State Work Group on

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State Work Group on Secondary Transition Whats
the Post-School Outcomes Buzz? Jane Falls,
NPSO Columbus, Ohio May 20, 2008
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What well share

• Post-school outcomes across the country
• Coordinated look at secondary indicators
• Strategies to improve response rates,
  representativeness, and outcomes
• Tools and resources

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National Post-School Outcomes Center Who we
are, what we do
NPSO is a national technical assistance and
dissemination center funded by the U.S.
Department of Education Office of Special
Education Programs (OSEP). University of
Oregon SSET and TACS/WRRC Subcontract with Westat
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NPSO Charge

• Assist State Education Agencies
• to develop practical and rigorous
• data collection systems to describe
• the further education and competitive employment
  experiences of youth with disabilities as they
  transition from high school to adult life
• (Part B, Indicator 14)

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IDEA Purpose

• To ensure that all children with
• disabilities have available to them a free
• appropriate public education that emphasizes
• special education and related services
• designed to meet their unique needs and
• prepare them for
• further education, employment,
• and independent living

Source IDEA Final Regulations Sec. 300.1 (a)
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Transition
starts when children are very young and
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continues throughout life
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Part B - SPP and APR Requirements Indicator 14

• Percent of youth who had IEPs, are no longer in
  secondary school and who have been
• competitively employed
• enrolled in some type of postsecondary school,
• or both,
• within one year of leaving high school.
• (20 U.S.C. 1416(a) (3) (B)).

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Indicator 14 Calculation

• NUMERATOR
• Unduplicated sum of competitively employed
  (CE)
• enrolled in postsecondary school (PSS)
• both CE and PSS

• DENOMINATOR
• of respondents to survey/interview
• (always provide s)

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Federal Requirements SPP and APR

• 4 secondary transition indicators
• 1. of youth who graduate
• 2. of youth who drop out
• 13. of youth with transition components in the
  IEP
• 14. of youth who achieve post-school outcomes

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Critical Interrelationships
Staying in School

• Quality IEPs

Positive post-school outcomes
Graduating
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What did States report in 2007 SPP/APR?

• 30 states are conducting census 23 states are
  sampling 6 states did not report
• 53 states plan to use a survey 5 states didnt
  specify method 1 state plans to use extant data
• 43 states defined competitive employment 39
  states defined postsecondary education
• Source NPSO analysis of SPP/APR Indicator 14
  submission Feb. 2007

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In Ohio (submitted 2008).

• Contract Kent State University
• Regional Resource Centers, SSTs
• Targeted Sample-districts
• Exit and 1 year out phone survey

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Using Transition Indicators to Improve What We Do
Post-School Outcomes Indicator
14 Postsecondary education and/or
training Employment Independent living
Not so Good?
Good?
Why or Why Not?
Dropout Rate Indicator 2 Why? Appropriate
programs? Address student and family needs?
Graduation Rate Indicator 1 Expectations and
standards? Various pathways available? Linkage to
post-school environments?
Whats the Quality of Our IEPs? Indicator
13 Measurable post-school and annual
goals Transition-related assessments Course of
study, services, and activities Coordination of
services
Dr. Paula Kohler (2006) NSTTAC
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Using Transition Indicators to Improve What Ohio
Does

• Post-School Outcomes
• Indicator 14
• 2005-2006 89.4
• engagement

Not so Good?
Good?
Why or Why Not?

• Dropout Rate
• Indicator 2
• 2005-2006 16.3
• 2006-2007 15.7

• Graduation Rate
• Indicator 1
• 2005-2006 83.7
• 2006-2007 84.2

• Whats the Quality of Our IEPs?
• Indicator 13
• 2005-2006 30.7
• 2006-2007 91.3

Dr. Paula Kohler (2006) NSTTAC
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PSO Challenges

• Accurate contact information
• Locating former students - dropouts
• Honesty of responses
• Representativeness of respondents (bias)

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What is a Response Rate?

• Measure of response achieved in collecting survey
  data
• The ratio of the number of completed surveys to
  the total number of surveys that were intended to
  be completed

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Response Rate Calculation

• NUMERATOR
• of respondents
• to the survey/interviews

• DENOMINATOR
• of school leavers including those who graduate,
  leave with certificate (etc), age out, drop out
  in the school year minus drop outs who returned
  and those who died
• (always provide s)

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How High a Response Rate?

• What is important is whether respondents are
  representative!
• States must use their data regardless of response
  rate
• Describe respondents
• Use data with caution

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How Do You Know When There Is Bias?

• Assess how survey respondents are different from
  target population
• Key characteristics
• gender
• race/ethnicity
• disability category
• type of exit
• age

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Solutions to Challenges

• Fully engage youth and families
• Consider data collection efforts
• Share what you know
• Reflect on bias
• Caution users to the limitations
• Activate activities to enhance response rate,
  representativeness, and student outcomes

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It really matters.
Staying in School

• Quality IEPs

Positive post-school outcomes
Graduating
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Rigor, Relevance, Relationships
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Use the data to guide school programs
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One of many NPSO resources
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Jane Falls jafalls_at_uoregon.edu 541-346-0354
http//www.psocenter