About this course
This course prepares Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) to support the whole person across three connected areas of human life. Part one covers the human senses — including the lesser-known movement and body senses — sensory processing differences common in intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), the elevated and often-undetected rates of vision and hearing loss, and practical accommodations. Part two covers human growth and development across the lifespan, developmental stages and domains, aging with IDD, and sexual development from puberty through older adulthood as an ordinary part of human development. Part three addresses sexuality as a dimension of personhood: the rights of people with IDD to relationships, intimacy, privacy, sexual expression, and sexuality education, as affirmed in the joint position statement of The Arc and AAIDD; consent and capacity concepts; and the DSP role — supporting relationships respectfully, protecting privacy and dignity, maintaining professional boundaries, involving the team appropriately, and recognizing and reporting sexual abuse and exploitation, including the heightened victimization risk faced by people with IDD.