?
Between 70% and 80% of students with disabilities
are unemployed and underemployed following graduation. Educators and parents
still have much to do in this area. Early educational efforts need to
be directed toward the following skill areas:
Knowing and Exploring Occupational Options
- Explore occupational possibilities.
- Identify the rewards of work.
- Locate sources of occupational and instructional
information.
- Identify personal values met through work.
- Identify societal values met through work.
- Classify jobs into categories.
- Investigate local occupational and instructional
opportunities in the community; make site visitations.
Selecting and Planning Occupational Choices
- Make realistic occupational choices.
- Identify requirements of appropriate and available
jobs.
- Identify occupational aptitudes.
- Identify main occupational interests.
- Identify major occupational needs.
Exhibiting Appropriate Work Habits and Behavior
- Follow directions and observe regulations.
- Recognize the importance of attendance and punctuality.
- Recognize the importance of supervision.
- Demonstrate knowledge of safety.
- Work with others.
- Meet demands for high-quality work.
- Work at a satisfactory rate.
Seeking, Securing, and Maintaining Employment
- Search for a job.
- Apply for a job.
- Interview for a job.
- Maintain postschool occupational adjustment.
- Demonstrate knowledge of competitive standards.
- Know how to adjust to changes in employment.
Exhibiting Sufficient Physical and Manual
Skills
- Demonstrate stamina and endurance.
- Demonstrate satisfactory balance and coordination.
- Demonstrate manual dexterity.
- Demonstrate sensory discrimination.
Obtaining Specific Occupational Skills
- Attend prevocational learning stations or centers.
- Take advantage of in-school work experiences.
- Take advantage of volunteer experiences.
- Serve in community rotations.
- Take advantage of work/study services.
- Take advantage of the Job Training Partnership Act
(JTPA).
- Attend vocational classrooms.
- Obtain special vocational education.
- Obtain on-the-job training.
What Can the Schools Do?
Schools can require an entry and exit plan for every
student with learning problems wherein the life skills listed here are completed
prior to graduation. At present, too many educators continue to use the
same old approaches with a nonfunctional curriculum. Educators must become
advocates for each child with special needs and stress "hands-on" life skill
mastery. |
