Page 14 - The-Role-of-Teachers-in-Guidance

Career Development and
Special Needs

People with special needs are disadvantaged, making it
imperative to develop career development practices that promote
their self-determination, that is, control over the course of their
life. However, the condition of disadvantage requires
complementarity between the work focused on the individual and
the involvement of the social network in which it is located. This
involvement is justified insofar as this social network is part of the
pupil's living space and, therefore, has responsibilities in
maximising the equal opportunities of these populations not only
through the promotion of self-determination but also through the
elimination of structural and institutional barriers that limit it. In
this conceptual matrix, teachers have an important role in
promoting the career development of students with special needs:

Promoting students' self-determination. In this sense, all
activities proposed to develop planning, curiosity, optimism,
trust and cooperation remain fundamental. In fact, the
condition experienced by many of these students (e.g.
school failure, intellectual deficits, emotional and social
integration difficulties) makes it relevant to focus on these
dimensions within career development.

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