The Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) states that transition planning should begin at the earliest age appropriate and no later than age 16. IDEA requires schools to make collaborative efforts to provide students access to an array of postschool activities including integrated employment, postsecondary…

Discussion of transition for students with disabilities emphasizes transition skills needed for life beyond work. The importance of assisting students in planning for their life roles as workers, family members, friends, consumers, and community members is discussed. Suggestions are offered to better prepare students for all their life roles by…

This booklet is for young people with handicaps who are getting ready to graduate from high school and begin working and living in the adult world, with special focus on individuals with cultural differences. The booklet provides advice on completing preliminary, essential tasks of adult living. It also explains the services of various agencies…

This Spanish version of "How to Work and Live in the Real World: Basic Steps for Youth with Handicaps and Their Parents and Teachers" is for young people with handicaps who are getting ready to graduate from high school and begin working and living in the adult world. The booklet places a special focus on individuals with cultural…

This curriculum outline for the Sevier County, Tennessee, transition program for special needs students provides goals and objectives for the following domains: domestic, vocational, community functioning, and recreation/leisure. The domestic domain covers personal hygiene/grooming, first aid, home nursing, birth control/pregnancy, parenting, drug…

Nine commonly occurring activities were identified in mainstreamed kindergarten and first grade classrooms, the necessary skills for participation were analyzed, and a curriculum was developed. Evaluation of the curriculum showed that 15 handicapped preschool children learned the necessary skills, even when the instructions, environment, and task…

This resource paper provides information about postsecondary programs for young adults with substantial learning disabilities and other special needs. The introductory section outlines characteristics of the population and components of successful educational programs. Subsequent sections include guidelines for recognizing the young person's…

Twenty-two authors contributed chapters to this collection of best practices in the education of students with mental disabilities. Section One, "Critical Issues for Consideration," contains six papers: "'New' EMRs" (Donald MacMillan); "Curricular Orientations" (James Patton and Edward Polloway); "Applying Curriculum for the Instruction of Life…

Three studies were conducted to explore the relationship between social skills instruction and the maintenance and generalization of skills to post-school environments. Three adult women with severe disabilities in their last year of school participated in the studies. The first study addressed the effectiveness of an instructional package to…

A needs assessment was conducted with clients of the Rehabilitation Center for Brain Dysfunction (Irvine, California) and other local populations of learning-disabled adults. This report discusses the background of the problem addressed by the needs assessment, presents the results of an in-depth analysis of the responses to the survey instrument,…

This book is designed to assist professionals in developing and implementing transition services for students with disabilities. Specifically, this book focuses on the importance of assessment in transition planning and targets the various domains that should be included in any school-to-work transition assessment. The book advocates a…

Services of two school districts to exceptional students in transition are reviewed. The Great Falls (Montana) model involves a five-year individualized education program, maximum integration, and three phases of paid employment. The Natrona County (Wyoming) program is based on such crucial services as vocational evaluation, community living…

This manual provides information on a follow-up study that investigated the transition outcomes of 90 students with disabilities who have exited Wisconsin's high schools, and provides materials to be used in training educators working with students with disabilities who are transitioning from school to work. The first part of the manual contains…

The lack of appropriate assessment tools designed for deaf adolescents and young adults making the transition from educational programs to adult life is cited as one of the most glaring deficits in the field of deafness. The Transition Competence Battery (TCB) is being developed as an assessment tool that will guide individual training decisions…

The Employment Training and Transition Model is presented as a comprehensive classroom model whose goal is to prepare students with severe handicaps to work, live, and recreate in their home communities while in high school and after graduation. The model is built on the assumption that high school programs should be integrated, age-appropriate,…