Postsecondary Goals, and Assessments for Transition

Postsecondary Goals,and Assessments for

Transition

Hou Met

Karen Pepkin

Education Specialist

Region 4 Education Service Center

Agenda

Assessments

Postsecondary goals

Summary

Transition Assessments

Transition Assessments

Assessing for transition involves a:

“Planned, continuous process of obtaining, organizing and using information to assist individuals with disabilities of all ages and their families in making all critical transitions in the students’ lives both successful and satisfying.”

Assessment for Transition Planning – Gary Clark

The Law and AssessmentsIDEA 2004

…the IEP must include

(1) appropriate measurable postsecondary goals based upon age appropriate transition assessments related to training, education, employment and where appropriate, independent living skills

CFR §300.3

Transition Assessment Is an ongoing process

Can be formal or informal

Is based on what you need to know about that student

Is Individualized, not generic

Can be simple or complex

A Tale of Two Assessments

Janine is a 17 year old 11th grade student with a learning disability in math. She is sociable and is passing all her courses with accommodations. She is interested in going to college, but has no idea what she wants to do.

Jackson is a 16 year old 9th grade student who is hard of hearing and has Asperger’s Syndrome. His CTE teacher reports that he is technologically talented and Jackson has stated that he wants to work in the computer field.

Should these two students get the same assessment?

What Can We Assess?In General:

Student interests

Student strengths

Student preferences

Functional performance data

Training

Education

Employment

Independent living skills

What Can We Assess?More Specifically:

Environment

College readiness

Community awareness

Safety skills

Transportation skills

Interests

Aptitudes

Behavior

Self-determination skills

Self-advocacy skills

What About Students with Moderate to Severe Disabilities?

Assess all students

Obtain information from parents and teachers

Look for non-verbal assessments

Consider functional vocational evaluations and task analyses for students in Community Based Vocational Instruction (CBVI) or VAC services

What Else Can Assessments Provide?Assessment results can:

Help student learn more about self (self advocate)

Help student learn more about careers

Help student to choose course of study

Help student develop postsecondary goals

What Else Can Assessments Provide?Assessment results can:

Be used to draft annual goals in IEP

Be used to develop Summary of Performance

Identify linkages/interagency collaboration

Identify need for further transition assessment

What Assessment(s) Would You Recommend?Wendell

Wendell is a 17 year-old eleventh-grade student with an

orthopedic impairment and a mild learning disability in

reading. Wendell’s goal is to work with computers.

He enjoys going to the movies, watching the Rockets

and the Astros in person and on television, and spending

time with his family. Wendell would like to have friends, but

does not know how to make them.

What Assessment(s) Would You Recommend?

Arielle

Arielle is a 15 year old ninth grade student with Down

Syndrome. She and her teacher are planning for her IEP

meeting. She has a friend who is a sophomore and is working

in the school cafeteria for 30 minutes each day as part of her

IEP program. Arielle would like to do something like her friend.

Her mother would like her to work at the mall someday.

Postsecondary Goals

The Law and Postsecondary Goals

IDEA 2004

Beginning not later than the first IEP that is in effect

when a child turns 16 or younger if determined

appropriate by the IEP committee, and updated

annually thereafter…

CFR §300.320(b)

The Law and Postsecondary Goals

IDEA 2004

…the IEP must include

(1) appropriate measurable postsecondary goals

based upon age appropriate transition assessments

related to training, education, employment and

where appropriate, independent living skills

CFR §300.3

The Law and Postsecondary GoalsSenate Bill 1788

Transition plans must be in place by age 14

SB1788 effective on September 1, 2011

What Is a Postsecondary Goal?

A postsecondary goal is

“…generally understood to refer to those goals that a

child hopes to achieve after leaving secondary

school.”

Postsecondary Goals

Students must have a goal in education/training

Students must have a goal in employment

Students can have a goal in independent living skills if appropriate

Goals must be based on data from assessments and other information

Postsecondary GoalsEducation/Training

Community college

4-year college/university

Short-term education or employment training programs

Vocational/technical school

On-the-job training

Apprenticeship

Postsecondary Goals

Employment

Competitive: Full-time, Part-time, Self-employment

Supported

Sheltered

Postsecondary Goals

Independent living

Leisure

Recreation

Home maintenance

Personal care

Community participation

Financial management

How are Postsecondary Goals Written?

Must:

Be measurable after graduation from high school

Be based on age-appropriate transition assessments

Contain results-oriented terms


Goals must be post high school

Examples:

Upon graduating high school

After graduation from high school

After finishing high school

After high school

After graduation from college


Goals must be measurable after high school

Avoid vague terms such as “plans to,” “is considering,” “is interested in,” “hopes to,” etc.

“Upon graduating high school, John will… ” rather than “The student will….”

Use student’s name or first person such as “After graduation I, John will.…”


Goals can be separate or combined

There is no one way to write measurable postsecondary goals

Postsecondary goals should not be the same for all students

Measurable Postsecondary GoalsEducation/Training

Example

Upon graduation from high school, Jamarreo will enroll in welding courses at Central Piedmont Community College to attain the Entry Level Welding Certificate.

Non-example

Jamarreo will learn about welding.

Examples and Nonexamples for Web-based Indicator 13 Checklist, www.nsttac.org

http://www.nsttac.org/


Example

The fall after high school, Jodi will enroll in courses (non-degree) at Gaston Community College.

Non-example

After leaving high school, Jodi wants to take some classes.

Examples and Non-examples for Web-based Indicator 13 Checklist, www.nsttac.org



Example

After graduation, Rolanda will participate in an in-home or center-based program designed to provide habilitative and vocational training with medical and therapeutic supports.

Non-example

After leaving high school, Rolanda’s family plans for her to receive habilitative training through Medicaid Alternatives Program (CAP) Services. www.nsttac.org



Example

After high school, David will get on-the-job training to become a farmer.

Non-example

David would like to become a farmer.

Measurable Postsecondary GoalsEmployment

Example

After high school, David will work full time as a farmer.

Non-example

After high school, David is interested in farming.

Measurable Postsecondary GoalsEmployment

Example

After college, Sally will work full-time as an engineer.

Non-example

After high school, Sally will explore career options in engineering.

Measurable Postsecondary Goals (Combined)

Education/Training and Employment Example

Upon graduation from high school, Jamarreo will enroll in welding courses at Central Piedmont Community College to work full-time as a welder.

Measurable Postsecondary Goals (Combined)

Education/Training and Employment Example

The fall after high school, Maria will enroll in computer and office management courses (non-degree) at Houston Community College, to work full time in an office.

Measurable Postsecondary Goals (Combined)Education/Training and Employment Example

After high school, David will receive on-the-job training while working full time as a farmer.

After high school, Sally will attend a four-year college with the goal of becoming an engineer.

Measurable Postsecondary GoalsIndependent Living

After high school, Mary will live with a roommate in an apartment.

After high school, William will live with his brother and take part in community/social and recreational activities.

Source: Ed O’Leary (2007)

Measurable Postsecondary Goals (Combined)Education/training, Employment, Independent Living

After completion of school, Wayne will live at home, work at ADAPT, and receive vocational skills training

After high school, Harold will attend community

college part-time in photography, and work part-time

as a sales clerk. He will live at home with his parents.

What About Students with Severe Disabilities?

How can we write goals for postsecondary

education/training and employment for students

with severe disabilities?

Writing Goals for Students with Severe Disabilities

Postsecondary Goals

Should reflect high but realistic expectations

Should reflect a “forward movement” instead of a dead end approach

Can be “mixed” considering the student’s stamina, endurance, and ability level

Can incorporate external supports

May initially be less specific, increasing in detail as the student approaches graduation

May change from year to year, sometimes slightly, sometimes drastically

Taken from NSTTAC Teleconference on 9-9-08

Writing Goals for Students with Severe DisabilitiesUniversity of Oklahoma’s Guiding Questions for Secondary Transition Planning for Youth withSignificant Disabilities (Zarrow Center)

1. Can the young adult express interests? If not, get information from parents and caregivers to develop transition plan.

2. What are special health care needs?

3. What are needs/challenges preventing the young adult from working outside the home?


Writing Goals for Students with Severe Disabilities - ConsiderationsUniversity of Oklahoma’s Guiding Questions for Secondary Transition, Planning for Youth with Significant Disabilities (Zarrow Center)

4. Who can provide education/training to assist the young adult?

5.What can the young adult accomplish without assistance?

6. What else could the young adult accomplish if assistance were provided by a job coach, habilitation training specialist (HTS), or other caregiver?


Students with Severe Disabilities Example

Lucy is a student with multiple disabilities. She:

Is legally blind

Functions cognitively in the severe range

Has an orthopedic disability that confines her to a wheel chair

After high school Lucy will receive in-home vocational and habilitative training from ABC services including physical and medical supports.

Postsecondary Goal Activity

Alex

Postsecondary Goal Activity

Jodi

Resources

National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (NSTTAC)

NSTTAC Helps states comply with State Performance Plan Indicator 13

Website contains resources on every aspect of transition

www.nsttac.org

High School Transition Post School Results Network

http://www.transitionintexas.org/site/default.aspx?PageID=1




Karen Pepkin

[email protected]

713.744.4470

mailto:[email protected]

Documents

Postsecondary Goals, and Assessments for Transition