University of Kansas

Department of Special Education

Best Practices in Transition: Getting from Compliance to Quality Services

Dr. Mary E. Morningstarmmorningstar@ku.edu

http://www.transitioncoalition.org

www.transitioncoalition.org

www.transitioncoalition.org

Think/Pair/Share

Why do we need transition planning?

What do you need to do to ensure

quality outcomes?

Critical Elements of Transition

Transition to Adulthood

Family Involvement

StudentInvolvement

Curriculum &

Instruction

Inclusion,Access &

Accountability

Interagency&

Community

Services

Student-centeredTransition PlanningTransition

Assessment

Transition was included in IDEA because the first special education students to exit high school were successful in achieving positive postschool adult outcomes such as living on their own, having a well-paying job, and attending postsecondary education in record numbers.

Correct answer is: FALSE.

Beginning in the mid-1980’s, the U.S. Department of Education recognized that the first group of students who had been all the way through special education were leaving school and unsuccessful in adult life. Unemployment, lack of enrollment in postsecondary education, continued dependence on parents, social isolation, and lack of involvement in community-based activities were found among young adults with disabilities.

TRUE FALSE

Many curricula and programs do not support students with disabilities in developing essential adult-life skills.

Correct answer is TRUE

Post-school outcome research indicates that the current special education curriculum, instruction, and planning are not meeting students' needs. The National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 has reported that while outcome for many youth with disabilities is improving, they often do not learn or use the skills in their school programs that they need to achieve productivity, empowerment, and independence.

TRUE FALSE

Students with disabilities transitioning from school to adult life are not often supported by effective interagency collaboration.

Correct answer is TRUE

Limited levels of service coordination and collaboration among schools and community service agencies have created difficulties for students with disabilities in achieving positive post-school results (Johnson, et al., 2002). In many circumstances, students with disabilities leave school without appropriate community supports necessary to achieve successful adult outcomes. Many students remained at home with nothing to do because they were on long waiting lists for adult services.

TRUE FALSE

Students with disabilities are more likely to remain in school and graduate from high school than their peers without disabilities.

Correct answer is FALSE

Dropping out of school is one of the most serious problems facing special education programs across the country. Almost 1/4 of all youth with disabilities exit the school system by dropping out. Youth with ED have the highest drop out rates (from 21% to 64% - twice the rate of nondisabled students). The drop out rate for students with learning disabilities averages 25% (National Center for Education Statistics, 2001). Reasons include: lack of credits to graduate, no parental support for education, inappropriate social interactions. Dropouts have fewer options for employment and usually end up in entry level, low-paying positions.

TRUE FALSE

Transition to Adulthood

Transition Planning

• Planning early• Person-centered

Approach to Planning

• Outcomes tied to Vision for future

• IEP focuses on outcomes

• Service coordination

• Postschool outcomes data

• Documentation in the IEP

Person-Centered Planning Resourceshttp://www.transitioncoalition.org/cgiwrap/tcacs/new/resources/resources/index.php

Critical Element of Transition: Planning Differently

Features of Person-Centered Planning

• Focus on and driven by the student’s strengths, interests and preferences

• Focus on capabilities and opportunities – developing a vision for the future

• Process is flexible, dynamic and informal• Requires collaborative team work with

commitment to action• Requires an effective facilitator

K.B. Flannery, R. Slovic, &D. McLean (1994)

PLANNING ALTERNATIVE TOMORROWS WITH HOPE

1. Identify the “North Star”2. Identify the GOAL 3. Look at life NOW & identify differences

between NOW and GOAL4. Identify steps to move person from NOW

to GOAL5. Identify FIRST STEP

MAKING ACTION PLANS (MAPS)1. What is the individual’s history?2. Who is the individual?3. What are the dreams?4. What are the nightmares?5. What are the needs?6. What are the individual strengths?7. What would an ideal school day

look like?

ESSENTIAL LIFESTYLES PLANNING1. Non-negotables2. Strong preferences (Needs)3. Highly desirables (Wants/enjoy)4. Person’s positive reputation5. Things we need to do to help person

stay healthy6. Things we need to do to be successful

in supporting the person7. Unresolved Issues/Questions8. How the person communicates with us

PERSONAL FUTURES PLANNING1. Create a personal profile

• Person’s background and history• Relationships• Places• Choices• Preferences• Focus on the future

2. Review Trends in Environment3. Find desirable images of the future4. Identify obstacles and opportunities5. Identify strategies6. Getting started (Action Planning)7. Identify the need for systems change8. Create a network/Circle of Friends

Build a Personal Profile • Interview the student, family and others in their

life in a relaxed atmosphere– Break down the “big question” of “What job do you

want?” to smaller ones:– What do you like about school and classes?– What do you like to do after school?

• Spend time with the individual• Interview significant others• Hold a planning meeting using a person-

centered approachHagner & Dileo (1993)

The Personal Preference Indicators: A Guide for Planning

Moss (2006). Center for Interdisciplinary Learning and Leadership/UCE, College of Medicine, University ofOklahoma Health Sciences Center

http://www.ou.edu/content/education/centers-and-partnerships/zarrow/preference-indicators/air-self-determination-assessment.html

Adapting the MAPS Questions for TransitionMAPS Questions1. What is individual's history?2. Who is the individual?3. What are the dreams?4. What are the nightmares?5. What are individuals

needs?6. What are the individual's

strengths?7. What would an ideal school

day look like?

Adaptations1. Who is individual?2. What is individual's history?3. What is the vision for his/her

adult life?4. What are some things

individual doesn't want in his/her future

5. What are individual's greatest strengths and contributions for community involvement?

6. What does individual need to be successful in his/her career?

7. What would an ideal day look like?

Using MAPS to plan for Transition:

Angie’s MAPhttp://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=9020965358453350536&hl

Community Participation Postsecondary Education & Training

Community LivingEmployment

From PCP to Postsecondary Goals

From: Furney, et al., (nd) Making Dreams Happen: How to Facilitate the MAPS Process. University of Vermont

• go on to college

• needs experiences with lots of different places

• Expand her social life• Transportation is

problem• going to movies,

fishing, camping, horseback riding • needs experiences

with lots of different places

• Expand her social life• Work on safety when

alone (e.g., tipping out of wheelchair)

• independent living skills

Angie’s Transition IEP

• Measurable postsecondary goal: Upon completion of high school, Angie will work 20 hours a week in an occupation that focuses on retail sales.

• Transition Services: – Instruction: Angie will participate in a careers class focused on

job training in retail sales– Community Experiences: Angie will complete referral for VR– Employment: Angie will job shadow at 3 different retail settings– Adult living and Daily living: Angie will participate in bus travel

training; Angie will get herself up in the mornings and get ready for school.

• IEP goals:

Planning for the Future

Transition to Adulthood

Family Involvement

• Family members attend meetings

• Flexible to meet with families

• Transition = family as a whole

• Involved in decisions

• Agreement on outcomes

• Information• Person-centered

planning

Working with Families www.transitioncoalition.orgTA Alliance for Parent Centers http://www.taalliance.org/

Critical Element of Transition: involving Families

Critical Elements of Transition

Transition to Adulthood

Family Involvement

• Family members attend meetings

• Transition = family as a whole

• Involved in decisions

• Flexible to meet with families

• Agreement on outcomes

• Information• Person-centered

planningwww.transitioncoalition.org Working with Families online module

Knowing Families: Family Systems Framework

Family Characteristics• Description of the family• Personal characteristics

• Special challenges

ExtendedFamily

Marital

Parent-child

Siblings

Cohesion AdaptabilityFamily Interaction

Family Functions

Affection, Self-esteem, Economics, Daily care, Socialization, Recreation, Education, Spiritual

Family Life Cycle

• Stages and Transitions

• Changes in Characteristics

• Changes in Functions

• Changes in Life Roles

Michael Bridges’ Transition Cycle Theory

• Types of adult services• Role models• Basic facts about transition• Areas most wanted by families in one study:• sexuality• self-care• getting along with others• taking responsibility

•Guardianship and estate planning • Role of IEP team members•Criteria for evaluating IEP• Postschool option• Social security

• Listen empathetically• Share information• Communicate family

meaning• Focus on family

identified issues• Reliably respond • Meet in friendly

places• Tell personal stories

• Share information and resources

• Use multiple formats & ways to provide information

• Ensure reciprocity• Informal and

frequent communication

• Arrange linkages with other families and available supports

Building Relationships with Families

• Identify transition cycle of the family

• Learn to LISTEN

• INVITE Involvement

• Pay attention to family concerns & postschool outcomes

• Exchange information

• Parent involvement activities

Coming Together for the IEP

• Prepare in advance• Connecting and getting

started• Sharing visions and

transition outcomes• Reviewing levels of

performance & assessments

• Sharing resources, priorities, concerns

• Developing goals and objectives

• Specifying placement and related services

• Summarizing and concluding

Transition to Adulthood

StudentInvolvement

• Decision-making skills and opportunities

• Invited to attend meetings

• Ideas listened to and respected

• Opportunities to learn about options

• Self-advocate• Self-Directed

IEPs• Parent info. to

support students

The Self-Determination Centerhttp://web.uccs.edu/education/special/self_determination/index.htmlSelf-Determination Synthesis Projecthttp://www.uncc.edu/sdsphttp://www.uncc.edu/sdsp/sd_lesson_plans.asp

Critical Element of Transition: Supported Self-Determination!

If a student floated in a lifejacket for 12 years, would he/she be expected to swim if the jacket were jerked off?

SOURCE: Hoffman, A., & Field, S. (2006). Steps to self-determination (2nd ed.). Austin, TX: PRO-ED

Know Yourself &Your Environment Value Yourself

Plan

Act

Outcomes & Learn

Environment

Self-Determination Model

Curricula for Participating and Directing IEP Transition Meetings

Teaches students to become active members of their IEP team!

Techniques to Help Students Actively Participate in IEP Meetings

• Ask students questions such as:– What are your learning

strengths?– What are your areas of

improvement?– What are your goals for

school?– What are your career &

employment interests?– How do you learn best?– What are your hobbies?

• Be positive – focus on what the student can do

Listen attentively & take notes

Give students plenty of time to think & respond

Use information that the student provides

Summarize the student’s goals and plans

Encourage the student to ask questions

http://www.imdetermined.org/

Preferences• Visual• Auditory

Needs• Preferred Seating• Quiet setting• Copies of notes

Strengths• Want job as officer• Artistic• I like to sleep right

when I get home

Interests

• Swimming• Video games• Law enforcement

Name: MichaelAddress:DOB:

You’re Invited

Date: Time:

Transition to Adulthood

Evidence-basedPractices TargetingOutcomes

• Academic instruction tied to outcomes

• Inclusive Educational Experiences

• Vocational instruction & experiences

• Independent living skills• Social, interpersonal &

recreation• Functional curriculum

reflects outcomes• Natural & age-appropriate• Transition Programs Post-

HS for ALL students

Think College http://www.thinkcollege.net/Going to Collegehttp://www.going-to-college.org/ Transition to Collegehttp://www.transitiontocollege.net/

Transition & Instructional Strategieshttp://www.ncset.org/topics/default.asp

Evidence-based Practices in Transition (National Secondary Transition TA Center NSTTAC)http://www.nsttac.org/ebp/ebp_main.aspx

What Works Transition Synthesis Research Projecthttp://www.nsttac.org/ebp/what_works.aspx

Student-Focused Planning

Student Development Interagency

Collaboration

Program Structures

Family Involvement

Taxonomy for Transition Programming

NSTTAC Evidence-Based Practices

NSTTACPredictorsof Post-School

Success

http://www.nsttac.org/content/lesson-plan-

starters

Preparing All Youth for Transition to Postsecondary Education & Training

• Youth with ID are less likely to be employed (~ 17%)• 11% attended 2 or 4 year postsec. Setting• 33% had a goal of sheltered employment

• 55% never employed before postsecondary • 33% employed post-program (43% of working had never

been in a paid position)

• Postsecondary experiences impact employment outcomes, self-image and social value

From: Think College (2011, Nov. 18). College: An Unexplored Pathway to Employment for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Critical Elements of Transition:Inclusion Access and Accountablility

Transition to Adulthood

Inclusion,Access &

Accountability

• Enroll in instructional program to meet needs

• Social inclusion• Gen. Ed & Voc. Ed. get

support• Inclusion leads to

positive outcomes• Decision-making

process used• Accommodations on

IEP & State and District Tests

Transition & Instructional Strategies

Inclusive Education Leads to Better Outcomes

• Improved IEP Quality – Age-appropriateness– Functionality– Generalization

• Improved Instruction in General Education– Increased instruction in functional skills, basic academic skills,

literacy, etc.– More engaged in learning and less isolation than in separate

classes– Involvement and support from peers w/o disabilities– Individualized instruction in general ed classes

• Better outcomes– In school and postschool (fewer absences & referrals, higher social

interactions & communication skills, better postschool outcomes)

Embedding‘New Basic Skills’…Academic Courses

Sciences Language Arts Social Studies

New Basic Skills

Basic MathBasic ReadingProblem SolvingTeaming-CollaborationCommunication

Basic ReadingProblem SolvingTeaming-CollaborationCommunicationComputer Knowledge

Basic ReadingProblem SolvingTeaming-CollaborationCommunicationComputer Knowledge

Employability Skills’

DependabilityCareer AwarenessTeamworkDress and groomingInitiativeAsking for helpPositive Attitude

DependabilityCareer AwarenessTeamworkDress and groomingInitiativeAsking for helpPositive Attitude

DependabilityCareer AwarenessTeamworkCommunity ResponsibilitiesInitiativePositive Attitude

Adapted From: Maryland Coalition on Inclusive Education(August 2009). Redefining What is Functional in High School. MCIE High School Inclusion and Transition Planning Institute

Peer Tutoring & Peer Mediated Instruction

Peer Supports

Natural Supports in the Community

Facilitating Friendships and Social Interactions

Critical Element of Transition:School and Community Connections!!

Critical Elements of Transition: Assess for Quality

Transition to Adulthood

Interagency&

CommunityServices

• School-business partnerships

• Process for identifying needs

• Formal & informal supports

• Accurate information• Interagency

agreements• Community transition

teams• Collecting Postschool

Outcomes

Interagency and Community Systems:http://www.transitioncoalition.org/transition/ics.php

Why Focus on Interagency Collaboration?

• Adolescents with disabilities in transition have complex support needs

• Inability of different systems to work together

• 88% of all states have failed to establish interagency linkages under IDEA

• No agency has all that is needed to plan & provide comprehensive transition services

LEA Capacities & Strategies• Scheduling and staffing• Early planning• Flexibility in location of

services• Follow-up after

transition• Administrative support• Funding• State support • Collaboration with adult

agencies

• Meeting with students and families

• Training students and families

• Joint training of staff

• Meeting with agency staff and transition councils

• Transition portfolios• Disseminating

information widely

LEA and SEA Attitudes

• Clear value of relationship building• Relationship Building Capacity: Positive

Attitudes • Relationship-Building Strategies:

– Advocacy– Ongoing meetings– Transition councils

• Family Members• Student• Education personnel• School support staff• Community members

• Peers and friends• Administrators• Postsecondary Ed. staff• Community Service

Providers

Who should participate in transition planning?

Critical Elements of Transition: Assess for Quality

Transition Assessment

• Ongoing Process to identify strengths, interests & needs related to postsecondary goals

• Individualized• Real-world settings• Student-centered• Formal & Informal

MethodsTransition Assessment: The Big Picturehttp://www.transitioncoalition.org

Transition to Adulthood

Based on age appropriate transition assessments….

• Define Transition Assessment…..

The ongoing process of collecting data on the individual’s strengths, needs, preferences, and interests as they relate to the demands of current and future working, educational, living, and personal, and social environments. Assessment data serve as the common thread in the transition process and form the basis for defining goals and services to be included in the IEP (DCDT Position Statement, Sitlington, 1996)

Transition Assessment:Where Do You Start?

Guiding Questions Planning for

AssessmentUsing Data

Integrating Data & IEP

What and How to Assess

Resources:www.transitioncoalition.org: Online module (Transition Assessment: The Big Picture & Assessment Resourceshttp://www.transitioncoalition.org/cgiwrap/tcacs/new/resources/presentations/index.php : pdfs of commercially available assessments & questions to ask

Quality Indicators of Effective Transition Programs Needs Assessment

www.transitioncoalition.org

This tool allows individuals, schools, districts, regions and states to complete a self-assessment program regarding seven research-based indicators of effective transition practices:

– Transition planning– Student involvement– Family involvement– Interagency collaboration– Curriculum and instruction– Inclusion in school and access to the general

curriculum– Transition assessment

The resulting data is used to identify critical needs and priorities for on-site and online professional development

Transition to Adulthood

Transition

Assessment

Family Involvement

StudentInvolvementCurriculum &

Instruction

Inclusion,Access &

Accountability

Interagency

&

Community

Services

Transition Planning & IEP