Transitions A Personal Philosophy

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TransitionsA Personal Philosophy

• Vanessa Roets

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Why Transition Plans?

• Legal Reason
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
  (IDEA) of 1997 mandated that all Individual
  Education Plans (IEP) would include a transition
  plan.
• Personal Reason
• . Transition to adult roles can be a complicated
  process, one that all youths must negotiate, and
  a myriad of factors work together to affect
  students lives after school completion (Kohler
  Field, 2003, p. 181). I believe that transition
  planning is a vital part of school for all
  students.

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Becoming Independent

• Special education students who receive adequate
  vocational training in high school are less
  likely to drop out and more likely to be employed
  competitively after high school (Harvey, 2001,
  p. 110).
• Vocational Training can be part of a transition
  plan.
• . New Hampshire and Washington are putting into
  place clear policies that prioritize funding of
  services that lead to community-integrated
  employment outcomes (Brooke, et al., 2009, p.
  59).

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Becoming Independent

• Transition Plans help with...
• Moving into adult life
• Real world math and literacy
• Hands on training
• Certificate programs
• College readiness (learning about available
  services in college)
• Other services and agencies
• Self advocacy skills

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Example ofTraditional Graduation Plan
Required Class Credits (.5 per semester)
23
English 4.0
Math 3.0
Science 2.0
Social Studies 3.5
Health .5
Physical Fitness 1.5
Occupational Education 1.0
Fine Arts 1.0
Electives 6.5
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Example ofTransition Based Grad Plan

• 2.0 English credits
• 2.0 Math credits
• Health-Substitute food handlers permit
• 1.0 PE
• 1.0 Fine Arts
• Occupational Ed (Work Based Learning)
• 2-3 periods a day of work based learning
• Additionally
• Join a club/sport at school OR- Volunteer 20
  hours a semester OR- begin a paid job
• Study to get permit/license
• This would be between 13-14 credits for this
  student since some of his goals dont translate
  to academic credit.

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Independence

• . Through continued attention to establishing
  effective transition services flexible enough to
  meet individual student needs, we can arm
  students with information and opportunities on
  which they can build their futures (Kohler
  Field, 2003, p. 181).