A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONALS’ …

A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONALSrsquo KNOWLEDGE

OF TRANSITION ASSESSMENT FOR INDIVIDUALS

WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES

A dissertation submitted

by

Kathryn J Tucker MEd

Texas Tech University

in partial fulfillment of

the requirement for the

degree of

DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

in

Special Education

This dissertation has been

accepted for the faculty of

Texas Tech University by

Dr Robin Lock Professor

Chair

Dr Donna Brown Assistant Professor

Dr Leann Elkins Assistant Professor

Dr Peggy Gordon Miller Dean

August 2012

August 2012

Copyright copy August 2012

Kathryn J Tucker

Texas Tech University Kathryn Tucker August 2012

ii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

There are numerous individuals who provided support to me throughout the

process of completing this dissertation Dr Lock words cannot express the gratitude I

feel for your support during my research and for serving as the chair of my committee

You have been an inspiration and more importantly a consistent role model and support

throughout this process It is through your steady practical and wise guidance that you

have allowed me to maneuver through this overwhelming process with steady diligence

Dr Donna Brown thank you so much for exemplifying compassion and teaching

me the skills and techniques for educational diagnostics Dr Leann Elkins it has been a

distinct honor to be surrounded by your expertise in transition while Irsquove completed this

research I am extremely privileged that you both agreed to serve as members of my

committee and grateful for the time and efforts you have given on my behalf

Dr Amy Parker I wish to thank you for your example in and out of the

classroom and your commitment to students with special needs Thank you for inspiring

me with my coursework

Kathy Sherriff Angie Elkins and Regina Wise my three compadres thank you

for being my peer supports your patience being my confidants and the hours of laughter

we shared I know I would not have completed this task without all of you as we shared

this journey together

To my amazing students that I have had the pleasure of teaching over the years

thank you for allowing me to be inspired and rejuvenated each and every day To all the

parents of the students with special needs thank you for allowing me to be a part of your

journey and the life of your child with special needs


iii

Clay and Betty Jane Bostic my parents I am so thankful for your years of support

and example for the process of lifelong learning Dad thank you for your role model as a

servant to those in need Mom thank you for your inspiration as an educator especially

your service to students with special needs

To my children I thank you for your support and continued encouragement

Adam thank you for our online chats that kept me going while you were off serving our

country Bailey Cody and little Channing thank you for your support and

encouragement throughout this entire process Michelle and Jonathan thank you for your

words of encouragement and sharing your dad with me Weston thank you for all of your

sacrifice because you endured the most these past few years as I completed this

dissertation I am so proud of all of you

Stan Tucker my husband and rock I know I never ever would have done this

without you by my side Your computer skills and assistance were amazing Thank you

for your patience and calm support as we embarked upon this journey together From the

start to the finish you have been there every step along the way Your love and

excitement have served to encourage me to continue as we developed our plans and goals

for our future together I love you


iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

CHAPTER I 1

Purpose of the Study 1

Statement of the Problem 2

Research Questions 2

TheoreticalConceptual Framework 3

Assumptions 4

Definition of Terms 4

Delimitations 11

Limitations 12

Significance of the Study 12

Organization of the Study 13

Summary 15

CHAPTER II 16

Review of the Literature 16

Students with Intellectual Disabilities 18

Definition of Intellectual Disabilities 18

Characteristics of Students with Intellectual Disabilities 19

Statistical Data Regarding Prevalence of Students with Intellectual Disabilities 20

Historical Practices for Students with Intellectual Disabilities 21

Transition Needs for Secondary Special Needs Learners 22

Historical Influences on the Transition Process 23


v

Defining the Specifics of Transition Planning 25

Characteristics of Transition Needs 26

The Individualized Transition Plan Process and the Components 27

Latest Research on Individual Transition Planning 31

Transition Assessment Practices for Students with Disabilities 39

Purpose of Transition Assessment 39

Types of Transition Assessment 43

Transition Assessment for Students with Intellectual Disabilities 47


Characteristics of Transition Assessment for Students with Intellectual

Disabilities 49

Latest Research on Transition Assessment for Students with Intellectual

Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56

Context of the Study 56

Data Sources 57

Data Collection Methods 58

Data Analysis 60

Data Management Plan 61

Reliability and Validity 61

Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63


Characteristics of the Sample 64

Job Category 64

Gender 65

Age of Participant 66

Education Level 66

Total Experience Years 67

Current Position Experience 68

Comparison of Demographics 68

Education Site Location 69

Employment Setting 69


Research Question One 70

Research Question Two 73

Procedure Used with Open-Ended Questions 78

Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82

Summary of the Study 82

Discussion of the Findings 85

Impact of Demographics 86

Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89

Grade Level Implementation 89

Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91

Trends for Assessment Practice 92

Areas of Assessment 92

Types of Assessment 94

Published Assessments 96

Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98

Theme One Assessment Tools 99

Theme Two Parental Involvement 99

Theme Three Real-Life Situations 100

Theme Four Collaboration 101

Theme Five Isolated Comments 102

Practical Implications 102

Limitations of the Study 105

Directions for Future Research 106

Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119

Recruitment of Special Education Directors Letter 121

Recruitment of Participants Letter 123

Survey Instrument 125


viii

ABSTRACT

Transition planning requires implementation and direction by the findings of

transition assessment regarding the students needs strengths preferences and interests as

mandated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act 2004 (IDEA

2004) Limited research is currently available that addresses what assessment tools

practitioners utilize to meet the mandates of transition assessment to aid in transition

planning for students with intellectual disabilities The descriptive study reported herein

attempted to determine educatorsrsquo knowledge about transition assessment practices and

what is being utilized specifically with students with intellectual disabilities as they

transition from secondary to postsecondary life This study employed the replication of a

previously published study


ix

LIST OF TABLES

41 Job Category Description 65

42 Gender 66

43 Age of the Participant 66

44 Level of Education 67

45 Years of Experience as an Educator 67

46 Years in the Current Position 68

47 Comparison of Demographics 68

48 EmploymentConsultation Location 69

49 Employment Setting 70

410 Perceived Grade Level Implementation of Transition Assessment 71

411 Perceived Person Responsible for Implementing Transition Assessment 71

412 Perceived Level of Understanding Regarding Transition Assessment 72

413 Interest in Additional Training 73

414 Perceived Areas Addressed with Transition Assessment 74

415 Level of Use for Types of Transition Assessments 75

416 Level of Use for Published Assessments 77

417 Perceived Impact of Transition Assessment 78


1

CHAPTER I

A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONALSrsquo

KNOWLEDGE OF TRANSITION ASSESSMENT FOR INDIVIDUALS


Transition planning is a mandate set forth in the Individuals with Disabilities

Education Improvement Act 2004 (IDEA 2004) The process of developing a

coordinated set of activities with regard to transition planning for students with

disabilities is the cornerstone of IDEA 2004(Lollar 2010) The federal Office of Special

Education Programs and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) issued mandates to track

transition services and progress at the secondary and postsecondary level (Mazotti et al

2009) Transition development is a critical issue for students with disabilities as they pass

from secondary to postsecondary life

A great deal of research is available that pertains to cognitive assessment and

achievement assessment as separate entities Transition planning is another unique and

important issue for students with disabilities that resulted in a wealth of literature

suggesting best practices for the implementation of transition services Likewise the

process of transition planning is guided by the assessment results however few studies

have been conducted that address the assessment trends and practices that drive the

transition planning process Little research dealing specifically with students with

intellectual disabilities as it pertains to transition assessment exists at the present time

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study was to determine educatorsrsquo knowledge of transition

assessment practices and what assessment mechanisms are being implemented with


2

students with intellectual disabilities The study reported herein has attempted to

determine educatorsrsquo knowledge about transition assessment practices being utilized

specifically with students with intellectual disabilities as they transition from secondary

to postsecondary life

Statement of the Problem

Transition planning is a mandate outlined in IDEA 2004 and by the Office of

Special Education Programs and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) through Indicator 13

Indicator 13 requires that a transition plan be developed implemented and driven by the

transition assessment process Current assessment trends are utilized on a continuous

basis for individuals with disabilities both formally and informally to address cognitive

and achievement skills Research studies that address transition assessment specifically

are limited Limited research is currently available that addresses what assessment tools


planning for students with intellectual disabilities Research data that describe what

professionals are currently utilizing to address transition assessment would be beneficial

to assist practitioners and to aid in the development of high quality transition plans for

individuals with intellectual disabilities

Research Questions

This study investigated educatorsrsquo knowledge of transition assessment practices

with individuals with intellectual disabilities A review of the literature was conducted to

reveal the issues and information available pertaining to transition assessment as it relates

to individuals with disabilities transition needs and mandates for individuals with


3

disabilities and current transition practices with educators This study sought to answer

the following questions

1 What knowledge do educators possess regarding transition assessment for


2 What transition assessment practices are used by educational personnel for


TheoreticalConceptual Framework

This study replicated a previously published study by Herbert Lorenz amp Trusty

(2010) from The Pennsylvania State University Descriptive statistical analysis was

required for the majority of the questions from their survey Descriptive statistics is a

process that presents quantitative information in a basic format (Trochim 2006)

Information is described utilizing summaries that will form the basis of the quantitative

analysis The descriptive analysis allows for a basic description of what the data reveals

Trochim (2006) wrote that descriptive analysis permits the data to be summarized in a

practical usable way

This study undertook the replication of an open-ended question in the Herbert et

al study (2010) This study used two open-ended questions and rephrased the questions

for greater clarification Subsequent analysis with the open-ended responses occurred

Qualitative research allows the researcher to get beyond their initial thoughts prejudices

preconceived notions and initial theories to delve into new realizations and syntheses of

knowledge (Miles amp Huberman 1994) Brantlinger Jimenez Klingner Pugach and

Richardson (2005) proclaimed that qualitative research is the mechanism for evaluating

the process of human behavior as it emerges within particular subject content The


4

purpose within an educational framework is to evoke change to improve the quality of

services education and programming with scientifically derived data Denzin and

Lincoln (1994) asserted that qualitative research is a set of various types of inferential

methods The research context for the open-ended survey questions will assume the

General Theory approach This type of practice attempts to analyze and interpret results

while seeking generalizations therefore allowing for discussion of the findings (Glezni

2006)

Assumptions

Students with intellectual disabilities must be met with the same stringent

assessment criteria as other disabled peers in order to meet the qualifications for special

education services All students with disabilities must participate in transition planning as

they begin the progression from secondary school settings to postsecondary options The

catalyst for the transition plan is the assessment process using formal and informal

approaches The literature that was available provided a plethora of information regarding

assessment methods and transition planning protocols Specific data should be

assimilated to address the specific transition assessment knowledge level of professionals

to meet the specific needs of students with intellectual disabilities

Definition of Terms

Adaptive Behavior Assessment is the assessment that when paired with

cognitive achievement assessment allows the child to be identified as a child with

an intellectual disability Adaptive behavior is characterized by the ability a child

has to be safe to interact with the environment and take into account the


5

individualrsquos ability to interact with the physical environment and the world

around them (Salvia Ysseldyke amp Bolt 2007 2010)

Assessment is the process of gathering data and information to evaluate a

particular student or school The purpose is to provide information to make

instructional decisions (Salvia et al 2007 2010)

Diagnostician is the title of a position in the state of Texas for individuals who

are certified to administer testing and interpret intellectual and achievement

testing data for students to determine eligibility for special education services

(TEA 2011)

Disability is the results of impairment or medical conditions that adversely affect

a childrsquos education achievement There are 14 categories for individuals who are

identified as a child with a disability These include Other Health Impaired Deaf

and Hard of Hearing Visually Impaired Deafblind Health Impaired Emotional

Behavioral Impaired Autism Developmentally Delayed Learning Disabled

Speech and Language Impaired Multiple Severe Disabilities Physically

Disabled Traumatic Brain Injury and Intellectually Disabled (Bryant Smith amp

Bryant 2008)

Financial Planning involves the analysis of available resources and the

development of understanding the value of money and how to handle money

Individuals with disabilities require careful planning by family and community

agencies to ensure that financial matters are handled safely and in the best interest

of the individual with disabilities (Wehman 2009)


6

Formal Assessment is characterized as standardized assessments This type of

assessment uses tests that are administered with specific instructions and

guidelines Included are interpretation procedures that require strict adherence to

specific protocols to receive correct and true results These tests are typically

manufactured assessments that test cognitive and achievement skills however

there are some manufactured formal assessments that evaluate transition skills and

aptitudes (Overton 2009)

Formal Transition Assessment includes a variety of published instruments to

assess skills aptitudes interests and preferences These include achievement

tests adaptive behavior and independent living assessments interest inventories

aptitude tests intelligence tests personality or preference tests career

development measures on-the-job or training evaluation and self-determination

assessments (University of North Carolina 2010)

Inclusive education is the process of educating students with disabilities in the

same class environment as their nondisabled peers (Salvia et al 2010)

Independent Living encompasses all the issues that surround a personrsquos life

pertaining to living on onersquos own The evaluation of this entity involves reflecting

on the continuum from residential living facilities to living on onersquos own All

aspects of life including transportation self-care money management

employment and community participation must be evaluated (Sitlington Clark amp

Kolstoe 2000)

Indictor 13 the ldquoU S Department of Education through the Office of Special

Education Rehabilitative Services required states to develop six-year State


7

Performance Plans in December 2005 around 20 indicators on which data is

submitted annually (beginning February 2007) in Annual Performance Reportsrdquo

Indicator 13 addresses secondary students (NSTTAC 2011)

Indicator 14 is the requirement by the OSERS to provide performance plans for

individuals with disabilities who are at the post-secondary level of their life

(NSTTAC 2011)

Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is a tool that is created after the child

meets eligibility criteria for special education This plan is specifically designed to

meet the individual needs of the child with a disability This plan outlines the

services the delivery of the services and the monitoring mechanisms that will be

utilized This document states the setting defines the length of programming

details methodology identifies evaluation modes documents the mode of

discipline determines the related services and sets the standard of progress for a

child with a disability (Hulett 2007)

Individualized Transition Plan (ITP) is the formal document that is developed

on an annual basis for a student who reaches the age of 16 and is identified as a

student with a disability The plan includes a coordinated set of goals and

objectives to address the individual childrsquos interests talents preferences and

strengths as they transition from secondary education to adulthood The ITP is the

plan that directs the annual IEP planning and course selection process (Miller et

al 2007)

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA 2004) is the

most recently reauthorized law that addresses providing a Free and Appropriate


8

Education for students with a disability The reauthorization in 2004 addressed

specifically the need and requirement for implementing a transition plan for

students when they reach the age of 16 (Hulett 2007)

Informal Assessment is the process of gathering non-standardized data to

evaluate progress Examples of informal assessment include checklists

interviews observations portfolios and teacher-made tests (Overton 2009)

Intellectual DisabilitiesMental Retardation is characterized by the American

Association on Mental Retardation as significantly subaverage intellectual

functioning which is paired with deficits in adaptive behavior and is manifested

during the developmental period (Crane 2002)

Local Education Agency (LEA) is local a district or school system that provides

public education to students with and without disabilities (Snell amp Brown 2006)

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) is a federal

government agency that provides leadership and financial support to state

education agencies and local education agencies to improve the outcomes for

infants to youth with disabilities (US Department of Education 2009)

Person-centered planning is a nonthreatening approach to engaging the family

and the student into developing goals and objectives through active processes that

enhance the IEP (Sitlington et al 2010)

Postsecondary Education (PSE) is the period after high school when a student

engages in continuing or higher education This can include a vocational or trade

school two-year college or four-year college setting (Lichenstein Rusch amp

Chadsey 1998)


9

Secondary Education (SE) is characterized as the high school years when

students begin ninth grade and move through to the twelfth grade It is at this

stage in education that students with disabilities not only address academic needs

but the process of developing the Individualized Transition Plan (ITP) is created

(Sitlington Neubert amp Clark 2010)

Self Determination is a skill that provides greater control and capacity for

students to be employed This involves tenacity and drive and the ability to strive

to reach ones potential via intrinsic motivation (Wehman 2011)

Special Education Manager is a computer software program that provides a

management system for writing reports and documentation of IEP reports to

school systems in Texas (GG Consulting LLC 2008)

State Education Agency (SEA) is the state education entity that governs the

local entities In Texas this is characterized as the Texas Education Agency

(TEA) (Texas Education Agency 20072011)

Supported Employment is paid employment that involves additional supports to

the individual to ensure success in the competitive employment arena This

involves at least 20 hours a week in real-work situations which differs from

sheltered employment (Wehman 2001)

Transition as it pertains to individuals with disabilities is the period of moving

toward postsecondary living and adulthood This includes various aspects

including employment postsecondary education community living and

involvement independent living and satisfactory social and personal

relationships This involves a set of coordinated and collaborative efforts between


10

the individual school family community resources and various stakeholders that

provide support (Halpern 1985 cited in Wehman 2011)

Transition Assessment is described as an ongoing process Information is

collected that includes the studentrsquos strengths interests preferences abilities and

a needs analysis This is the guiding information that directs the Individualized

Transition Planning process (Sitlington amp Clark 2006 cited in Luecking 2009)

Transition Planning is the process of developing a road map that provides

stepping stones to the future into adulthood for individuals with disabilities

(Flexer Baer Luft amp Simmons 2001)

Transition Services are defined by IDEA 2004 as a ldquocoordinated set of activities

for a child with a disability that is designed to be written with a results-oriented

process that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of

the child with a disability to facilitate the childrsquos movement from school to

postschool activities Included is postsecondary education vocational education

integrated employment including supported employment continuing and adult

education adult services independent living or community participation This is

based on the individual childrsquos needs taking into account the childrsquos strengths

preferences and interests This also includes instruction related services

community experiences the development of employment and other postschool

adult living objectives and when appropriate acquisition of daily living skills

and adaptive behavior evaluation (p 5)rdquo (Miller et al 2007)


11

Vocational Adjustment Coordinator is a term used in the assigned region for

teachers who develop work habits skills training and employment opportunities

for individuals with disabilities in the secondary school setting

Vocational Education is the organized set of activities training and coursework

to prepare the individual with disabilities toward greater success in career choices

or postsecondary education options (Sitlington et al 2000)

Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) is a mandated requirement set forth in IDEA

2004 The process of VR is a collaborative effort with community agencies and

specialists to address employment and postsecondary educational options for

individuals with disabilities (Golden et al 2010)

Delimitations

This study replicated a previous study performed by Herbert et al (2010) from

The Pennsylvania State University The original survey employed was field tested to

allow for modifications and greater clarity Modifications were made to the replicated

study to gather specific data pertaining to transition assessment as a whole rather than just

career assessment staff training desires and knowledge about specific published

assessment tools Also the survey was designed to discover the knowledge of staff

working with students with intellectual disabilities as it pertains to transition assessment

The survey was disseminated to professionals in education including special educators

special education directors transition coordinators vocational adjustment coordinators

and diagnosticians working with students with intellectual disabilities The survey was

formatted to fit the online tool used to disseminate the survey An online format was

implemented similar to the original study Recommendations were provided in the


12

original study which provided valuable advice to revise the study in order to refine the

process in order to achieve useful data Careful consideration by the researcher was

given to adhere to stringent protocols to gather accurate unbiased and useful data that

assisted with the findings of the research study

Limitations

Limitations included the following issues The study was originally conducted

with a group of 400 responders from across the state of Pennsylvania Limitations listed

in the original study included bias sample size and variability with variable awareness of

the participants Attempts to address these concerns were evaluated however certain

issues such as bias were difficult to control This study was conducted within the

specific region of West Texas The researcherrsquos involvement in special education in

particular the education of individuals with intellectual disabilities could have led to bias

and could have influenced the study however efforts were embarked upon to prevent

this confounding variable The relatively new use of the term intellectual disabilities to

characterize a student who was previously identified as a student with mental retardation

could have created some confusion

Significance of the Study

The study will add to the research findings associated with professionalsrsquo

knowledge about transition assessment as it pertains to individuals with intellectual

disabilities A great deal of research and literature is available pertaining to assessment

for both cognitive and achievement purposes There are also transition assessment

materials available and suggested practices for administering suggested assessment tools

Research information validating practice is missing from the transition assessment


13

process and indicating what practitioners actually utilize to meet the mandates of

Indicator 13 and IDEA 2004

Results of this study were utilized in several ways First the results were utilized

to substantiate or negate the findings of the original study The results will be

disseminated to the original researchers to verify or suggest revisions The results are

valuable to practitioners who utilize transition assessment tools with individuals with

disabilities In particular the results will aid those who work directly with individuals

with intellectual disabilities The results also add to the minimal available data with this

population of students which could stir further interest by other practitioners to replicate

even more research with transition assessment

School districts will utilize the data to develop appropriate transition assessment

strategies for individuals with disabilities in particular individuals with intellectual

disabilities From these data the professionals will develop a serviceable and appropriate

transition plan that meets the needs of the individual The goal of best practices for the

student as they transition from secondary to postsecondary venues was greatly fortified

In addition professionals will have valuable information allowing them to adhere to the

mandates outlined in Indicator 13 by the OSERS and through IDEA 2004

Organization of the Study

The literature review directed the emphasis of this study Few current research

studies exist that address professionalsrsquo knowledge level with regard to transition

assessment for individuals with disabilities This review included review of the literature

pertaining to historical influences on the transition plan components and mandates to the

transition process assessment practices and purposes transition assessment materials


14

and any available research studies that addressed the knowledge level of professionals

with regard to the transition assessment process

This study replicated a previously utilized research study that assessed current

assessment practices of professionals who interact with individuals with disabilities This

study was conducted through The Pennsylvania State University (Herbert et al 2010)

For this study a survey was disseminated to educators who deal specifically with

individuals with intellectual disabilities The purpose of utilizing a survey was to gather

additional information that was lacking on the research topic (American Association for

Public Opinion Research 2011) Modifications in the original format addressed unique

formatting specifications of the online survey modality Two open-ended questions

allowed a personal response which provided the respondent an opportunity to provide

additional insight to the researcher on the topic of knowledge of transition assessment for

individuals with disabilities

Analysis of the data occurred with several types of approaches as described in the

original survey report (Herbert et al 2010) Descriptive analysis occurred for the greater

portion of the survey questions Descriptive analysis was utilized to examine the

differences between responses across the various types of professionals such as self-

contained classroom teachers diagnosticians vocational adjustment coordinators and

special education administrators (Herbert et al 2010) Finally a qualitative analysis was

used to assimilate the data and to derive common themes and patterns from the open-

ended response questions


15

Summary

This study assessed educatorsrsquo knowledge of transition assessment strategies for

individuals with intellectual disabilities The study used a descriptive analysis approach

for 16 questions with two additional open-ended questions requiring qualitative analysis

to determine themes A review of the research addressed intellectual disabilities

transition practices transition assessment with disabilities in a general format and

specifically transition assessment for students with intellectual disabilities


16

CHAPTER II

Review of the Literature

Special education began in the late 1700rsquos to the early 1800rsquos and is attributed to

Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard (Bryant Smith amp Bryant 2008) He promoted the philosophy

that people with intellectual disabilitiesmental retardation are capable of learning (Crane

2002) From these early efforts the approach to educating and providing service to

individuals with intellectual disabilities emerged in the 20th

century when new laws

mandates and practices were introduced at a relatively fast rate Changes to services

paralleled many of the efforts of the Civil Rights movement of the 60rsquos and 70rsquos (Bryant

Smith amp Bryant 2008) The rights of individuals with intellectual disabilities were the

guiding principles influencing the introduction and further modifications to federal laws

that directed the treatment of these individuals

Several laws were enacted that guaranteed the rights of all individuals with

disabilities In 1973 the legislature passed the Vocational Rehabilitation Act in which

Section 504 set the stage for further legislation (Bryant et al 2008) This law guaranteed

basic civil rights to individuals with disabilities Furthermore accommodations were

made a requirement in public schools and society The intent was to prevent

discrimination against individuals with disabilities particularly within agencies receiving

federal funds

Perhaps one of the most powerful pieces of legislation that influenced the

education of individuals with disabilities was the Education for All Handicapped

Children Act better known as PL 94-142 of 1975 This law guaranteed that all students

with disabilities would receive at no cost a Free and Appropriate Public Education


17

(FAPE) This also established the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) which

emphasized the education of children with their nondisabled peers (Bryant Smith amp

Bryant 2008) This law has undergone several changes and reauthorizations through the

years

The first reauthorization occurred in 1986 with the addition of services for infants

and toddlers The next reauthorization resulted in a title change to the Individuals with

Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 1990 (IDEA) Two categories were added

autism and traumatic brain injury (Bryant et al 2008) Perhaps the most significant

change was the introduction of transition planning and services through the Individual

Transition Plan (ITP) (Bryant et al 2008)

Another monumental disability law was the Americans with Disabilities Act

(ADA) in 1990 Legislators and advocacy groups believed that Section 504 of the

Vocational Rehabilitation Act was not sufficient to protect the rights of individuals with

disabilities and further specifications needed to be defined This law went beyond the

classroom to community factors that influenced special needs individuals ADA

addressed discrimination ldquoin employment transportation public accommodations and

telecommunicationsrdquo (Bryant et al 2008 p 17)

Reauthorization of IDEA occurred in 1997 The reauthorization added behavioral

intervention plans (BIP) and functional behavioral assessments (FBA) as required

mandates The transition process for secondary special needs learners was also

strengthened by requiring that the ITP be a part of the studentrsquos Individualized Education

Program (IEP) (Bryant et al 2008)


18

In 2001 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) was passed Some of the main features

addressed individuals with special needs Educators were now required to utilize

scientifically based programs and interventions Individuals with special needs would

have increased access to the general education curriculum Finally the evaluation of

student proficiency in any given subject area would require appropriate accommodations

(Bryant et al 2008)

The next reauthorization of the IDEA occurred in 2004 (IDEA 2004 US

Department of Education 2006 cited in Bryant et al 2008) Changes to the identification

of learning disabilities were specified and alternate education settings for disciplinary

actions were allowed Additionally a requirement that teachers would need to fulfill

provisions as a highly qualified teacher was also added Students with disabilities are now

required to participate in annual state and district testing while including appropriate

accommodations and alternative testing in certain instances for particular students with

intellectual disabilities (Bryant et al 2008)

Students with Intellectual Disabilities

Definition of Intellectual Disabilities

The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

(AAIDD 2011) formerly known at the as the American Association on Mental

Retardation defines intellectual disability as ldquoa disability characterized by significant

limitations both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior which covers many

everyday social and practical skills This disability originates before the age of 18rdquo The

Centers for Disease Control (CDC 2005) further states that individuals with disabilities

perform below average on intelligence tests and display limitations in routines for daily


19

living and independent living skills These individuals display the ability to learn but at a

much slower pace

Individuals with intellectual disabilities perform at least two standard deviations

below the mean on a 100 average scale score on intelligence tests (Hogan 2007)

Categories for intellectual disabilities have been established to provide greater

understanding of intellectual functioning These include mild moderate severe and

profound intellectual disabilities Individuals classified as mildly intellectually disabled

perform at an intelligence quotient level of 50-55 to approximately 70 Individuals with

moderate intellectual disability display intelligence test scores from 35-40 to 50-55 The

severe intellectual disability category is classified as 20-25 to 35-40 Profound

Intellectual Disability is categorized as an IQ score below 20 or 25 (Hogan 2007)

In addition to sub-average performance on intelligence tests an evaluation of the

personrsquos adaptive skills is needed to determine that an individual meets the qualifications

for a diagnosis of intellectual disabilities An individual who is suspected of meeting the

criterion for intellectual disabilities within the intelligence testing process must also

display delays in the area of adaptive behavior Adaptive behavior includes social

intelligence and practical intelligence Social intelligence involves understanding social

situations Practical intelligence refers to independent living tasks and employability

skills (Hallahan et al 2012)

Characteristics of Students with Intellectual Disabilities

The CDC states that individuals with intellectual disabilities display the ability to

learn but at a much slower pace (CDC 2005) Hallahan and associates (2012) wrote that

with the proper supports the individual with intellectual disabilities can learn over time


20

According to Crane (2002) individuals with intelligence quotients in the mildly disabled

range perform typically at the second to fifth-grade level intellectually display a high

degree of daily living independence and are fully or partially employed Individuals with

moderate intellectual disabilities perform functional academic skills People performing

at the severely disabled level perform basic kindergarten and prekindergarten academics

require supervision for daily living skills and will typically require supervision in

community employment in a supported workshop setting Individuals performing at the

profoundly disabled level require intense supervised care in all areas of need (Crane

2002)

Statistical Data Regarding Prevalence of Students with Intellectual Disabilities

Nationwide 11 of individuals are identified as having some type of disability

(OSERS 2006 in Bryant et al 2008) Statistically about 214 of individuals will

measure two or more standard deviations below the normal average of 100 (Overton

2009) The prevalence of individuals with intellectual delays falling below 70 in public

school settings is about 227 (Hallahan et al 2012) Mild intellectual disabilities are

three times more prevalent than are severe intellectual disabilities (CDC 2005)

The economic cost associated with individuals with intellectual disabilities is

staggering Typically these individuals require long-term care and support to address all

areas of life The Centers for Disease Control (2005) reported that individuals with

intellectual disabilities average slightly more than one million dollars per person for

lifetime care Costs are incurred for medical care assistive devices home and automobile

modifications special education loss of revenue due to sub-average employment

opportunities and limited work opportunities Screenings and interventions need to be


21

employed to address the overwhelming reality of funding the care and education

individuals with intellectual disabilities (CDC 2004)

Historical Practices for Students with Intellectual Disabilities

In 1799 a French doctor by the name of Jean Marc-Gaspard Itard attempted to

educate a young boy known as a wild child who was believed to possess intellectual

disabilities (Bryant et al 2008) Itard established that those with intellectual disabilities

are able to learn (Crane 2002) Education underwent changes and developments over the

next two centuries Unfortunately some of the treatments for individuals included

barbaric practice through experimentation involuntary sterilization increased

segregation social control a type of ethnic cleansing and inhumane treatment (Crane

2002) Humanitarian reforms beginning in1960 were implemented that changed the

outlook for individuals with intellectual disabilities (Crane 2002)

In 1840 the first residential program for individuals with intellectual disabilities

was established In 1876 the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental

Disabilities (AAIDD) was created In 1896 the first class for students with all types of

intellectual disabilities was established By 1917 institutional settings were present for

most individuals with intellectual disabilities Edgar Doll proposed a definition for

intellectual disabilities that consisted of six criteria The Association for Retarded

Citizens known as the ARC was established in 1954 In 1959 a new groundbreaking

definition for intellectual disabilities was created By 1960 a unique project called the

Mimosa Project was created to work with girls with intellectual disabilities who

demonstrated they were able to learn many difficult tasks and daily living skills


22

President Kennedy initiated a national agenda which addressed the topic of intellectual

disabilities The state of New Hampshire in 1997 closed all institutional settings and

moved individuals with intellectual disabilities to group homes or private settings In

1999 the Disability Work Incentive Law was signed into action thereby eliminating

many of the barriers individuals with intellectual disabilities previously experienced

(Bryant et al 2008)

Transition Needs for Secondary Special Needs Learners

Transition planning and coordination of services for students with disabilities has

undergone a metamorphosis over the last two centuries Recent mandates changes and

requirements of the IDEA 2004 demanded that educators and service providers clarify

the individualrsquos needs and address the required mandates presented in the law (Schmitz

2008) The trend changed due to stakeholders including family members educators

service providers and most importantly the students desired quality outcomes for

postsecondary living Upon careful examination of the historical developments current

trends in transition planning and future needs and desires of students and caregivers now

require the implementation of best practices with regard to transition services

Transition planning for the student with disabilities is a critical area of concern

As the student with disabilities moves from high school to postsecondary life a

coordinated set of goals and objectives with defined implementation of services and

responsibilities for plausible outcomes must be implemented (IDEA 2004) Many of the

students with disabilities face a challenging road ahead and it is important that they be

provided with an Individualized Transition Plan (ITP) that includes their desires needs

strengths and preferences to afford greater positive outcomes Family members


23

educators students and community service providers must operate in a collaborative

manner to seek the best educational opportunities for the student with disabilities

(Wehman 2011)

Historical Influences on the Transition Process

Understanding historical developments that have transpired over the centuries

creates a greater awareness of the development of the person-centered approach that

exists in education today John Dewey a leader in curriculum theory from the

Progressive Era of the 19th

century developed the person-centered approach for

educating children He believed that education was a means to bolster social reform thus

encouraging the social intellectual and moral development of the child (Dewey 1916

cited in Flinders amp Thornton 2009) His person-centered approach directed the transition

process for the 21st century

Jane Addams a social reformer from the 19th

century transformed the social

work concept that existed with migrants coming to the United States She was known for

her social reform approach of providing services to her constituents at Hull House in

Chicago during the 19th

century Her enterprising concept of meeting the needs of her

constituents developed revolutionary changes for the immigrant child and family of the

Industrial Revolution Jane Addams recognized the need to educate all social classes to

meet the specific needs and interests of the immigrant populace (Addams cited in

Flinders amp Thornton 2009) Her enterprising holistic pursuit utilized a needs-assessment

approach accompanied by implementation of instruction in academic physical life skills

social and interests and preferences thereby affecting goals directed toward future adult

living objectives of Hull House Programming was created by assessing the needs


24

preferences and talents of those immigrant individuals who accessed Hull House

Although she was not an educator but a social worker her needs-assessment approach to

providing services to her immigrant constituents by evaluating the education vocational

social and independent living needs of the persons who attended Hull House improved

the quality of life in a holistic pursuit (Addams 1908 cited in Lagemann 1985)

Another individual from the 19th

century who influenced the transition planning

process that exists in special education today was Ralph Tyler Tyler believed that the

students learned best when they were able to experience learning in the natural

environment He surmised that the student must embrace a purpose for learning with the

objectives and experiences created in harmony with their life outside the classroom He

encouraged a study of ldquocontemporary life outside the classroom as the basis for deriving

objectivesrdquo (Tyler 1949 cited in Flinders amp Thornton 2009) He subsequently employed

a philosophy of experiential learning in and out of the classroom to reinforce the

purposeful continuum It was this experiential connection that attached profound meaning

to the learner Although not a direct contributor to the transition process for individuals

with special needs his philosophy provided a groundbreaking approach that paved the

way for current practices in special education with regard to transition planning

Examination of the mandates of IDEA 2004 pertaining to ITP reveals several

common comparisons to the aforementioned theorists The ITP is a person-centered plan

that includes the student and aligns postsecondary goals with transition services (Mazzoti

et al 2009) The goals are based on age-appropriate transition assessment related to

education employment training and independent living (Humphrey Johnson amp Albers

2010) Acknowledgment of the historical contributions of Addams Dewey and Tyler as


25

person-centered theorists allows one to opine that their beliefs have accelerated the

progress of education for students with disabilities This is particularly important with the

ITP process upon which the secondary student with disabilitiesrsquo annual individual

educational plan (IEP) is developed

Defining the Specifics of Transition Planning

In addition to historical perspectives interested stakeholders should be aware of

legal mandates and laws that pertain to individuals with disabilities Hulett (2007) has

described transition as the eighth component to the IEP process He states that IDEA

2004 demands that at the age of 16 the transition planning process is a requirement for

every studentrsquos annual IEP The transition plan must be reviewed annually The transition

planning process should be results driven to produce high-quality outcomes for

postsecondary living (Miller et al 2007) A statement of the needs or services must be

included in the IEP The ITP team must consider courses of study training supported

employment integrated employment adult services community participation and

independent living skills In addition they must look at community agencies that assist

with the child These services are at no cost to the student (Miller et al 2007)

Transition planning includes a coordinated set of goals and objectives to meet the

transition needs of students with disabilities as they transition into postsecondary life

(IDEA 2004) The ITP should include vocational education community living home

and family issues financial planning recreation and leisure mobility and health issues

Utilizing an authentic approach to implementation will increase the success of a

purposeful approach for the benefit of the student (Layton amp Lock 2008) The student

should be the focus by taking into account the desires talents interests and preferences


26

of the child (IDEA 2004 Wehman 2011) Vocational training postsecondary options

and continuing education opportunities should be included in the transition process (Snell

amp Brown 2006)

Transition planning requires that service providers develop and implement plans

that describe the services provided assessment and evaluation measures obligations of

team members person who are part of the plan and plausible service agencies (Overton

2009) Team members include the special educators general educators community

agencies student family members possible psychologists and counselors rehabilitation

specialists and other designated individuals who could provide support in the transition

planning ( Overton 2009 Wehman 2011) The student and parent should be included in

the transition planning process at all stages to secure greater positive outcomes at the

postsecondary level (Escheidt 2006)

Characteristics of Transition Needs

The student is the driving force of the transition planning process and its

subsequent annual goals and objectives This coordinated set of goals and objectives

becomes the model for the implementation of course selection vocational planning and

education for the student with regard to his or her annual IEP (Miller et al 2007) The

evaluation of the ability family structure community opportunities desires talents and

preferences of the student forms the basis for the transition plan (Wehman 2009)

Employment vocational training and postsecondary education are also carefully

considered in the ITP (Snell amp Brown 2006) The student should be given the tools to

live a successful life that is safe and provides the greatest opportunity for independence

(McNaughton amp Beulman 2010)


27

Schmitz (2008) described the purpose of transition planning as a fundamental

requirement of IDEA 2004 and Indicator 13 as outlined by the Office of Special

Education Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) In addition to the mandates presented in

IDEA 2004 pertaining to transition services there is an additional requirement that

schools and postsecondary agencies report on the results of transition services for

individuals with disabilities through Indicator 13 for secondary programs and Indicator

14 for postsecondary programs This has become the guiding structure when addressing

the needs and postsecondary planning of students with disabilities IDEA 2004 requires

that there must be a coordinated set of activities that focus on improving the academic

and functional achievement of the individual with disabilities Indicator 13 and Indicator

14 require that tracking mechanisms be put into place to assess the outcomes of

individuals with disabilities as they transition from secondary schooling to postsecondary

life

Statistics reveal that students with disabilities experience an unemployment rate

of 70 as opposed to their nondisabled peers at 22 (Schmitz 2008) The need to close

that gap is critical This is the reality that drives the mandates such as Indicator 13 for

educators to develop an appropriate transition IEP which includes age-appropriate

transition assessment and transition services that are to be delivered to students with

disabilities (Schmitz 2008)

The Individualized Transition Plan Process and Components

The foundation for the essential components and mandates associated with

transition come from IDEA 2004 which states the following

Transition services means a coordinated set of activities for a child with a

disability that is designed to be within a results-oriented process that is focused on


28

improving the academic and functional achievement of the child with a disability

to facilitate the childrsquos movement from school to postschool activities including

postsecondary education vocational education integrated employment (including

supported employment) continuing and adult education adult services

independent living or community participation is based on the individual childlsquos

needs taking into account the childrsquos strengths preferences and interests and

includes instruction related services community experiences the development of

employment and other postschool adult living objectives and if appropriate

acquisition of daily living skills and provision of a functional vocational

evaluation Transition services for children with disabilities may be special

education if provided as specially designed instruction or a related service if

required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education (TEA

cited in ESC 18 2011)

The process of including the student to a greater extent while engaging him or

her in greater collaboration with community agencies is emphasized in the transition

process The switch to a results-oriented approach as opposed to an input approach has

increased the need for greater accountability This is also evident with the

implementation of Indicator 13 pertaining to accountability for transition planning at the

secondary education stage and Indicator 14 at the postsecondary education stage Specific

changes to the IDEA 1997 to IDEA 2004 are the requirement of a coordinated set of

activities improvement with academic and functional achievement transition IEP age-

appropriate assessment and transition services (Schmitz 2008)

Components of the transition plan include a holistic approach to the education of

the student with disabilities Short-term goals should be developed with long range

planning as the over-all guiding purpose (Wehman 2009) The ITP should include the

assessment and development of critical life skills such as mobility recreation and leisure

opportunities health and safety training money management personal appearance skills

building social skills training and skills acquisition work habits and issues pertaining to

maintaining dignity (Wehman 2009)


29

Assessment and evaluation results should take into account the strengths and

preferences of the child while being presented in user-friendly formats to the family

members and student The schedule of services time frames for implementation and

individual responsibilities and obligations for providers should be documented Efforts to

provide real-life vocational training to meet employability objectives should be outlined

Financial planning is a critical component and needs in this area should be included

Social skills training and access to increase full community participation and activities

are other important elements of the ITP process (Wehman 2009)

Critical life skills pertaining to self-help and self-determination independence

and socialization represent essential transition elements Access to community agencies

and possible acquisition of needed services should be outlined with contact information

available to the family members and student Recreation and leisure health and safety

money management work habits and maintaining dignity are additional areas that

should be addressed by the ITP team (Wehman 2009)

Real-life experiences in naturalist settings for all aspects of the personrsquos life

including employment education and life skills acquisition is recommended (Wehman

2011) National transition goals which are outlined in IDEA 2004 include promoting

self-determination and self-advocacy ensuring that students have access to the standards-

based curriculum increasing graduation rates providing access to full participation in

postsecondary education and employment increasing parent participation improving

collaboration for optimum school and postschool outcomes increasing the availability of

qualified workforce and encourages full participation in community life including

social recreation and leisure opportunities The ITP includes two major goals The first


30

is to identify outcomes students and parent desire which is the person-centered approach

by including the student and parent while respecting their values and beliefs The second

is community collaboration and participation through community resources program

development and interagency collaboration (Wehman 2011)

New resources are being developed and published continuously to encourage the

implementation of sound practices in transition planning and services Johnson (2002)

from the University of San Diego developed a sourcebook of books selected websites

aptitude tests vocational evaluations career planning resources information centers

curricular resources assessments life-centered education IEP planning interagency

links publishers postsecondary transition resources and selected reports and articles

These suggested resources are included to enhance the transition assessment

development and implementation process

Snell and Brown (2006) in Instruction of Students with Severe Disabilities

devoted a chapter to vocational preparation and transition They recommended that

individuals should develop valued employment skills and abilities through supportive

families vocational services and supports in the community They proposed that

Vocational Rehabilitation should be the primary facilitators of employment opportunities

for individuals with disabilities

It is necessary to include a review of Social Security benefits and Medicaid

sources The balanced school-based vocational preparation through collaborative efforts

should include a continuum of the studentrsquos interests and preferences The work-related

instruction should occur across grades and settings in real-world settings Community-


31

based training sites should be developed with systematic behavioral procedures with the

goal of paid employment with if needed supports after graduation

Finally vocational training is a necessary component of the transition process

Transition training should provide students with a curriculum that prepares them for the

job they intend to enter Broad-based knowledge and skills are necessary components to

the vocational training endeavor Some students require training with specific skills that

are needed for survival in the workplace as well as in the community These skills need

to be carefully and succinctly taught These include academic skills communication

skills social and interpersonal skills and occupational and vocational skills (Levinson amp

Palmer 2005)

Latest Research on Individual Transition Planning

Policy Furney Hasazi and Destefano (1997) conducted a policy study to review

transition services for youth with disabilities The cross-case analysis evaluated programs

that exemplified high-quality models for implementation of transition planning Furney

and his colleagues assessed the current trends that were present in existing transition

planning practices He surveyed 74 institutions pertaining to their implementation of

transition services during a two-year period from 1992-1994 His intent was to evaluate

services with the new mandates set forth in previously reauthorized version of IDEA

1997 A qualitative approach was implemented with site visits in three states The results

were analyzed using cross-case analysis The results revealed that the person-centered

approach must be implemented to a greater extent to meet the postsecondary needs

outcomes of students with disabilities


32

Etscheidt (2006) conducted a qualitative analysis to examine judicial decisions

regarding transition planning Thirty-six cases were reviewed that addressed the needs of

individuals with intellectual disabilities learning disabilities behavioral disorders

autism multiple disabilities physical disabilities other health impairment attention-

deficithyperactivity disorder traumatic brain injury and other unspecified disabilities

Five categories were established that addressed agency contacts student involvement

and individualization of the transition plan school district obligations and

appropriateness of the transition plan

Etscheidtrsquos finding revealed that litigation pertaining to transition planning for

students with disabilities centered on procedural issues and components of the transition

plan Ten issues were identified Agencies need to be in attendance and invited to

transition meetings Second student involvement must be included and must consider

student interests Third individualization of the ITP should be based on assessment and

meet the studentrsquos individual needs Fourth stakeholders need to examine the studentrsquos

and familyrsquos postsecondary goals and vision Fifth discussion and documentation of the

present level of performance should be included Sixth the team should formulate a

statement of needed transition services with goals and objectives Seventh

implementation of the transition plan needs to be monitored to evaluate effectiveness

Eighth the district has an obligation to make plans that meet the needs of the individuals

to promote movement from secondary to postsecondary settings Ninth stakeholders

need to evaluate the appropriateness of the transition plan Tenth the transition plan must

be developed and addressed to meet the needs of the student


33

Transition services Through OSERS a grant was awarded to create the National

Secondary Technical Training Assistance Center (NSTTAC) This organization addresses

concerns regarding transition for secondary students as they move into postsecondary

life Through this collaborative effort between the University of North Carolina in

Charlotte and Western Michigan University NSTTAC addressed and assisted with

implementation to consumers parents agencies and educators about transition policy

Expert panels were created and research was initiated that resulted in recommendations

to local education agencies (LEAs) and state education agencies (SEAs) regarding

transition practice and policy In addition to informational recommendations to the LEAs

and SEAs technical assistance was developed to assist educators administrators and

parents in implementing effective transition and education services to improve secondary

and postsecondary outcomes A website was developed that includes evidence-based

practices lesson plan starters products and resources transition toolkits and specific

student and parent resources (UNC amp WMU 2011)

King Baldwin Currie and Evans (2006) completed a review article analyzing

strategies that were utilized to implement planning for transition and transition education

for youth with disabilities The purpose of one review was to evaluate the quality of

services and to provide recommendations for improvement of services The strategies

were classified into three main categories personal-level strategies person-environment

fit and environmental level strategies

Results indicated that the strategies lacked significant evidenced-based research to

support the use of the strategies and the effectiveness of the strategies Four of the

strategies pertaining to direct experience contained sufficient research to warrant the


34

effectiveness of these types of strategies A recommendation proposed the use of more

than skills-acquisition strategies including training and implementation of strategies in

the natural environment (King et al 2006)

Postsecondary education A study by Papay and Bambara (2011) examined

transition services for youth in postsecondary settings who possessed significant

intellectual disabilities This study utilized a survey with descriptive methods for

analysis The purpose of the study was to assess the over-all inclusion characteristics of

postsecondary programs on college campuses Eighty-seven institutions were identified

that provided opportunities for individuals with intellectual disabilities to participate in

postsecondary programs located on college campuses

The results suggested that students with disabilities participated in college courses

and in vocational training opportunities Twenty five percent of the students with

disabilities involved in postsecondary education were enrolled in college level courses

Only 2 of students with intellectual disabilities enrolled in the courses for credit Most

of the students who enrolled in the courses for credit were described as learning disabled

with reading levels that were near or slightly below those of nondisabled peers The

students with intellectual disabilities audited the courses primarily in the humanities and

basic entry level Reading level was a determining factor for these students as to whether

they were able to participate in the courses successfully for credit

Funding for these programs came primarily from the willingness of the higher

education institutions to sponsor the programs Some government resources were also

included to a lesser extent as well as partnerships with local school districts for students

who were past the age of majority but were still enrolled in high school Tuition revenue


35

was another slight source of income for the programs Grants were last on the list of

available sources of income At most institutions grants provided less that 10 of the

necessary budgetary demands of the postsecondary educational setting

Recommendations included conducting further research to gain a greater

understanding of the effectiveness of postsecondary education (PSE) programs

Additionally PSE institutions should continue to develop partnerships to promote

ldquolifelong inclusion and self-determinationrdquo (Papay amp Bambara 2011 p 93) Methods for

implementation were suggested as additional research agendas

Another research study (Neubert Moon amp Grigal 2002) focused attention on

postsecondary options for individuals with significant disabilities The purpose of the

article was to provide a review of the current literature available pertaining to secondary

educational opportunities for students aged 18-21 in their last year of high school A

descriptive approach was implemented to examine secondary education opportunities at

two-year and four-year institutions of higher education and community based settings

The results revealed three vocational training model approaches First students

attended 2-year schools with the intent to gain vocational skills and training while

experiencing college life A second model for students with significant disabilities

included attendance at four-year institutions A third model included programs in the

community to encourage employment and independent living options

Funding for these programs primarily came from local school districts and the

higher education institutions The need to assess logistic concerns pertaining to greater

collaboration and communication with community agencies was encouraged

Collaboration between local education agencies community settings and institutions of


36

higher learning should occur to allow families and caregivers various options for

secondary transition services to students nearing the transition phase into postsecondary

life

Transition process Levinson and Palmer (2005) undertook a descriptive study

that discussed general characteristics of the transition process for employment and

postsecondary life The authors described necessary components to implement transition

services as mandated by IDEA 2004 and Indicator 13 The need to incorporate

assessment and comprehensive planning that utilized the transition assessment data was

highlighted The assessment should address academic skills daily living skills personal

and social skills and occupational and vocational skills

School staff should subsequently utilize the assessment data to implement a plan

that meets the needs and interests of the student Parental involvement is crucial for the

planning process Vocational training should incorporate the enhancement of academic

skills daily living skills personal and social skills and occupational and vocational skills

Schools should focus on a transdisciplinary approach to prepare students for successful

postsecondary life

Cobb and Alwell (2009) reviewed transition planning and coordination of

services for individuals in postsecondary settings The authors undertook a review of

existing studies to determine whether there had been sufficient research efforts to address

the issue of transition planning and intervention for youth with disabilities This

systematic review included studies published between 1984 and 2004 A total of 31

studies from 10 journals produced a total of 1461 individual participants


37

Studies were analyzed for employment and participation in postsecondary

education options Analysis included whether the student was maintained at home and the

satisfaction of experience with personal and social relationships for individuals with a

variety of disabilities including learning disability emotional disturbance intellectual

disability autism physical disabilities attention deficit disorder auditory impairment

and speech impairment The authors reviewed postschool environments student

development interagency and interdisciplinary planning family involvement and

program structure

Results demonstrated that student-focused planning demonstrated great promise

as an important outcome for students Studentsrsquo desires need to be heard at IEP meetings

and in the planning processes More time is needed for transition planning and this should

not be handled at IEP meeting They also stated that students gain insight when training is

involved There is a demand to develop talents and interests Individuals with disabilities

believe there is a need for real work experience and socialization skills training Efforts

should focus on needs to build specific job skills that continue after high school There is

a need for flexibility rather than fitting students into prescribed programs The emphasis

should be directed toward greater awareness of community resources for possible

employment education living options and community access according to the

consumers and family members

Transition compliance Grigal Hart and Magliore (2011) conducted a

secondary analysis using The National Longitudinal Transition Survey 2 to address the

mandates of Indicator 14 of IDEA 2004 In order to comply with Indicator 14

individuals must be enrolled in higher education employed or involved in another


38

postsecondary option The elements need to include high expectations person-centered or

student-directed goals and collaboration with partners and community agencies is

critical

In their comparative analysis Grigal et al (2011) ascertained that there were

disparaging differences between individuals with intellectual disabilities and other

individuals with disabilities regarding transition planning for those at the postsecondary

level One hundred eight families participated with fewer contributors who were

educators One hundred forty-nine programs for individuals with disabilities in 37 states

were included Programs varied in implementations and types of settings Data set

analysis included 11000 students from a random set from 500 LEAs and 30 special

schools with an 82 response rate

The study included five areas that influenced the mandates of Indicator 14 and is

addressed in the following sections First parent expectations were influenced by the

severity of disability of youth with intellectual disabilities autism and physical

disabilities Second students were less likely to graduate with a regular diploma This

increased to 62-70 if staff possessed higher expectations Third team members should

be more involved in the ITP planning process Fourth goals should focus more toward

sheltered or supportive employment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Fifth

goals most often identified included independent living competitive employment

supported employment sheltered employment vocational training and two-year to four-

year college programs

Additional findings noted that vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselor

participation was greater for individuals with intellectual disabilities for career planning


39

Participation in college level classes by individuals with intellectual disabilities was last

They noted that increased enrollment in postsecondary education has increased the

income levels for 73 of individuals with disabilities The authors suggested that causes

need to be evaluated for fewer individuals with intellectual disabilities enrolling in higher

education and that increased expectations at the secondary level should occur to change

the mind-set for individuals with intellectual disabilities (Grigal et al 2011)

Transition Assessment Practices for Students with Disabilities

Transition planning is an important topic for the stakeholders and students with

disabilities as the students anticipate transitioning from secondary to postsecondary life

Transition planning is the eighth requirement of the Individual Education Plan (IEP)

process for students when they become 16 years of age (Hulett 2007) The transition

process begins with the assessment component to gain valuable information on which the

IEP is based (Hulett 2007) Transition assessment is a multidimensional process that

requires a collaborative approach to meet the specific needs of the student with a

disability who is receiving special education services (Miller et al 2007)

Purpose of Transition Assessment

Transition assessment meets the legal mandates of IDEA 2004 The requirement

decrees that students with an intellectual disability should be provided with an

appropriate evaluation (IDEA 2004) The purpose of transition assessment is to gather

ongoing data that leads to the development of a transition plan that meets the needs of the

student as they transition from secondary to postsecondary life Overton (2009) wrote

that assessment needs to be data-driven rather than relying on referral information alone

The data should be multidimensional and not reliant on just one piece of testing data


40

Data should reflect the studentrsquos needs strengths abilities interests and preferences

(IDEA 2004)

The National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (2001) states that

the transition assessment process should be ongoing in order to provide needed data to

guide the transition planning process for students as they look toward the future and to

aid in the development of the studentrsquos IEP It should be a collaborative endeavor with

input from a variety of stakeholders including the student and family or caregiver

involved in the process

Spinelli (2012) identified eight purposes of transition assessment for individuals

with disabilities The assessors should identify the studentrsquos a) career goals and interests

b) preferences c) independence level d) strengths e) hobbies f) interpersonal

relationships g) self-advocacy abilities and h) abilities in relation to postsecondary

goals These include employment education and training independent living community

involvement and personal social goals In addition there needs to be an ecological

assessment of new or future settings to determine psychological physical social

emotional and cognitive demands and requirements of the setting

In regard to employment Spinelli (2012) proposed that assessment should

evaluate the studentrsquos current skills and the desired skill levels to determine the studentrsquos

ability to deal with the demands of postsecondary employment ability to engage in

employment and community participation and independent living options The

assessment should seek to determine the particular curricular social-emotional and

physical skills that need addressing in the ITP and the studentrsquos self-determination skills


41

With regard to educational supports Spinelli (2012) wrote that the assessment

should determine appropriate placement within the education community in addition to

vocational and community settings in order for the student to attain postsecondary goals

Furthermore the assessment should seek to determine the accommodations supports and

services that are needed in order for the student to attain and maintain postsecondary

goals Finally the assessment should design a system for monitoring progress and

evaluating the success of the transition program

Miller et al (2007) has described transition assessment as ldquoa process that

determines the studentrsquos abilities attitudes aptitudes interests work behaviors levels of

self-determination and self-advocacy interpersonal skills academic skills level and

independent living skills over an extended period of time for the purpose of planning an

appropriate education program (p 5)rdquo This is an ongoing process Stakeholders must

gather data on the individual student Items that are necessary for the assessment include

the studentrsquos needs preferences strengths and interests These items should be evaluated

as these relate to the future and current programming of the individual with disabilities

The areas that should drive the evaluation include work education living personal and

social skills and environment of the individual with disabilities

Additionally Miller et al (2007) clarifies the components of the transition

assessment process He suggests that these components be intertwined in order to engage

in informed decision making The first component is future planning needs and goals

The second area to be addressed is self-determination and self-advocacy skills A third

area is academic strengths and deficits that include the studentrsquos learning styles and

behaviors that influence learning A fourth component is life-skills instruction when it is


42

deemed appropriate The fifth and final component is vocational interests aptitudes and

abilities both in the classroom and within the community environment

In 2004 with the reauthorization of IDEA OSERS required that states submit

additional data on 20 indicators Indicator 13 specifically addresses the transition

component More specifically this indicator requires that assessment must occur that

involves an ongoing process to collect transition-relevant data This assessment should

include the needs preferences strengths and interests of the student The requirement

states that the demands of current and future working educational and personal social

environments for the individual must evaluated (Mazotti et al 2009)

Mazotti et al (2009) proposed a six-component checklist for Indicator 13 The six

include the following first it is necessary to utilize user-friendly assessments to guide

parents students and other support personnel Second the goals for the ITP should focus

on employment education and training and when appropriate independent living Third

they suggest a simplified format that addresses where the student plans to work where he

or she will learn the necessary skills and where the student eventually lives Fourth

alignment of annual IEP goals should coincide with the transition services and

postsecondary goals This will allow the student the optimal opportunity to attain the

postsecondary goals

Schmitz (2008) identified seven areas that should be included in the transition

planning process in order to adhere to the mandates of Indicator 13 The components of

the transition assessment include interest assessment and career exploration assessment

measures It is crucial to include assessment of academic performance as it relates to the

workplace Essential is the process of career planning The practice of assessment and


43

skill building should be incorporated to evaluate self-determination social and emotional

learning and interventions for independent living

Types of Transition Assessment

Transition assessment is an ongoing process that involves a variety of sources in

order to create a data-driven plan that addresses the individual needs of the student with

disabilities Transition assessment includes assessment tools that are utilized to meet

eligibility requirements and to assist with the transition planning process Numerous

devices are available to provide valuable information that the Individualized Transition

Plan (ITP) team is able to access for transition assessment Assessment practice occurs

both formally and informally with the inclusion of adaptive measures (Miller et al

2007)

Assessment is employed for identifying individual student needs improving

instruction and program planning evaluating service delivery programs and

accountability The approach assumes a person-centered planning procedure The

assessment process must include the family Informal assessment procedures are valuable

and provide an abundant source of information (Sax amp Thoma 2002)

The National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (2010) described

an Assessment Toolkit that can be accessed by educators parents SEAs and LEAs to

gain knowledge about best practices with transition assessment The authors assert that

ldquothe results of transition assessment should be the basis for making recommendations for

instructional strategies and accommodations in instruction and environments to meet the

studentrsquos needsrdquo (National Secondary Technical Training Assistance Center 2010 p 3)

Formal and informal measures are listed with contact information and suggested


44

guidelines for the types of assessment Included are links to some of the recommended

assessments with examples to review

Schmitz (2008) states that transition assessment is best characterized as a

multifaceted approach Quality assessment involves interest assessment career

exploration assessment assessment of academic competencies career planning

assessment and skill-building for self-determination assessment and skill-building for

socialemotional learning and assessment and skill intervention for independent living

skills Through the implementation of these seven assessment modalities the individual

student will have the opportunity to participate in a transition assessment that is created

with fidelity to his or her needs

Informal versus formal measures of assessment All students receiving special

education services participate in assessment to meet eligibility requirements The

assessment measures fall into two basic categories informal and formal (CECIdeas that

Work 2011) Formal assessment tools include achievement tests high-stakes testing

intelligence tests and even career interest personality profile and self-determination

measures These tools produce quantitative results that are used to assess skills and

aptitudes interests and preferences

Examples of informal measures include curriculum- based assessments

interviews questionnaires observations authentic assessment and portfolios (Layton amp

Lock 2008) Informal measures require a qualitative approach to analyzing information

on an ongoing basis to provide guidance when creating the transition plan for the student

with a disability who receives special education services This information provides


45

valuable pieces of data which enhance the transition planning requirements for students

with disabilities

Informal assessment procedures are needed to identify the studentrsquos individual

needs and to develop an appropriate transition plan The ITP team must determine the

purpose of the assessment Individuals should assess the student in the natural

environment and in various settings and programs They should identify relevant

behaviors and verify the input from others The ITP team chooses the appropriate

measurement procedures such as observation interview questionnaires surveys

checklists interest inventories and self-assessments The team also evaluates social

support systems The assessment findings identify the transition goals and objectives

From this process curricular plans are implemented to achieve the goals and objectives

(Sax amp Thoma 2005)

Sitlington (2008) analyzed the process of utilizing informal assessment to

facilitate transition planning for students with significant reading and writing delays That

analysis addressed the use of informal assessment for high stakes testing exit

examinations diploma options and transition planning Outlined in the article are

competencies to address the needs from transition into adulthood Sitlington (2008)

identified 22 competencies needed to transition into adulthood which the planning team

must incorporate Transition planning was characterized as an ongoing process of

ldquocollecting information on the studentrsquos strengths needs preferences and interests as

they related to the demands of current and future livingrdquo (Sitlington 2008 p 87) She

suggested several tools to accomplish the assessment by gathering information to guide

the individualrsquos transition plan Analysis of the studentrsquos background information is


46

primary In addition interviews with parents should transpire to facilitate the assessment

component Psychometric instruments work samples and curriculum-based assessment

techniques are suggested assessment tools to aid in the planning process Sitlington

suggests situational assessment to gather real-life data that resembles the individualrsquos

future living conditions The approaches must be systematic and occur in a variety of

settings Transition assessment utilizing these measures directs the instructional

decisions

Vocationalcareer assessments A necessary part of the transition assessment

process is the use of career interests vocational aptitude measures personality profiles

self-determination measures and other assessment tools that aid in the vocational and

career component of transition assessment (Levinson 2001) These tools provide

valuable information about the studentrsquos skills in areas such as self-awareness awareness

of job skills interest seeking and abilities with social and emotional interactions The

types of assessments include interviews questionnaires observations ecological and

environmental situational and behavioral curriculum-based interest inventories

vocational profiles and portfolios

An additional area is the vocational profile Vocational profiles are described as

narratives that paint pictures These include biographical information educational

history work experience and current skills The studentrsquos learning and performing

characteristics should be included along with interests community-support connections

and necessary accommodations (Sax amp Thoma 2002)

An article from San Diego State University provided a list of suggested

assessment tools available to facilitate the transition process (Johnson 2002) Included


47

are resources for curriculum implementation for transition purposes A wide array of

career occupational and vocational assessment and evaluation resources are

characterized in addition to links addresses and pricing guides Training videos

curricular and planning resources for transition planning are included Family

involvement interagency guides and follow-up assessment tools to aid in the transition

planning process are also described

Transition Assessment for Students with Intellectual Disabilities

In order for a child to meet the eligibility requirement as a student with an

intellectual disability an adaptive behavior assessment must be conducted (Overton

2009) This is one avenue whereby interested stakeholders may gather information about

life skills of students with intellectual disabilities That assessment tool alone does not

provide enough information needed to gather sufficient data to assist with the transition

planning process Assessment for the individuals with intellectual disabilities requires

assessment in the natural environment (Sitlington 2008) Sheltered or supported

employment arenas may be included utilizing qualitative measures to gather information

about a studentrsquos social emotional self-determination job skills and other pertinent data

necessary for assessment purposes (Overton 2009)


IDEA 2004 states that with regard to the transition process the transition

assessment process for all students with disabilities involves the formal and informal

assessment-gathering mechanism on an ongoing basis (Mazotti et al 2010) As the child

reaches the age of 14 transition planning should begin At age 16 the formal process of

developing the transition plan takes place (Miller et al 2007)


48

Assessment includes evaluating independent work skills planning and time

management skills and assessment of self-advocacy abilities For students with more

severe disabilities there must be an assessment for extended employment Assessment

includes the evaluation of vocational interests and aptitudes as well as the studentrsquos

ability and functional self-help skills The domains include cognitive ability social-

emotional adjustment communication skills academic functioning physical stamina and

adaptive behavior which are utilized by the multidisciplinary team to create the transition

plan (Spinelli 2012)

The transition assessment process can be conceived as a three-level approach

(Levinson 2001) Level one involves looking strictly at previously gathered assessment

data to prescribe a transition plan Data collection and interpretation of previous data is

the driving mechanism at this level Cumulative and confidential records are reviewed to

gather pertinent data This includes grades attendance academic achievement discipline

referrals and health records

The second level involves assessment of vocational interests and vocational

aptitudes using specific psychometric tests Assessment results and incorporating career

interest inventories and previously gathered formal and informal assessment data are

utilized in the creation of the transition plan

The third level occurs with individuals who require more information to gather a

realistic image of the studentrsquos abilities and interests This level is based on the

assessment of the first two levels This additional assessment includes work samples and

situational assessment techniques The implementation of any model must take into

consideration the available resources the characteristics and expertise of the available


49

personnel the population targeted for services the nature and availability of local

community services and the type of vocation placement options in the local area

(Levinson 2001)

Levinson and Palmer (2005) have written that assessment and planning are key

components to successful postschool living Assessment data can be gathered through

published tests and surveys as well as from direct interviews and observations of the

student Several areas are addressed including academic skills daily living skills

personal and social skills career maturity vocational interests and vocational aptitude

tests Additional assessment measures include occupational and vocational skills

assessments These are characterized as performance tests that assess a studentrsquos ability

to perform specific job-like tasks work samples that expose a student to natural job

responsibilities and situational assessments that measure a studentrsquos interests abilities

and work habits in actual and contrived environments

Characteristics of Transition Assessment for Students with Intellectual Disabilities

Due to varying disability factors for individuals with intellectual disabilities

traditional methods do not meet the needs of transition assessment Many students with

more significant intellectual disabilities have difficulty with paper and pencil tasks

Alternative measures should be implemented to address the assessment component of the

transition plan (Grigal et al 2011) Questionnaires and interviews with family members

offer good sources of information (Moon et al 2011) Observations and skills analysis

should be incorporated into the standard informal and formal measurement protocols

(Wehman 2009) Of great importance in the assessment of students with more significant

disabilities are the critical life skills pertaining to self-help mobility self-determination


50

socialization health family and community supports self-awareness interests strengths

and preferences of the individual (Wehman 2011)

Latest Research on Transition Assessment for Students with Disabilities

Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities There is the lack of available research

on current assessment trends with students who have intellectual disabilities autism and

multiple-impairments There is considerable research available on assessment with

informal and formal measures in general contexts but not as much with regard to the

specific details regarding best practices for assessment of transition needs and services

including outcomes pertaining to students with intellectual disabilities One recent article

was discovered that dealt specifically with the assessment process for students with

intellectual disabilities sometimes described as developmentally delayed (Moon et al

2011)

A qualitative study was conducted by Moon et al (2011) to address the

perceptions of necessary skills experiences and information that youth with

developmental disabilities and their families perceive should exist for the student with

regard to supported employment in a postsecondary setting Discussed was the sheltered

work environment that many students with disabilities encounter as a postsecondary

option for employment Four research questions were introduced with one of the four

addressing transition assessment specifically A survey was developed that included

several open-ended questions The survey addressed recruiting skills needed

assessment and work experiences that are most important and suggestions for transition

planning Participants included community rehabilitation providers involved in intake and

service deployment The state that was targeted was subdivided into four regions Twelve


51

individuals from the four regions participated in the survey One-hour to two-hour

interviews ensued to gather qualitative data Data analysis followed to characterize

common themes

Results specific to transition assessment revealed that interests and preferences of

the client were important to consider however only three of the 12 revealed that this

information was obtained from the school or family They found it was important to

include the family to a greater extent in the assessment process Due to the disabling

conditions of the individuals with intellectual disabilities it was revealed that family input

was important There was concern expressed that transition assessment was lacking in the

secondary setting and results were not readily available Job trials and situational

assessment should be utilized in two of the settings for assessment purposes

Philosophical statements were discussed for implementation and acquisition of transition

assessment from high school to postsecondary sheltered settings to improve collaborative

efforts which results in better preparation of youth for supported employment services

(Moon et al 2011)

Individuals with all types of disabilities Current research pertaining to the

transition assessment component and process for students with disabilities is quite

limited One article by Herbert et al (2010) discussed the assessment process for students

with disabilities This article addressed the assessment process for all types of disabilities

The method involved an online questionnaire developed to assess respondent

demographic information career assessment practices type of services available and

career areas that are assessed with students Two groups were surveyed including the

Pennsylvania Office of Vocational Rehabilitation counselors working with high schools


52

possessing students with disabilities on their caseload and high school professionals

including administrators and educators who provided transition services to high school

students with disabilities The survey was disseminated over a two-month period More

than 400 teachers administrators and rehabilitation personnel responded to the survey

regarding assessment trends

Five research questions were identified with that study Current assessment trends

were revealed showing that a pluralistic approach was utilized rather than one specific

approach This included skills instruction self-awareness emotional support community

knowledge direct experience and community intervention rather than traditional

assessment Knowledge of available services was moderate overall Impact of career

services was moderate Collaboration was perceived at a moderate to minimal level

between families students and school officials and consultants Overall helpfulness of

career services was perceived as helpful by two thirds of the participants Areas assessed

were primarily vocational interest academic achievement and academic aptitude

Descriptive analysis was applied which revealed that school professionals

typically address career interests to the greatest extent Aptitude revealed slightly more

than 50 of programs addressed these aptitude assessments Achievement was at 48

Career decision making work values personality and world of work were close with

results from 37 to 29 Impact on transition service revealed moderate outcomes at

50 with the respondents and significant with only 21 of the respondents Four themes

emerged which included teamwork training needs parental involvement and unrealistic

career goals as issues that needed to be addressed Work samples were revealed as the

most infrequently utilized assessment tool They recommended that school professionals


53

need to give greater attention to the area of career and work decision-making which

should include career interests knowledge of work and also achievement aptitude and

personality which appears to be lacking in substantial emphasis with current transition

assessment according to the findings of that report (Herbert et al 2010)

Qualitative analysis was applied to one open-ended question Recommendations

were cited in the discussion portion of the article which supports transition assessment

early in the studentrsquos high school career Additional training opportunities were indicated

by the participants Collaboration with all stakeholders was a high-priority

recommendation Further knowledge of assessment areas and types of assessments was

recommended to increase the impact of transition assessment for students with

disabilities (Herbert et al 2010)

The lack of research-based information about transition assessment points to a

critical need in the field of special education Without data to clarify what transition

assessment practices are successful as well as studies that examine educatorrsquos

understanding about their use evidence-based transition assessment cannot progress

With this in mind the following research questions were addressed

Research Questions






54

Summary

Transition assessment does not involve exclusively the assessment of vocational

needs and abilities All stakeholders of the transition team must adhere to a holistic

approach to transition assessment for the individual with intellectual disabilities Informal

and formal measures must be utilized to gather ongoing data to develop an age-

appropriate transition plan for students as they transition into postsecondary life In order

to meet the needs of the individual with disabilities the interested stakeholders must

assess interests strengths aptitudes preferences social skills self-help skills self-

determination mobility community access and environmental concerns within the

natural environment When working with individuals with more significant intellectual

disabilities informal assessment should be the focus while taking into account formal

measures This should be the model for transition assessment Evaluating the individualrsquos

support system should be another source in order to provide a realistic holistic and

successful transition plan that will assist the students as they transition from secondary to

postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology

Transition assessment is the cornerstone for the development of the IEP Since the

reauthorization of the IDEA in 2004 the transition plan to meet the specific needs of the

student possessing a disability is required for a student who has reached the age of 16

The literature addresses the best-practice approaches to developing the transition plan for

the secondary student with a disability Essential components guidelines and

suggestions are highlighted Suggestions for implementation team planning

collaboration inputs outputs and curriculum goals saturate the literature on all levels

Additionally a wealth of information about the assessment process in general is

available Guidelines for achievement testing cognitive assessments behavioral

evaluations adaptive behavior curriculum-based measurements and dealing with high-

stakes testing within formal and informal categories are exhaustive Knowledge of what

is being utilized with regard to transition assessment is lacking It is important to

determine if educators possess knowledge regarding transition assessment and what is

being used to implement transition assessment especially for students with intellectual

disabilities

Research Questions

This study investigated two research questions






56

Rationale

In order to answer the research questions this study was conducted to gather

specific data that pertains to knowledge about transition assessment for individuals with

intellectual disabilities The study utilized a survey that was based on earlier research by

Herbert et al (2010) Gaining knowledge from a variety of professionals required the

selection of the individuals who best represented those who provide services to

individuals with intellectual disabilities who are involved in the transition planning phase

of their education (American Association for Public Opinion Research 2011)

To better answer the research questions it was necessary to conduct a descriptive

analysis of the survey results A qualitative analysis of the perceptions of the practitioners

who provide transition assessment to students with intellectual disabilities was used with

two open-ended questions Accordingly the previous survey was pilot tested and

administered with modifications following the pilot testing process (Herbert et al 2010)

The descriptive analysis conducted in the initial survey was replicated in order to provide

for reliability and validity

Context of the Study

The setting for this study was an area that included the western portion of Texas

characterized as West Texas This region is better known as a rural plains area with one

larger city that is surrounded by rural towns sprawling ranches and agricultural entities

(Texas Association of Counties 2003) According to the Texas Association of Counties

(2003) rural areas generally rely on agriculture that is more unstable which results in

higher unemployment and underemployment These areas show population that is more

sparsely populated as compared to urban regions The area is served by the Regional


57

Education Service Center Region 17 which includes Local Education Agencies

Logistics along with the researcherrsquos proximity to the research locale necessitated the

selection of the setting for the study

In addition to logistical concerns the data that was collected served the area that

is identified with a more regionalized specific purpose West Texas is a region that deals

with the unique needs of the plains and a rural locale that reflects different hurdles and

barriers that are different from those of a larger metroplex In addition to the wide spans

of the region as a whole the barriers that affect transition planning for individuals with

disabilities are affected by the rural setting the expanse of the region as a land mass and

the availability of services for individuals with disabilities

Data Sources

The group comprising the research participants included individuals in public

school settings that provide transition services to students with intellectual disabilities

This included special education teachers in self-contained settings special education

teachers in inclusive settings vocational adjustment coordinators diagnosticians special

education directors and transition coordinators who coordinate the transition planning

process and who work directly with individuals who have intellectual disabilities This

group best represented the parties that intervene with the chosen population of individuals

with intellectual disabilities West Texas residents and the persons who possess a vested

interest in the subject matter of transition assessment

Disadvantages to the choice of the participants were that the participants may not

have represented the community as a whole throughout the state of Texas who serve

individuals with intellectual disabilities In addition the goals and future outcomes for the


58

individuals with intellectual disabilities in West Texas could vary from the future

outcomes for individuals in larger metroplex areas or who live in land areas not as vast as

West Texas Advantages could be that the rural setting could serve to provide information

that regions throughout the United States would be able to utilize to enhance the service

delivery for individuals with intellectual disabilities

Data Collection Methods

The process of collecting the data involved the use of an online survey for four

weeks that was replicated from a study that was conducted based out of The Pennsylvania

State University (Herbert et al 2010) The original plan was to disseminate the survey

for two weeks A reminder was sent after two weeks and another reminder was sent after

three weeks in order to obtain a sufficient number of participants

Included in the survey was basic demographic information such as job title years

of experience highest education level and area of concentration Additional data for the

present study was collected on types of current transition assessment practices being

utilized and what areas are assessed by the transition personnel The information

collected reflected who performed transition assessments to individuals with intellectual

disabilities what was the impact of transition assessment and their own level of

understanding by professionals regarding transition assessment

The original survey involved 13 questions that included demographic information

and knowledge of transition application procedures For the purpose of this study the

demographic component consisted of eight items including information about location

gender educational background and job title The survey questions directly associated

with transition assessment included a list of eight questions Two were open-ended


59

questions Sixteen of the questions required a descriptive analysis process The two open-

ended questions required qualitative analysis of the responses (Miles amp Huberman

1994)

The survey questions pertaining to transition also required a descriptive analysis

approach The questions included information from the respondents about their

understanding of services and their opinion about what was available and what was being

utilized with regard to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

Respondents were asked about their understanding of transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities The respondents had the opportunity to express

the level of effectiveness present in the current transition assessment practices they

experienced Respondents also responded to a portion of the survey that addressed the

level of impact that transition assessment had on assisting their students (Herbert et al

2010)

The Education Service Center Region 17 list-serve was accessed to identify the

directors of special education Those individuals were asked to forward the survey letter

and survey link to staff who work specifically with students with intellectual disabilities

and the transition process Additional list-serves were obtained through the Texas

Association of Vocational Adjustment Coordinators Texas Educational Diagnostician

Association Region 17 Education Service Center contacts and district e-mail contacts

More than one hundred participants were estimated as possible participants Possible

participants were contacted with the hopes of obtaining a sample of at least sixty Seventy

one participants submitted responses to the survey in the online format (Appendix C and

D)


60

Data Analysis

Analysis of the data required a careful descriptive process The first step included

a best-practices analysis with regard to the data-collection process and the survey itself

The American Association for Public Opinion Research (2011) suggests 12 quality

standards for best practices with survey studies Some of these standards include

ldquopossessing specific goals for the survey considering alternatives to the survey approach

selecting samples that well represent the population to be studied and taking great care in

matching question wording to the concepts being measured and the population studiedrdquo

(AAPOR 2011 p1)

Descriptive analysis was ensued throughout the data analysis process for all but

the two open-ended questions Basic statistical analysis was reviewed using descriptive

analysis The purpose was to ldquoassign meaning to the descriptive or inferential

information compiled during the studyrdquo (Miles amp Huberman 1994 p 56) Descriptive

analysis involves ldquothe process of staying as close to the data as was originally recordedrdquo

(Glesne 2006)

Through the use of qualitative analysis further evolvement of recurring themes

and patterns was evaluated Lorenz and Trusty (2010) wrote ldquoa qualitative analysis must

be done to identify content themes to the open-ended questionrdquo (p20) A systematic

approach to review the given data for the two open-ended questions allowed for greater

usability of the common patterns themes and implications by interested stakeholders A

codification system was utilized to discover themes patterns and obscure outliers present

within the survey tool with the open-ended response questions (Miles amp Huberman

1994) Qualitative analysis was not simply a means to support the assumptions of the


61

researcher Secondly care was adhered to so that the results of the initial study did not

lead to a biased approach to the data collected during this study

Data Management Plan

The initial step in the data management process required permission by the Texas

Tech University Institutional Review Board (IRB) to conduct the study Consent was

obtained from the participants through acknowledgment of their willingness to participate

in the online survey (Appendix A and B)

The data that was gathered required a carefully designed and organized data

management plan Following the data collection process the data was appropriately

securely and safely stored The data was password protected with access only by the

researcher The data was stored on a computer with password protection which was only

accessed by the researcher

Reliability and Validity

The reliability and validity of this study was enhanced due to the use of the survey

tool utilized in a former study (Herbert et al 2010) The survey tool was field tested and

later refined for greater clarification This was the second time this survey was utilized

There was a narrowing of the survey to specifically address the knowledge of assessment

practices of educational professionals with regard to transition assessment for individuals

with intellectual disabilities The online format was utilized for a four-week time span to

gather the data A smaller sampling of participants that better represented the West Texas

demographics was utilized to enhance the validity of the data from the selected region


62

Summary

This study investigated the knowledge that professionals possess regarding

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities This study described

the knowledge of assessment practice within the West Texas region This was completed

using a mixed-methods approach of descriptive statistical analysis and a qualitative

analysis through the use of a replicated survey A review of the research in the areas of

transition planning and transition assessment was completed at the beginning

A survey that was previously conducted was replicated to address the research

questions pertaining to the knowledge that educational professionals possess with regard

to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities The online survey

was available for a four-week period List-serves and district emails were used to identify

participants who best represented West Texas professionals and who best answered the

research questions for transition assessment pertaining to individuals with intellectual

disabilities

Data analysis required a mixed-methods approach of descriptive statistical

analysis for the majority of the survey responses and qualitative analysis for two open-

ended questions A carefully designed data management plan was used throughout the

study to adhere to a well-managed audit trail Careful protocol was followed to gather the

data organize the data and analyze the data


63

CHAPTER IV

Results

This study examined the level of knowledge professionals possessed regarding

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Additionally

participants were asked what assessment tools were being utilized to address transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities including types of assessment and

specific assessment tools Questions explored areas examined during transition

assessment and who was responsible for implementing the assessment tools Participants

were contacted via e-mail to request their participation in the web-based survey

The process of contacting participants involved online requests to regional special

education directors diagnosticians transition personnel and vocational adjustment

coordinators serving students with intellectual disabilities in West Texas An initial

request was sent giving the participants two weeks to complete the survey A second

request was sent after the two week period A third and final request was sent as a

reminder giving the participants four more days to complete the survey A total of 71

participants completed the online survey

Modifications were made to the replicated study to gather specific data pertaining

to transition assessment as a whole rather than just career assessment staff training

desires and knowledge about specific published assessment tools Changes included

a) utilized descriptive statistics to increase practical understanding for educational

personnel in a usable format (Trochim 2006) b) changed from one to two open-ended

questions c) rephrased open-ended questions for greater clarification d) omitted

demographic question pertaining to race e) added a survey question related to training


64

desires due to overwhelming response in the original survey f) added additional

assessment areas types and mechanisms g) changed wording from career assessment to

transition assessment h) focused on education personnel versus rehabilitation personnel

and i) narrowed to two research questions

Data were obtained through the online survey utilizing descriptive data analysis

for 16 questions and qualitative analysis for two open-ended questions Participants were

asked if the assessment tools aided in identifying and meeting the potential of individuals

with intellectual disabilities Basic demographic questions were asked to gain an

understanding of the characteristics of the West Texas participants located in the Region

17 Education Service Center area

Research Questions

This study gathered information regarding knowledge of transition assessment for

students with intellectual disabilities located in West Texas and characterized as the

Region 17 Service Center area The following research questions were addressed

Research Questions





Characteristics of the Sample

Job Category

The population for this study included 71 participants of whom 831 were

female and 169 were male This study included similar types of participants in the


65

original study conducted at The Pennsylvania State University (Herbert et al 2010)

However emphasis for this study was directed toward education personnel rather than

rehabilitation personnel from the previous study Participants included district

administrators special education teachers district special education administrators

consultants diagnosticians transition coordinators vocational adjustment coordinators

campus administrators special education counselors and education service center

consultants Seventy-one individuals participated in the study which is reflected in Table

41

Table 41 Job Category Description (N = 71)

_______________________________________________________________________

Variability Category n

_______________________________________________________________________

Job Category Campus Educator 21 295

Educational Diagnostician 19 267

Vocational Adjustment Coordinator 8 112

Transition Coordinator 6 84

Special Education Administrator 5 70

District Administrator 3 42

Consultant 2 28

District Educator 2 28

Transition Vocational Counselor 2 28

Campus Administrator 1 14

Special Education Counselor 1 14

Rehabilitation Counselor 1 14

________________________________________________________________________

Gender

Gender was another demographic question asked of the participants Of the 71

participants fifty nine were female which equated to 831 Twelve of the participants

were male which equaled 169 These results were similar to the original study at

722 and 278 This is reflected in table 42


66

Table 42 Gender (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Gender Female 59 831

Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant

Age was also obtained from the participants Ten categories were used to organize

the ages of the participants The first category began with the age of 20 Ages 41-45

represented the largest age range with 225 of the participants in that group This was

followed closely by the age range of 51-55 years In original study 45 years old was the

average age of the participants which is similar to the findings in this study Three

categories had two participants The results are shown in Table 43

Table 43 Age of the Participant (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant 20-25 2 28

26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level

Educational level was critical for understanding formal education that was

provided to the participants in their respective field A question was posed to the

participants in the online format to address this topic Table 44 demonstrates the


67

education level of the participants A very large percentage of the participants 80

possessed a masterrsquos degree or higher Participants with a bachelorrsquos degree were

significantly lower at 20 This was similar to the findings in the original study with

687 for a masterrsquos degree and 247 for a bachelorrsquos degree

Table 44 Level of Education (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Level of Education Bachelorrsquos degree 15 217

Masterrsquos degree 51 732

Doctorate 1 14

Other (Post Masterrsquos) 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

Total Experience Years

A question was included that addressed total years as an educator The study

included a range of total years as an educator from 1-2 years up to 41 and above Twenty-

six percent of the participants possessed numerous years of experience ranging from 16-

20 years of experience An extremely high percentage of 788 of the participants

possessed more than 20 years of experience as an educator (Table 45) This was more

than the original survey which revealed 917 years of experience as the average

Table 45 Years of Experience as an Educator (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Total Years as an Educator 1-2 3 42

3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68

Current Position Experience

Experience in the present position was another piece of demographic data

presented in the original study and in this online survey also Analysis of this survey

revealed that time in the present position included one to five years at 38 six to fifteen

years at 281 sixteen to thirty years at 267 and 7 at thirty-one or more years

(Table 46)

Table 46 Years in the Current Position (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Years in current position 1-5 27 380

6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________

Comparison of Demographics

Descriptive statistics were utilized to provide a comparative analysis of the age of

the participant years as an educator and years in the current position The mean age for

the participants was 4842 years old Average years of experience were 2032 years

Average years in the participantsrsquo current position were 1230 years Each of these

comparisons demonstrates extensive longevity in all realms (Table 47)

Table 47 Comparison of Demographics (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable M SD Low High

________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70

Total Years as an educator 2032 1037 1-2 41+

Years in current position 1230 954 1-5 31+

_______________________________________________________________________


69

Education Site Location

Participants were asked to select the type of location where they worked or

consulted (Table 48) The categories examined the various types of employment

scenarios for educators in the Region 17 Education Service Center area A good

sampling of participants was achieved across rural suburban and urban locations Forty

one percent of the participants are located in rural settings Twenty eight were located in

urban settings Twenty two of the participants were located in a combination of rural and

suburban settings Employment location that was the least was the suburban locale This

result would correlate with the reality that the West Texas region is primarily a rural

setting

Table 48 EmploymentConsultation Location (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

EmploymentConsultation Location Rural 28 406

Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275

Combination (ruralsuburban) 15 217

No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting

A frequency count was completed to determine the percentages as well as the

numbers of individuals in various consultation or employment settings The categories

examined the various types of employment scenarios for educators in the Region 17

Education Service Center area The largest number occurred for individuals working in

high school settings which was more than half (712) of the participants (Table 49)

Some participants remarked on other locales where they were also employed The lowest


70

numbers of employment settings occurred for Alternative State Facility Education

Service Center and an ldquootherrdquo response (n = 2 1 1 1)

Table 49 Employment Setting (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting High School 42 512

Middle School 18 219

AdministrativeCentral Office 9 153

Alternative 2 34

Other Locations indicated State Facility 1 12

in addition to the ones surveyed All grade levels 6 73

District 2 24

Education Service Center 1 12

Elementary (other) 1 12

________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions

Research Question One

Grade level implementation What knowledge do educators possess regarding

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities To answer this

question Table 410 displays the frequency count for grade level during which transition

assessment occurs Transition assessment should be administered at all grade levels

every year as mandated in the IDEA 2004 However implementation of transition

assessment at ldquoall grade levelsrdquo showed only to be 544 The participants marked

individual grade levels at 9th

grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th

grade 250 There were 49 of the participants who selected ldquonone providedrdquo


71

Table 410 Perceived Grade Level Implementation of Transition Assessment (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Grade level transition assessments 9th

27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250

All grade levels 37 544

None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________

Person responsible Persons responsible for transition assessment are displayed

in Table 411 The high school teacher was selelcted by the particpants as the individual

most likely to administer transition assessment at 521 Transition Coordinators and

Vocational Adjustment Coordinators were the next most likely individuals to be

conducting transition assessment (281 and 225) The school phsychologist was

selected as the least likely individual to administer transition assessments A significant

number participants did not know or skipped this question entirely (239)

Table 411 Person Responsible for Implementing Transition Assessment (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Individual deemed High School Teacher 37 521

responsible for Transition Services ConsultantCoordinator 20 281

providing Vocational Adjustment Coordinator 16 225

transition Diagnostician 12 169

assessment High School Counselor 10 141

Career Counselor (School Employee) 7 98

Career Counselor Consultant (non-school

employee) 2 28

School Psychologist 1 14

No one assignednot available 3 42

Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72

Level of understanding The level of understanding regarding transition

assessment by participants is displayed in Table 412 Thirty-eight percent of the

participants marked a very clear understanding 45 marked moderately clear

understanding and 182 indicated little no or skipped the question pertaining to

understanding of transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

Over-all 60 of the participants indicated they had moderate to little or no understanding

regarding transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities This result is

similar to the original study which indicated that education personnel perceive their level

of understanding to be less than optimal

Table 412 Perceived Level of Understanding Regarding Transition Assessment (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Understanding about Very clear 27 380

transition assessment Moderately clear 32 450

Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28

Additional training In the original study an overwhelming number of

participants expressed a desire to obtain more training regarding transition assessment

through the open-ended response (Herbert et al 2010) A question was developed in this

study to allow the participants the opportunity to express what types of training they

would like to receive Table 413 displays the participantsrsquo desires to participate in

workshops and higher education opportunities pertaining to transition assessment An

extremely large number of participants expressed a desire to participate in one-day

workshops (912) Eighty-one percent of the participants desired one-day workshops

Training opportunities selected by participants in the 40-50 range were one-hour


73

workshops team collaborations on-going in-service training and online training

modules Twenty-one percent of the participants expressed interest in college-level

coursework Only three individuals indicated that they were not interested in any training

Table 413 Interest in Additional Training (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Training opportunities One-hour workshop 30 422

to increase knowledge of 1-day workshop 58 817

transition assessment Team Collaboration 34 479

Self-study 17 239

Multiple day workshops 18 253

Ongoing in-service training 29 408

Online training module 34 479

College course 15 211

College Course (onlinemedia-site) 9 126

TEA certification coursework 12 169

None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________

Research Question Two

Areas addressed What transition assessment practices are used by educational

personnel for individuals with intellectual disabilities To answer this question Table

414 describes the areas that the participants rated with regard to transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities Academic Achievement was rated at 563

Vocational Assessment at 676 Academic Aptitude at 366 Career Decision Making at

464 and the greatest amount at 887 was Interests In the original survey vocational

interest aptitude and achievement was noted as assessment area most used Additional

areas in this survey included Personality at 323 Work Values at 366 World of

Work Knowledge at 324 and ldquoDonrsquot know and No responserdquo a combined percentage

of 84 by the participants


74

Table 414 Perceived Areas Addressed with Transition Assessment (N = 71)

_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Areas addressed with Interests 63 887

transition assessment Vocational Aptitude 48 676

Academic Achievement 40 563

Career Decision Making 33 464

Academic Aptitude 26 366

Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323

World of Work Knowledge 23 324

Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

Types of assessments Descriptive statistics were utilized for questions pertaining

to types of assessment areas as shown in Table 415 This question was added to this

survey to gather specific data pertaining to knowledge regarding types of transition

assessments used to assess students with intellectual disabilities Types of assessments

were rated from ldquoNot Used or Heard of to Heard of and Usedrdquo Frequency counts were

obtained for each area of assessments A scale of one was used for ldquoNot Used or Heard of

or Heard ofrdquo a score of two was given for ldquoHeard ofrdquo and a three was given for ldquoUsedrdquo

Mean scores ranged from the lowest at 16 for EcologicalEnvironment and Authentic

Assessment to the highest at 286 for Teacher Observation The next highest ratings were

for Interest Inventories at 277 Interviews and Student Surveys at 273 Academic

Achievement at 266 Intellectual Aptitude at 264 and Functional Skills Inventory at

253 A clear separation occurred with a 5050 ldquoUse and Heard ofrdquo result for Career

Aptitude Teacher Made Learning Styles and Curriculum-Based at 233 and 234 Types

of assessments that had been ldquoHeard ofrdquo but were ldquoNot Used or Heard ofrdquo as frequently

were Personality Profiles at 222 and Portfolio at 216 Several types of assessments


75

revealed limited ldquoUserdquo and ldquoHeard ofrdquo or ldquoNot Used or Heard ofrdquo to a greater extent

These included Self-determination measures at 193 Self-advocacy measures at 198

Situational at 181 Authentic at 168 and EcologicalEnvironmental at 160

Table 415 Level of Use for Types of Transition Assessments (N = 71)

____________________________________________________________________

Item Not Used (1) Heard of (2) Used (3) Rating M n

or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________

Teacher Observation 2 14 51 286 67

Interest Inventories 1 14 55 277 70

Student Survey 1 16 49 273 66

Interviews 3 13 54 273 70

Academic Achievement 0 22 42 266 64

Intellectual Aptitude 1 22 43 264 66

Functional Skills Inventory 4 22 38 253 64

Career Aptitude 2 31 31 245 64

Teacher Made 5 30 26 234 61

Curriculum-Based 7 27 27 233 61

Learning Styles 4 33 24 233 61

Personality Profiles 5 36 18 222 59

Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61

Self-advocacy measures 15 31 14 198 60

Self-determination measures 16 32 12 193 60

Situational 24 20 13 181 57

Authentic 26 27 7 168 60

EcologicalEnvironmental 30 21 7 160 58

________________________________________________________________________

Published assessments Descriptive statistics were employed for published

assessments as shown in Table 416 This was a question that was added to this survey to

gather information pertaining to knowledge regarding published assessment mechanisms

Frequency counts were obtained for 11 published transition assessment tools A rating

mean was obtained for each tool similar to the previous Areas Addressed question A

score of one was given for ldquoNot Used or Heard ofrdquo a score of two was given for ldquoHeard

ofrdquo and a three was given for ldquoUsedrdquo Score rating means ranged from 138 to 262


76

Special Education Manager (GG Consulting LLC 2008) received the highest

rating at 262 The next highest published tools included Transition Planning Inventory

(Clark amp Patton 2009) at 222 Moderate ratings went to the Reading-Free Vocational

Interest Inventory 2 (Becker 2005) at 205 and the Brigance Employability Skills

Inventory (Brigance 1995) at 208 The OrsquoNet Interest Survey (US Department of

Labor 2002) received a 187 rating score The Picture Interest Career Survey (PICS)

(Brady 2007) received a 182 rating score Lowest scores included the Arc Self-

determination Scale (Wehmeyer amp Kelchner 1995) at 138 and the MECA (Oakwood

Solutions LLC 2010) at 141 COPS-PIC (Knapp-Lee L (2007) at 144 Myers Briggs

Type Indicator (Myers amp Briggs 1988) at 158 and the WRIOT2 (Glutting amp Wilkinson

2006) at 153


77

Table 416 Level of Use for Published Assessments (N = 71) (ID=Insufficient Data)

________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________

Special Education Manager (SEM) 3 19 44 262 66

Transition Planning Inventory (TPI) 8 19 36 222 63

Brigance Employability 12 33 17 208 62

Skills Inventory

Reading-Free Vocational Interest 23 19 20 205 59

Inventory 2 (R-FVII2)

O-Net Interest Inventory 45 11 15 187 60

Picture Interest Career Survey (PICS) 26 21 15 182 62

Myers Briggs Type Indicator 27 30 2 158 59

Wide Range Interest and 36 16 8 153 60

Occupation Test (WRIOT2

COPS-PIC Picture Inventory 31 17 8 144 62

Of Careers

Microcomputer Evaluation 34 14 11 141 59

Of Careers and Academics (MECA)

Arc Self-determination Scale 41 15 4 138 60

Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2

No Response 0 0 0 ID 3

________________________________________________________________________

Impact One question asked the participants to rate the impact of transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities (Table 417) The participants

stated that transition assessment had a significant impact at 169 Moderate impact was

perceived by 468 Minimal impact was selected by 309 of the participants and little

or no impact by 56 of the participants Over-all participants rated current practices in

transition assessment as having Moderate to Minimal impact at an extremely high level

of 83 In the original study the results were similar with 503 indicating moderate

impact and 274 with minimal to no impact


78

Table 417 Perceived Impact of Transition Assessment (N = 71)

________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________

Impact of transition assessment Significant 12 169

Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309

Little or No Impact 2 56

No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________

Procedure Used with Open-Ended Questions

Qualitative analysis was used for two open-ended questions in the survey The

first question received 15 responses from the participants This question pertained to what

additional information the participant wanted to include with regard to transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities The second question resulted in

eight responses from the participants This question asked what the participant knew that

they wished they could use with students with intellectual disabilities with regard to

transition assessment The narrative responses were gathered and reviewed for similar

themes and content

Question One

Participants were asked ldquoWhat else do you use for transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilitiesrdquo Fifteen individualsrsquo responses were submitted

Specific assessment tools were identified by the participants in statements that included

the name of the assessment tool A coding system was utilized to clarify whether the

response was narrative or a specific assessment tool response Further analysis occurred

for the narrative responses to determine themes and common trends

Respondents suggested Career Cruising software (N = 4) (Anaca Technologies

2012) One response suggested the Career Clusters Interest Survey (Arizona State 2007)


79

and one stated the Cops and Caps (CareerLife Skills Resources 2012) vocational

assessment measure One participant included the Student Styles Questionnaire Revised

(SSQR) (Oakland Glutting amp Horton 1996) Two people suggested the Bridges

Software (Xap Corporation 2009) which was also suggested by one person in the online

questionnaire section under ldquootherrdquo for specific assessment tools Two individuals

suggested questionnaires as a viable means to gather assessment data Participants

suggested parent input for transition and vocational assessment (N = 3) Individuals who

included narrative responses discussed the importance of conducting situational

assessments by including the input of other professionals including outside agencies and

other teachers (N = 2) Responses included observations to get to know the individual and

determining the specific needs of the student to determine what would benefit the student

after graduation (N = 3) One individual who actually answered the second open-ended

question suggested the Transition Planning Inventory (TPI) (Clark amp Patton 2009) as a

thorough tool for assessment

Question Two

Eight participants responded to question two about ldquoWhat do you know about

transition assessment that you wish you could use for students with intellectual

disabilitiesrdquo Two respondents expressed the need for more time to assess the students on

their caseload with regard to transition Another individual commented on the need for

more teacher involvement at each grade level Two individuals posited the need to assess

students in a variety of either job or real-life situational settings One participant stated

that the greatest tool for awareness by the student with regard to transition is receiving a

paycheck One respondent stated that parents need to be better educated with regard to


80

continuation of services after graduation This respondent stated that personal advocacy

time management and organization were major issues facing students as they transition

to postsecondary options One final respondent stated that the questionnaire they utilized

had little meaning for students in middle school

Summary

The purpose of this study was to survey educators responsible for implementing

transition assessment for secondary students with intellectual disabilities Participants

included educators from West Texas characterized as individuals located in the Region

17 Education Service Center area The total number of participants was 71 The

population for this study was district administrators special education teachers district

special education administrators consultants diagnosticians transition coordinators

vocational adjustment coordinators campus administrators special education counselors

and education service center consultants Participants were solicited via e-mail requests to

participate voluntarily and to answer the questions from the online survey provided by a

link to the questionnaire

This chapter reported the findings from the study about transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities An online survey was conducted pertaining to

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities The first section of this

chapter included descriptive analysis for 16 items pertaining to demographics of the

sample areas and types of transition assessment tools perceived benefits of transition

assessment persons responsible for transition assessment and levels of knowledge

regarding transition assessment The next section of this chapter included a qualitative


81

analysis for two open-ended questions Data were described and grouped by common

themes from the participantsrsquo statements on the online format


82

CHAPTER V

Discussion

This chapter provides a brief background of the problem and includes a summary

of the study Also included is a description of the review of the literature that was the

foundation for the research study reported herein The methodology for this study is

summarized and followed by a discussion and analysis of the findings The significance

of the study is addressed with an emphasis on the conclusions and implications relevant

to the research pertaining to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual

disabilities Additionally this chapter offers recommendations for further research based

on the findings Concluding thoughts included limitations of the study and suggestions

for further research

Summary of the Study

This descriptive study investigated the knowledge educators possessed with

regard to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities The first four

chapters included an introduction to the study a review of the literature that centered on

the transition process and transition assessment a description of the methodology and an

analysis from the findings of the data that were collected through the study

Chapter I provided a brief overview regarding the mandate proposed with the

IDEA of 2004 which requires that all students in special education who reach the age of

16 must have an ITP which is directed by the transition assessment process In addition

to the purpose of the study this chapter included a statement of the problem the research

questions the theoreticalconceptual framework assumptions definitions of terms


83

utilized in the study the delimitations and limitations of the study a discussion of the

significance of the study and the over-all organization of the study

Chapter II provided a review of the literature as it pertains to transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Definitions of intellectual

disabilities characteristics and historical practices related to individuals with intellectual

disabilities and transition planning for special needs learners were described

An overview of the research pertaining to transition assessment for individuals

with intellectual disabilities was presented Explanations of transition assessment

methods were presented A search of relevant research revealed that studies which

addressed transition planning were available however limited studies addressing

transition assessment existed Lesser studies pertaining specifically to transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities existed

Chapter III outlined the methodology and the online survey utilized to complete

the research study Data were collected from education personnel working directly with

students with intellectual disabilities Data were collected over a 4 week period through

an online survey The survey was a replication of a previously utilized survey to address

transition assessment for individuals with disabilities (Herbert et al 2010) The

information from the literature review guided the development of the research as well as

refinement of a few of the survey questions to better address individuals with intellectual

disabilities

The survey replicated research conducted through The Pennsylvania State

University Career Assessment Practices for High School Students with Disabilities and

Perceived Value Reported by Transition Personnel (Herbert et al 2010) Modifications


84

were made to the replicated study to gather specific data pertaining to transition

assessment as a whole rather than just career assessment staff training desires and

knowledge about specific published assessment tools Changes included





desires due to overwhelming response in original survey f) added additional assessment

areas types and mechanisms g) changed wording from career assessment to transition

assessment h) focused on education personnel versus rehabilitation personnel and

i) narrowed to two research questions Also the survey was designed to reveal the

knowledge of educational staff working with students with intellectual disabilities as it

pertains to transition assessment A copy of the survey is located in Appendix E

Chapter IV reported the findings of the study The chapter began with a review of

the mandates pertaining to transition assessment as outlined in IDEA 2004 best-practices

approach to transition planning and the limited available research pertaining to transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Procedures utilized in analyzing

the descriptive data and the qualitative information produced by two open-ended

questions was explained Findings were presented with explanations of how the data

answered the following research questions




85



Discussion of the Findings

An analysis evaluation and synthesis of the findings indicated that educators

who implement transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities utilize a

variety of assessment tools that address several areas pertaining to the transition process

Several topics emerged from the data regarding transition assessment for individuals with

intellectual disabilities The topics included demographics of participants that best

represent the West Texas region knowledge of transition assessment for individuals with

intellectual disabilities and types of assessment practices utilized by professionals

dealing with individuals with intellectual disabilities (Figure 51) A detailed discussion

of the topics will provide greater understanding of the answers to the research questions

and guide the implications for further research and practice in transition assessment for


Figure 51 Transition Assessment Topics

Transition Assessment for Individuals with

Intellectual Disabilities

Demographics of the

Participants

Knowledge of Transition

Assessment

Assessment Practices


86

Impact of Demographics

Setting

In order to best represent the characteristics of the West Texas region it was

necessary to obtain a sampling from a variety of individuals who best represented the

West Texas region This area is better known as a rural plains area with one larger city

that is surrounded by rural towns sprawling ranches and agricultural entities (Texas

Association of Counties 2003) A large number of the participants (40) worked in

rural settings with equal numbers working in urban and suburban settings The variety of

settings that was obtained in the online survey format for this study represented an

excellent sampling of the West Texas region

The participants worked in various settings The majority of the participants

worked in high school settings This result was appropriate due to the requirement by the

IDEA of 2004 which states that when students reach the age of 16 a transition plan

should be developed which is directed by the findings of the transition assessment

Traditionally a student who is 16 years old is a high school student A portion of the

participants were from middle school settings which can be attributed to the awareness

that transition planning is recommended to begin at the age of 14 for individuals with

disabilities (Miller et al 2007) Typically students in middle school are introduced to the

transition planning process at this stage of their education career

Participants

The sample for this study included educators from West Texas characterized as

Education Service Center Region 17 The total number of participants was 71 Fifty nine

of the participants were female (831) and 12 were male (169) The population


87

included district administrators special education teachers district special education

administrators consultants diagnosticians transition coordinators vocational adjustment

coordinators campus administrators special education counselors and education service

center consultants Participants were solicited via e-mail requests to answer the questions

on the online survey provided by a link to the questionnaire

For the purposes of this study educators were the primary focus in order to gather

specific data pertaining to the level of knowledge they possessed regarding transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities School personnel who are

typically involved in the process were included such as vocational adjustment teachers

diagnosticians special education administrators district and campus educators transition

coordinators and district and campus administrators provided the greatest number of

those individuals who participated in the survey

Experience The research participants constituted a group representing vast years

of experience as educators All the participants possessed a college degree with the

majority of the participants possessing a masterrsquos degree or higher (n = 57) The age of

the participants provided a good sampling of age ranges with the majority of the

participants being over the age of 40 Obtaining the age years of experience and

education level of the participants was necessary in order to determine basic competency

levels of the participants

Job category A varied sampling was achieved pertaining to job categories Job

categories ranged from administrators educators diagnosticians and

counselorsconsultants The largest group was educators which included campus

educators and vocational adjustment coordinators A substantial number of diagnosticians


88

provided input on the online survey which added to the validity of the study Several

counselors and consultants provided input which increased the type of sampling that was

obtained for the study A lesser number of district and campus administrators provided

input to the survey Over-all the sampling varied and represented a variety of personnel

who addressed transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

The literature addressed the best-practices approach to developing a transition

plan for the secondary students with a disability The purpose of transition assessment is

to gather ongoing data that leads to the development of a transition plan that meets the

needs of the student as heshe transitions from secondary to postsecondary life The

development of the ITP is a team effort that should be a collaborative undertaking which

provides input from a variety of stakeholders (National Secondary Technical Training

Assistance Center 2010) Grigal Hart and Magliore (2011) stated that team members

should be more involved in the ITP planning process More input by all stakeholders with

regard to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities is needed in

order to develop a quality effective transition plan (IDEA 2004) Accordingly the

inclusion of a variety of education personnel for this study was appropriate

Knowledge

Research Question One asked ldquoWhat knowledge do educators possess regarding

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilitiesrdquo Inconsistency is an

issue that persists with the practice of transition assessment (Morningstar 1997 cited in

Herbert et al 2010) Results from the study reported demonstrated that the same issue

still persists within the West Texas region among educators implementing transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities


89

Understanding

Most of the participants indicated that their level of knowledge was moderate to

none regarding transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Thirty-

eight percent of the participants rated their level understanding of transition assessment

for individuals with intellectual disabilities as very clear However 45 stated they

possessed moderately clear understanding regarding transition assessment for individuals

with intellectual disabilities Eighteen percent of the participants reported they had

limited or little understanding regarding transition assessment Campus educators

expressed the greatest clarity with regard to understanding with 615 of the respondents

from that sector Data indicated that over-all staff perceptions pertaining to their own

level of understanding regarding transition assessment of individuals with intellectual

disabilities is not at the optimum level

Grade Level Implementation

Most of all the participants responded that some type of transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities was performed in grades 9 10 11 and 12 Many

agreed that transition assessment was conducted either on their campus or the campus

they consulted with for all grade levels at 544 Equal numbers of participants

however chose specific grade levels Ninth grade (397) elicited the greatest number

when individual grade levels were chosen Seven participants 10 chose the ldquonone

providedrdquo or ldquono responserdquo selection Campus educators diagnosticians special

education administrators and vocational adjustment coordinators indicated transition

assessment took place at the 9th

grade level with 375-60 of the respondents

Variability in grade-level implementation and the ldquonone providedrdquo response indicated


90

that more knowledge is needed to address basic understanding regarding implementation

of transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities at all grade levels

Miller et al (2007) states that transition assessment is the process of gathering

information over an extended period of time in order to develop an appropriate IEP that

meets the studentrsquos needs Transition planning was characterized as an ongoing process

of ldquocollecting information on the studentrsquos strengths needs preferences and interests as

they related to the demands of current and future livingrdquo (Sitlington 2008 p 87) The

variability in the responses by the participants indicated a lack of awareness of the

mandates associated with IDEA 2004 Understanding that transition assessments as an

all-level ongoing process is needed for educators implementing a sound transition plan

that is directed by the transition assessment process (IDEA 2004 cited in Herbert et al

2010)

Responsibility

Several groups emerged from the analysis by those who answered this question

Campus educators constituted the largest group that was deemed the individual

responsible for implementing transition assessment of individuals with intellectual

disabilities (n = 53) Transition coordinators also emerged to a lesser extent as the

individual who provided transition assessment (n = 20) Counselors both school and

nonschool were identified by some of the participants as providing transition assessment

(n = 19) Thirteen individuals stated the diagnostician performed transition assessment to

individuals with disabilities The most revealing responses were ldquononerdquo ldquodo not knowrdquo

or participants simply skipped the item A total of 20 individuals were included with this

response


91

The literature and mandates of IDEA 2004 explicitly state that understanding the

role of the team member is critical when implementing transition assessment

Collaboration is required by all interested stakeholders including the school

administrators educators parents students and community agencies (Furney Hasazi

and Destafano 1997) Participants provided varied responses to the item that addressed

who was responsible for transition assessment The data revealed that knowledge

regarding who was responsible for the implementation of transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities should be addressed

Training

In the original study the one open-ended question revealed an overwhelming

desire to seek further training and education pertaining to transition assessment for

individuals with disabilities (Herbert et al 2010) A question pertaining to training

options was added to the online format Participants in this study also expressed strong

desire to seek training opportunities to increase knowledge of transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities by 91 of the participants Eighty-one percent of

the participants said they would participate in a one-day workshop Half of the

participants indicated they were interested in one-hour workshops team collaboration

ongoing in-service training and online training modules Participants indicated they were

also interested in self-study and multiple-day workshops

Several of the participants indicated they were interested in college-level

coursework Twenty percent of the participants were interested in face-to-face college

courses pertaining to transition A portion of the participants indicated they were

interested in online courses with a substantial portion of the participants interested in


92

obtaining transition teacher certification (169) There was a small percentage who did

not want any additional training (42) Over-all it was demonstrated through the data

that educators working with transition assessment for individuals with intellectual

disabilities expressed a strong desire to seek additional training opportunities to increase

their level of knowledge

Trends for Assessment Practice

Research Question Two asked ldquoWhat transition assessment practices are used by

educational personnel with individuals with intellectual disabilitiesrdquo Current trends

focus on employing a multifaceted approach to assessment (King Baldwin Currie and

Evans 2006) A systematic approach is needed (Neubert 2003) Assessment protocol

involves the use of formal and informal measures Types of information gathered in order

to develop a high-quality transition plan should include future needs and goals self-

determination and self-advocacy academic strengths learning styles behavioral issues

life skills needs and vocational interests attitudes and abilities (Miller et al 2007 p 5)

Levinson and Palmer (2005) described necessary components to implement transition

services as mandated by IDEA 2004 and Indicator 13 They described the need to

incorporate assessment and comprehensive planning that utilized transition assessment

data that addressed academic skills daily living skills personal and social skills and

occupational and vocational skills

Areas of Assessment

Participants indicated strongly with an 886 response rate that interests

constituted the most common area addressed with transition assessment Vocational

aptitude resulted in 676 with academic achievement at 563 Falling within the 30-


93

40 percent range was academic aptitude personality profile work values and world of

work knowledge Vocational adjustment coordinators special education administrators

district administrators and diagnosticians indicated with 100 agreement that interests

was the area most assessed Vocational aptitude was indicated as an area assessed by a

rate of 84 to 100 by the campus administrator campus educator and special

education administrator Academic achievement was used to a greater extent in the

original study In this study this was indicated at a rate of 56 to 100 by the district

administrators special education directors and campus administrators It appears

administrators regard achievement as an important area of assessment The results if this

study revealed that greater awareness was needed to address all areas of assessment not

just interests vocational aptitude and academic achievement

Although interests are vital with regard to transition assessment it is necessary for

educators to address all the areas equally including those identified by Miller et al

(2007) future needs and goals self-determination and self-advocacy academic strengths

learning styles behavioral issues life skills needs and vocational interests attitudes and

abilities Several participants 84 indicated they did not know or chose not to answer

which indicates that greater knowledge pertaining to areas address with regard to

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities was needed

Overton (2009) wrote that assessment needed to be data driven rather than relying

on referral information alone The data should be multidimensional and not reliant on just

one set of test scores Data should reflect the studentrsquos strengths abilities interests and

preferences (IDEA 2004) Spinelli (2012) wrote that assessors should identify the

studentrsquos (a) career goals and interests (b) preferences (c) independence level


94

(d) strengths (e) hobbies (f) interpersonal relationships (g) self-advocacy abilities and

(h) abilities in relation to postsecondary goals

The research also found that Schmitz (2008) identified areas that should be

included in the transition planning process in order to adhere to the mandates of Indicator

13 The components of transition assessment include interest assessment and career

exploration assessment measures It is crucial to include assessment of academic

performance as it relates to the workplace The practice of assessment and skill building

should be incorporated to evaluate self-determination social and emotional learning and

interventions for independent living In order to accomplish Schmitzrsquos recommendations

ITP team members must expand their vision to include all aspects of the individualrsquos life

not just interests and academic achievement

Types of Assessment

ldquoGoals are developed based upon interests aptitudes abilities strengths and

limitations identified as significant and relevant to the student and family in the transition

planrdquo (Miller et al 2007 p 8) More specific types of assessment include interest

inventories career aptitude academic achievement teacher observation intellectual

aptitude student survey personality profiles self-determination measures self-advocacy

measures interviews ecologicalenvironmental factors authentic portfolio teacher

made curriculum-based functional skills inventories learning styles and situational

(Layton and Lock 2008 Miller et al 2007Moon 2011 Neubert 2003 Overton 2009

Sitlington 2006 Wehman 2009) Of great importance in the assessment of students with

more significant disabilities are the critical life skills pertaining to self-help mobility


95

self-determination socialization health family and community supports self-awareness

interests strengths and preferences of the individual (Wehman 2011)

Participants were allowed to rate types of assessments from ldquoNot used or heard of

heard of and usedrdquo Values of one two and three were attached to each response to allow

for descriptive analysis A rating mean was established for each type of assessment The

most popular type of assessment that participants used was teacher observation at a rating

mean of 286

Additional types of assessments that were indicated as ldquoused and heard ofrdquo

included interest inventories student surveys interviews academic achievement

intellectual aptitude tests and functional skills inventories These types of assessments

generate results that elicit the studentrsquos interests and preferences which are mandated in

IDEA 2004 Campus Educators vocational adjustment coordinators special education

administrators district administrators and diagnosticians rated interest inventories as one

of the more used types of assessments for 69 to 100 of these individuals

Falling into a range where less than half of the participants used the types of

measure yet they were a part of the participantrsquos awareness repertoire were career

aptitude teacher-made curriculum-based measures learning style inventories

personality profiles and portfolios Those types of assessments that fell within the mean

below 198 indicating that these have been ldquoheard of and or not used or heard ofrdquo are

self-advocacy measures self-determination measures situational authentic and

ecologicalenvironmental measures The data revealed that 65 of the types of transition

assessments were not being utilized by the majority of the participants This discovery

indicated that further education was needed to increase the knowledge regarding types of


96

transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities These types of

assessments reveal strengths and needs which is mandated by IDEA 2004 Greater usage

was indicated in order to address assess the needs and strengths of the student with

intellectual disabilities

Located in the ldquonot used and not heard ofrdquo category were self-advocacy measures

self-determination measures situational authentic and ecological and environmental

types of assessments The lack of awareness of these measures was substantial In order

to gain valuable data pertaining to needs strengths interests and preferences for

individuals with intellectual disabilities it is important for all constituents to employ a

variety of types of assessments in order to develop a quality transition plan which is

directed by the transition assessment

The literature revealed that assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

required assessment in the natural environment (Sitlington 2008) Levinson and Palmer

(2005) emphasized the need for performance tests that assessed a studentrsquos ability to

perform specific job-like tasks work samples that expose a student to natural job


and work habits in actual and contrived environments This should be included in the

transition assessment This was indicated by the participants in the open-ended question

format

Published Assessments

In the original study no question was included that addressed what specific tools

that were implemented to address transition assessment This item was added in order to

gather specific data pertaining to specific assessment trends being utilized and awareness


97

levels of available published assessment mechanisms Levinson and Palmer (2005) wrote

that assessment and planning are key components to successful post-school living

Assessment data can be gathered through published tests and surveys as well as from

direct interviews and observations of the student Several areas are addressed including

academic skills daily living skills personal and social skills career maturity vocational

interests and vocational aptitude tests

The National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (2010) has

developed an Assessment Toolkit that can be accessed by educators parents State

Education Agencies and Local Education Agencies to gain knowledge about best

practices with transition assessment From the results of this study information that is

contained in these types of resources is needed by educators to provide a comprehensive

contemporary assessment

Participants indicated that the Special Education Manager (GG Consulting LLC

2008) was overwhelmingly the most utilized published assessment measure in the West

Texas region with a rating mean of 262 Significantly lower utilization but was heard of

were the Reading-Free Vocational Interest Inventory 2 (R-FVII2) (Becker 2000) the

Transition Planning Inventory (TPI) (Clark amp Patton 2009) and the Brigance

Employability Skills Inventory (Brigance 1995) The majority of the remaining seven

specific published assessment tools were ldquoNot used or heard ofrdquo by the participants

Some of the participants indicated that they utilized other tools such as the Career

Cruising (Anaca Technologies Ltd 2012) Choices (Martin Huber-Marshall Maxson

Jerman Hughes Miller amp McGill 2000) and Bridges (Xap Corporation 2009) Over-

all the data revealed that participants require greater knowledge regarding published


98

transition assessment tools to meet the needs for transition planning with individual with


Perceived Impact

Participants rated the impact of transition assessment for students with intellectual

disabilities Only 169 percent of the respondents selected significant as one of the

online survey choices Three-fourths of the respondents selected moderate to minimal

impact for students with intellectual disabilities Ten percent of the participants chose

little impact or chose not to answer The most revealing discovery from the research

transpired with the large response of moderate to minimal impact of transition assessment

with individuals with intellectual disabilities (833) Increased impact must be dealt

with in order to meet the mandates of IDEA 2004 and the OSERS requirements of

Indicator 13 regarding transition assessment (US Dept of Education 2009 and IDEA

2004)

Further training for educators is needed to increase the impact of transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Transition assessment is the

driving mechanism for the ITP process Greater understanding of the areas addressed

typed of assessments purpose of assessments and published resources will provide a

greater foundation needed to develop a quality transition plan for students with


Thematic Results

Qualitative analysis occurred for two open-ended items in the survey

Approximately one in five participants provided responses to the first open-ended

question on the survey One in nine of the participants responded to the second open-


99

ended question in the online format Five themes emerged from the two open-ended

questions

Theme One Assessment Tools

The largest group of respondents provided input with regard to other published

transition assessment tools that they would like to utilize or have utilized with individuals

with intellectual disabilities Four of the participants indicated that Career Cruising

(Anaca Technologies 2012) was a good choice One individual commented on a

transition assessment tool that was listed under the previously addressed published

assessment tools item on the online survey The participant commented on the

thoroughness of the Transition Planning Inventory (TPI) (Clark amp Patton 2009) Three

other participants included individual assessment tools which included the Student Styles

Questionnaire Revised (SSQR) (Oakland Glutting amp Horton 1996) Career Clusters

Interest Survey (Arizona State 2007) and the Cops and Caps assessments (CareerLife

Skills Resources 2012)

The research revealed that the National Secondary Transition Technical

Assistance Center (2010) provides a toolkit for assessment that can be accessed by

laymen and professionals with regard to transition assessment Greater utilization of a

variety of assessment mechanisms is needed to provide a quality all-inclusive assessment

to students with intellectual disabilities as outlined in IDEA 2004

Theme Two Parental Involvement

Four of the participants indicated that parental input was important when

implementing transition assessment One participant responded that it was important to

ask about the vision they had for their childrsquos future Two respondents commented on the


100

need for parents to be interviewed and to allow the parents to provide input with

vocational assessment One participant stated that parents should be educated with what

is available to their child as a continuum of services from secondary to post-secondary

levels in order to prepare for the future

The research revealed numerous statements addressing parent involvement The

student and parent should be included in the transition planning process at all stages to

secure greater positive outcomes at the postsecondary level (Escheidt 2006) Levinson

and Palmer (2005) stated that parental involvement was important to the planning

process Moon et al (2011) found it was important to include the family to a greater

extent in the assessment process Due to the disabling conditions of the individuals with

intellectual disabilities it was revealed that family input was extremely important

Questionnaires and interviews with family members offer good sources of information

(Moon et al 2011)

Theme Three Real-life Situations

Four of the participants indicated that it was critical to provide hands-on activities

that were real-life and functional for the student Participants stated that students should

be exposed to a variety of real-life employment options Providing real work and

volunteer opportunities in various settings was emphasized One respondent commented

that the best real-life situation providing the greatest reinforcement was when the

student received a paycheck

The research revealed that assessing the student in the natural environment was

important Levinson and Palmer (2005) reported that assessments pertaining to

occupational and vocational skills are characterized as performance tests that assess a


101

studentrsquos ability to perform specific job-like tasks work samples that expose a student to

natural job responsibilities and situational assessments that measure a studentrsquos interests

abilities and work habits in actual and contrived environments Sitlington (2008) stated

that assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities requires assessment in the

natural environment

Theme Four Collaboration

Three of the participants discussed the need to develop teamwork between other

educators and community agencies One participant commented on the need to increase

teamwork with other educators in order to gather more input regarding transition

assessment Another respondent commented on the need to expose the student and family

to resources in the community and to enhance the contact with these agencies The

process of increasing collaboration with parents was discussed with six of the

participants Not only is this important to enhance parental involvement it also serves to

enhance the collaboration with the school to increase the outcomes of transition

assessment

As stated previously the research revealed that collaboration is required by all

interested stakeholders including the school administration educators and community

agencies (Furney et al 1997) Stated in IDEA 2004 is that the ITP process is a team

endeavor (IDEA 2004) Grigal et al (2011) emphasized the need to instill a collaborative

approach to assessment and the development of the ITP The original study emphasized

the need for all stakeholders including school and community agencies to collaborate to

a greater extent (Hebert et al 2010)


102

Theme Five Isolated Comments

Time Two of the respondents indicated that they would like more time to

develop the transition plan In both instances the participants expressed sincere desire to

accomplish the task of assessing the student with the intent of providing a quality

transition assessment in order to develop a sound transition plan One of these

participants expressed a strong desire to assess the student with an authentic assessment

strategy One of the respondents stated that because they served in dual roles as both the

diagnostician and transition person they lacked the time to develop a transition plan in the

manner they deemed was appropriate

Practical Implications

Education personnel who implement transition assessment for individuals with

intellectual disabilities in West Texas as discovered in this study comprise a group of

individuals with extensive background higher education qualifications and longevity in

special education The findings for this study provide implications with regard to

mandates and implementation of transition assessment for individuals with intellectual

disabilities Because transition assessment is a mandate presented in IDEA 2004 and the

OSERSrsquo Indicator 13 it is important that educators possess sound knowledge and

understanding regarding transition assessment The findings from this study can benefit

the educator to assist the student with an intellectual disability to recognize their potential

as they transition from secondary to post-secondary options

Based upon the results of the study the researcher recommends that

Educators receive more training through self-study workshops college

coursework online training modules and team collaboration to increase


103

understanding regarding transition assessment Ninety-one percent of the

participants indicated that they desired further training This was similar to the

original study which was revealed in the open-ended question that participants

desired more training to obtain greater knowledge regarding transition assessment

(Herbert et al 2010)

Training should focus on providing knowledge to educators regarding mandates

of IDEA 2004 and Indicator 13 The results indicated that 52 of the participants

noted that transition assessment is conducted at all grade levels from 9-12 IDEA

states that this should be an ongoing process with results reported at the annual

IEP meeting Also transition assessment is the cornerstone for developing the

transition plan and the IEP for the secondary student with a disability (IDEA

2004) Grigal et al (2011) and Hebert et al(2010)stated that compliance to the

law with regard to IDEA was needed

Training should focus on collaboration between all education personnel and

community agencies with regard to transition assessment for individuals with

intellectual disabilities as an ongoing collaborative venture Campus educators

were deemed the person most responsible when the effort should be considered a

multi-disciplinary collaborative team approach including the student and family

(Miller et al 2007)

Training endeavors need to delve into the characteristics of transition assessment

including the areas addressed with transition assessment types of transition

assessment and published assessments mechanisms (Wehman 2009) Thirty

eight percent of the participants indicated a clear understanding of transition


104

assessment with nearly sixty two percent indicating moderate to limited

understanding Additional training is needed to increase knowledge regarding

characteristics of transition assessment

Efforts should be made to increase the level of knowledge educators possess in

order to increase the types of assessment practices utilized for transition

assessment (Layton and Lock 2008 Miller et al 2007Moon 2011 Neubert

2003 Overton 2009 Sitlington 2006 Wehman 2009) Eighty eight percent of

the participants responded that interest inventories constituted the most common

area utilized with transition assessment Academic achievement was area utilized

by fifty six percent of the participants Sixty five percent of the various types of

assessments that were surveyed were not being utilized by the participants SEM

was the preferred mechanism for published tools This is due to the utilization of

SEM as a documentation tool for record keeping purposes by the districts in the

assigned region Many surveyed mechanisms had ldquonot been heard of or had been

heard ofrdquo however were not being utilized by the participants

Emphasis should be placed on increasing the overall impact of transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities to reach their full

potential Over-all perceived impact of transition assessment for students with

intellectual disabilities was moderate to none Increased knowledge will allow for

greater impact by addressing the mandates of IDEA 2004 that transition

assessment includes the studentrsquos strengths needs interests and preferences

(IDEA 2004)


105

Limitations of the Study

The following limitations were noted in this study The sample was composed of

educators who provided transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

The study was conducted in West Texas an area with unique transition constraints for

individuals with intellectual disabilities as compared with many other areas in Texas

This study was originally conducted with a group of 400 responders from across the state

of Pennsylvania Due to attempts to limit this survey to specific education personnel

ample input from all transition personnel including community personnel is lacking The

researcherrsquos involvement in special education in particular the education of individuals

with intellectual disabilities could have led to bias and could have influenced the study

The relatively new use of the term intellectual disabilities to characterize a student who

was previously identified as a student with mental retardation could have created some

confusion

The participants who agreed to participate in the online survey might indicate that

they possess different views not shared by all special education personnel Additionally

efforts to obtain a varied population of participants were attempted and obtained to meet

the initial criteria However the process of sending a request for participation to special

education directors and requesting them to forward the survey to possible participants

could have interfered with obtaining consistent participants Efforts to obtain input from

family members and students were not included in the online survey Therefore these

and other factors may have skewed the results and thereby restrict the generalizability to

an extent


106

Directions for Future Research

This study has provided additional understanding regarding transition assessment

for individuals with intellectual disabilities Review of the literature revealed that

although extensive research was available regarding transition development limited

research was available regarding transition assessment particularly with individuals who

have intellectual disabilities Other regions in Texas should be surveyed to address the

concerns expressed in this survey with regard to knowledge that educators possess

regarding transition assessment of individuals with intellectual disabilities

Also further research should include all disability categories which greater

parallels the original study Additionally a follow-up study to explore the benefits of

additional training should be utilized to provide insights regarding the benefits of training

and if positive perceptions regarding the impact of transition assessment for individuals

with intellectual disabilities increases

Summary

The purpose of this descriptive study was to evaluate educatorsrsquo knowledge of

transition assessment practices and what assessment mechanisms are being implemented

by education personnel with students who have intellectual disabilities Research was

completed through an online survey format that was disseminated to education personnel

providing transition assessment to individuals with intellectual disabilities in the West

Texas region Included was an introduction to the study a review of the literature that

centered on the transition process and transition assessment an extensive description of

the methodology and an analysis of the findings of the data that was collected through

the study


107

The online survey provided data concerning demographic characteristics

knowledge educators perceived they possessed level of implementation types of

assessments used interest in further training and overall perceived impact of transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Descriptive statistics were

utilized to analyze the data Information suggested that further training was needed and

requested by education personnel to enhance the impact of increase the knowledge of

and improve appropriate utilization of assessment tools regarding transition assessment

for individuals with intellectual disabilities as mandated in IDEA 2004 and Indicator 13

The online survey provided two open-ended questions that required qualitative

analysis The data were analyzed and categorized Five themes resulted from the open-

ended questions which included (a) use of additional assessment tools utilized by school

personnel (b) the need to include parental involvement (c) pursuing real-life situations

(d) collaboration with school personnel and community agencies and (e) more time to

complete assessment tasks with efficacy The findings provided additional information

from the limited research available that addressed transition assessment for individuals

with intellectual disabilities


108

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American Association for Public Opinion Research Web site wwwaapororg

American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (2011 September

4) Retrieved from American Association on Intellectual and Developmental

Disabilities Web site httpaamrorg

Anaca Technologies Ltd (2012) Career Cruising (wwwpubliccareercrusingcom

Arizona State University (2007) Career Clusters Interest Survey (1st ed) [Brochure]

Retrieved May 1 2012 from Virtual Counseling Center Web site

wwwvccauedus

Becker R L (2000) Reading-free vocational Interest inventory (2nd Ed) Columbus

OH Elbern Publishing

Brantlinger E Jimenez R Klingner J Pugach M amp Richardson V (2005)

Qualitative studies in special education Council for Exceptional Children 71(2)

195-207

Brady R P (2007) Picture Interest Career Survey St Paul MN JIST Works

Brigance A R (1995) Brigance Employability Skills Inventory North Billerica MA

Curriculum Associates Inc

Bryant D Smith D amp Bryant B (2008) Teaching students with special needs in

inclusive classrooms New York Pearson Education

Centers for Disease Control (2004) Economic costs associated with mental retardation

cerebral palsy hearing loss and vision impairment--United States 2003 MMMR

Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109

Centers for Disease Control (2005 October 29) In National Center on Birth Defects amp

Developmental Disabilities Retrieved July 7 2011 from CDC Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention Web site wwwcdcgov

Clark GM amp Patton J R (2009) Transition Planning Inventory Updated version

Austin Pro‑Ed

Cobb B amp Alwell M (2009) Transition planningcoordination interventions for youth

with disabilities Career Development for Exceptional Individuals 32(2) 70-81

Crane L (2002) Mental retardation A community approach (1st ed) Belmont CA

WadsworthThomson Learning

Denzin N amp Lincoln Y (1994) Handbook of qualitative research Thousand Oaks

CA Sage

Dewey J (1916) The pedagogic creed In D Flinders amp S Thornton (Eds) The

curriculum studies reader (3rd ed pp 34-41) New York Routledge

Etscheidt S (2006) Issues in the transition planning Legal decisions Career

Development of Exceptional Individuals 29(1) 28-47

Flexer R Baer M Luft P amp Simmons T (2001) Transition planning for secondary

students with disabilities (3rd ed) Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Education

Flinders D J and Thornton S J (Editors) (2004) The curriculum studies reader (2nd

ed) New York Routledge

Furney K Hasazi S amp Destefano L (1997) Transition policies practices and

promises Lessons from three states Exceptional Children 63(3) 343-355

GG Consulting LLC (2008) Special Education Manager [Software] Boulder CO I-

Suite Available from GG Consulting LLC


110

Glesne C (2006) Becoming a Qualitative Researcher (3rd ed) Boston Pearson

Education Inc (Original work published 1992)

Glutting J J amp Wilkinson G (2006) Wide Range Interest and Opinion Test ndash Revised

Austin Pro-Ed

Golden T Swenson S von Schrader S amp Bruyere S (2010) Launching into

adulthood Meaningful work (1st ed) (D Lollar Ed) Baltimore Paul H

Brookes

Grigal M Hart D amp Migliore A (2011) Comparing the transition planning

postsecondary education and employment outcomes of students with intellectual

and other disabilities Career Development for Exceptional Individuals 34(1) 4-

17

Hallahan D Kauffman J amp Hullen P (2012) Exceptional learners An introduction

to special education (12th ed) Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson

Herbert Lorenz amp Trusty J Lorenz D amp Trusty J (2010) Career assessment

practices for high school students with disabilities and perceived value reported

by transition personnel Journal of Rehabilitation 76(4) 28-26

Hogan T (2007) Psychological testing (2nd ed) Danvers MA John Wiley and Sons

Hulett K (2007) Legal aspects of special education Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson

Education

Humphrey P Johnson C amp Albers K (2010 October) Transition in Texas Paper

presented at the State Autism Conference Corpus Christi TX

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) PL 108-446

20 USC sectsect 1400 et seq


111

Johnson J (2002) Commercial and noncommercial resources for promoting the

transition of youth with disabilities from school-to-adult life San Diego CA San

Diego State University

King G Baldwin P Currie M amp Evans J (2006) The effectiveness of transition

strategies for youth with disabilities Childrens Health Care 35(2) 155-178

Knapp-Lee L (2007) COPS-PIC Picture Inventory of Careers San Diego CA

ERASEducational Research and Services

Lagemann C (Editors) (1985) Jane Addams on Education (Classics in Education No

51) Publ Teachers College Press 1985-08 Columbia University Series Classics

in Education Ser No 51 PP New York Press

Layton C amp Lock R (2008) Assessing students with special needs to produce quality

outcomes Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Education

Levinson E (2001) Current vocational assessment models for students with disabilities

Journal of Counseling and Development 73 94-101

Levinson E amp Palmer E (2005) Preparing students with disabilities for school-to-

work transition and postschool Life Principal Leadership 5(8) 11-15

Lichenstein S Rusch R amp Chadsey J (1998) Beyond high school transition from

school to work Belmont CA Wadsworth

Lollar D (2010) Launching into adulthood (1st ed) Baltimore Paul H Brookes

Luecking R (2009) The way to work How to facilitate work experiences for youth in

transition Baltimore MD Paul H Brookes


112

Martin J E Huber-Marshall L H Maxson L Jerman P Hughes W Miller T amp

McGill T (2000) Choice Maker Set Tools for school-to-work transition

Frederick CO Sopris West

Mazotti V Rowe D Kelley K Test D Fowler C Kohler P amp Kortering L

(2009) Linking transition assessment and postsecondary goals key elements in

the secondary transition planning process Teaching Exceptional Children 42(2)

44-51

McNaughton D amp Beulman D (2010) Transition strategies for adolescents and young

adults who use AAC Baltimore Paul H Brookes

Miles M amp Huberman M (1994) Qualitative data analysis (2nd ed) Thousand Oaks

CA Sage

Miller R Lombard R amp Corbey S (2007) Transition assessment planning transition

and IEP development for youth with mild and moderate disabilities New York

Pearson Education

Moon S Simenson M amp Neubert D (2011) Perceptions of supported employment

providers What students with developmental disabilities families and educators

need to know for transition planning Education and Training in Autism and

Developmental Disabilities 46(1) 94-105

Myers J B amp Briggs K C (1988) Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Form M Palo Alto

CA Consulting Psychologists Press

Neubert D Moon S amp Grigal M (2002) Postsecondary education and transition

services for students ages 18-21 with significant disabilities Focus on

Exceptional Children 34(8) 1-9


113

Oakland T Glutting J amp Horton C (1996) Students styles questionnaire Revised

(SSQR) Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Education

Oakwood Solutions (2010) Microcomputer Evaluation of Careers and Academics

(MECA) Appleton WI The Conover Company

Overton T (2009) Assessing learners with special needs an applied approach (6th ed)

Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Education

Papay C amp Bambara L (2011) Postsecondary education for transition-age students

with significant intellectual and other developmental disabilities A national

survey Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities 46(1)

78-93

Salvia J Ysseldyke J amp Bolt S (2010) Assessment in special and inclusive education

(11th ed) Belmont CA Wadsworth Cengage Learning

Sax C amp Thoma C (2002) Transition assessment--wise practices for quality lives

Baltimore Paul H Brookes

Schmitz T (2008 October) Transition planning special education law and its impact

on your child Exceptional Parent Magazine

Sitlington P (2008) Students with reading and writing challenges Using informal

assessment to assist in planning for the transition to adult life Reading and

Writing Quarterly 24 22-100

Sitlington P Clark G amp Kolstoe O (2000) Transition education and services for

adolescents with disabilities Needham Heights MA Allyn amp Bacon

Sitlington P Neubert D amp Clark G (2010) Transition education and services Upper

Saddle River NJ Pearson Education


114

Snell M amp Brown F (2006) Instruction of students with severe disabilities (6th ed)

Columbus Ohio Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall

Spinelli C (2012) Classroom assessment for students in special and general education

(3rd ed) Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Education

Texas Association of Counties (2003) Texas Association of Counties Retrieved

February 1 2012 from Texas Association of Counties Web site wwwcountyorg

Texas Education Agency (2011 July 14) In Division of IDEA 2004coordination (Ed)

Special education rules and regulations ESC 18 July 14 2011 The Legal

Framework for the Child-Centered Special Education Process Web site http

frameworkesc18net

Trochim W (2006 October) Social research methods Retrieved November 15 2011

from Research Methods Knowledge Base Web site

wwwsocialresearchmethodsnet

Tyler R (1949) Basic principles of curriculum and instruction In D Flinders amp S

Thornton (Eds) The Curriculum Studies Reader (3rd ed pp 69-77) New York

Routledge

US Department of Education (2009 December 29) In US Department of Education

(Ed) OSERS Office of special education and rehabilitative services Retrieved

from www2edgov

US Department of Labor (2002) ONet Career Interest Inventory St Paul MN JIST

Works

University of North Carolina amp Western Michigan University (2011 May 11) In

University of North Carolina amp Western Michigan University (Eds) National


115

secondary transition technical assistance center Retrieved July 11 2011 from

NSTTAC National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center Web site

httpwwwnsttacorg

Wehman P (2001) Life beyond the classroom (3rd ed) Baltimore MD Paul H

Brookes

Wehman P (2009) Autism and the transition to adulthood Baltimore MD Paul H

Brookes

Wehman P (2011) Essentials of transition planning Baltimore MD (Humphrey

Johnson amp Albers 2010) MD Paul H Brookes Publishing

Wehmeyer M L amp Kelchner K (1995) The ARCs Self-Determination Scale

Washington DC The ARC of the United States


116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117

A Descriptive Study of Educational Professionalsrsquo Knowledge of Transition Assessment

for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities

Robin Lock PhD

Principal Investigator

Kathryn J Tucker

Co-Investigator amp Doctoral Student

I Rationale

Transition planning is a mandate set forth in the Individuals with Disabilities Education

Act-Reauthorized from 2004 (IDEA-R) Additionally the Office of Special Education Programs

and Rehabilitative Services (OSEP) has also issued mandates to track transition services and

progress at the secondary and post-secondary levels (Mazotti et al 2009) The process of

developing a coordinated set of activities is the cornerstone of IDEA-R with regard to transition

planning for students with disabilities (Lollar 2010) Transition development is a critical issue

for the student who possesses a disability as they pass from secondary to post-secondary living


achievement assessment for individuals with disabilities However few studies have been

conducted that address assessment trends and practices driving the transition planning process

from high school to adulthood especially for individuals with intellectual disabilities

Furthermore little research dealing specifically with transition assessment for students with

intellectual disabilities exists at the present time

Specific Aims and Objectives of Study

This aims of this descriptive study is to obtain information regarding the knowledge base

of educators with respect to transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

The study will survey educators to determine the assessment practices used by practitioners to

meet the mandates of transition assessment for these students The survey will be based on

previous transition assessment research by Herbert Lorenz amp Trusty (2010) The following

research questions will be addressed

1 What is the basic knowledge that educators possess regarding career assessment

for individuals with intellectual disabilities

2 What types of assessments are used by educators to evaluate transition needs of

students with intellectual disabilities

II Subjects

Participants in the study will be educators at the district level including special

education directors transitions coordinators diagnosticians and special education teachers who

work with high school students with intellectual disabilities in the Education Service Center

(ESC) Region XVII Participants will be obtained by utilizing a listserv located on the ESC

Region XVII website This listserv identifies all high schools in the region as well as school

district special education administrators A cover letter will be sent via the internet to campus

and district administrators requesting that the information about the survey be forwarded to

special education directors district transition coordinators diagnosticians and high school special

education teachers working with students with intellectual disabilities Approximately 100

participants will be sought


118

III Procedures

bull The ESC listserv will be utilized to contact participants

bull A cover letter email will be sent to request participation from special education

directors and with a request to forward the link of the survey to district transition coordinators

diagnosticians and high school special education teachers working with students with intellectual

disabilities

bull Approximately 100 educators will be potential participants in the survey

bull A 15 question survey will be supplied through surveymonkeycom which

includes demographic and descriptive questions

bull The survey will be disseminated for two weeks through the survey monkey link

bull Descriptive analysis will be utilized to analyze the data with the exception of the

one open-ended question which will require qualitative analysis

bull Confidentiality of the participants will be adhered to by a strict standard through

the use of careful storage of the data on a computer with pass code protections Hard copy data

will be stored in a locked location

bull Only the researchers will have access to the data for analysis purposes

bull Respondents may choose to or not to participate in the survey

Cover letter See the attached cover letter

Survey See the attached survey

IV Adverse Events and Liability

There are no anticipated specific liabilities or adverse events anticipated with this

study No liability plan is offered

V Consent Form

The research presents no more than minimal risk of harm to subjects and

involves no procedures for which written consent is normally required outside the research

context (Waiver of Written Consent) therefore no waiver or liability plan is offered


119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C

Recruitment of Special Education Directors


122

February 9 2012

Dear Special Education Director

Please forward the accompanying letter requesting participation of your special education

director transition coordinator educational diagnosticians and special education teachers who

work with students with intellectual disabilities We are trying to obtain information to enhance

our research about the knowledge that educators have regarding transition assessment practices

for these students Their participation is crucial in gaining greater information pertaining to the

knowledge of transition assessment for individuals with disabilities

If you would like to review the survey before passing the request on the survey is located

at

httpwwwsurveymonkeycomstransitionassessmentID

Thank you for your time and consideration in helping us answer this important question

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call Dr Robin Lock or myself at

(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student


College of Education

Box 41071

Lubbock TX 79409-1071

8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D

Recruitment of Participants


124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant

You are being asked to voluntarily complete a short 10 minute survey over transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities This survey is being sent to you by your

district administrator

Transition assessment is an important mandate included in the Individuals with

Disabilities Education Act-Reauthorized We are trying to learn more about educatorsrsquo

knowledge regarding transition assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities

Enclosed is a link to the survey asking questions that may help us with our research to

better understand this issue No information will be gathered that could personally identify you

and we would ask that you not put your name on the survey By filling out and returning the

survey online you may help us better understand the current level of understanding of transition

assessment for individuals with intellectual disabilities Please follow the link that is included to

answer the short survey




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126

Research Survey Instrument

Transition Assessment Knowledge of Educators for

Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities

Directions Answer the questions as it applies to you in your educational setting Your

participation is voluntary You may quit at any time by closing the browser window The

responses that you provide are anonymous and confidential Please read each choice

before making your final selection This survey should only take 10-15 minutes of your

time

1 The high school(s) where I work or consult with isare located in a(n)___________

settings (check all that apply)

A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban

D) Combination (ruralSuburban)

2 At the high school(s) where I work or consult with in most instances transition

assessments are conducted at the __________ grade(s) (check all that apply)

A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels

F) No grade level assessments are provided


127

3 The job category that best describes my position is

A) District Administrator

B) Campus Administrator

C) Special Education Administrator

D) Vocational Adjustment Coordinator

E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator

G) District Educator

H) Educational Diagnostician

I) Other (please specify)

4 The school or educational setting where I work can be classified as

A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative

D) AdministrativeCentral Office

E) Other (please specify)

5 The person(s) responsible for providing transition assessment to students with

intellectual disabilities at the high school where I work or consult with isare the

_____(check all that apply)

A) Career Counselor (School employee)

B) Career Counselor Consultant (Non-school employee)

C) High School Teacher

D) High School Counselor

E) School Psychologist

F) Vocational Adjustment Coordinator

G) Transition Services ConsultantCoordinator

H) No one is assigned the duty as services are not available

I) Other (Please specify)


128

6 Areas that are typically addressed as part of transition assessment provided at our

high school include

A) Academic Achievement

B) Vocational Aptitude

C) Academic Aptitude

D) Career decision-making skills

E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values

H) World of work knowledge


7 Choose the types of assessments pertaining specifically to transition assessment for

individuals with intellectual disabilities that you use have heard of or do not use or

have heard of (Choose all that apply)

Type of Assessment Heard of

this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this

Interest Inventories

Career Aptitude

Academic Achievement

Teacher Observation

Intellectual Aptitude (IQ)

Student Survey

Personality Profiles

Self-determination measures

Self-Advocacy Skills measures

Interviews

EcologicalEnvironmental


129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based

Functional Skills Inventories

Learning Styles

Situational

Other

8 Choose the published assessments pertaining specifically to transition assessment

for individuals with intellectual disabilities that you use have heard of or do not

use or have heard of (Choose all that apply)

Type of Assessment Heard of this Use this Have not heard of

or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance

Employability Skills

Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130

9 In my opinion transition assessment for students with intellectual disabilities

provided at our school or schools that I consult with have_____ impact on

helping students identify and realize their potential

A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no

10 As part of my professional training and work experience I have a __________

understanding about transition assessment for high school students with


A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture

Inventory of Careers

CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131

11 Which of the following training opportunities would you participate in to

increase your knowledge and use of transition assessment tools and procedures

for individuals with intellectual disabilities (check all that apply)

A) One-hour workshop

B) 1-day workshop

C) Team Collaboration

D) Self -Study (Independent discovery)

E) Multiple day workshops

F) Ongoing in-service training

G) Online training module

H) Online college course

I) College course (on campus or media-site)

J) College coursework toward TEA certification in Transition

K) None

L) Other (please specify)

12 What else do you use for transition assessment for individuals with intellectual

disabilities If you do not want to make any further comment proceed to the

next question

(Enter up to 4000 characters)

13 What do you know about transition assessment that you wish you could use for

students with intellectual disabilities If you do not want to make any further

comment proceed to the final section of the survey that contains a few

remaining demographic questions



132

Demographic Information

This section contains a few demographic questions needed to describe the sample

Please remember that the responses you provide are anonymous and confidential

14 What is your current age (rounded to the nearest year)

Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70

15 What is your gender

A) Male

B) Female

16 What is your highest level of education

A) Bachelorrsquos degree

B) Masterrsquos degree

C) Doctorate

D) Other


133

17 What is your total number of years as an educator including this year Please

check the appropriate box

Number of years Response

1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134

18 How long have you been employed in your current position including this

year Please check the appropriate box

Number of year(s) Response

1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more

August 2012

Copyright copy August 2012

Kathryn J Tucker


ii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
























iii



















iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

CHAPTER I 1





Assumptions 4


Delimitations 11

Limitations 12



Summary 15

CHAPTER II 16










v











Disabilities 49


Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56


Data Sources 57


Data Analysis 60



Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


ii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
























iii



















iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

CHAPTER I 1





Assumptions 4


Delimitations 11

Limitations 12



Summary 15

CHAPTER II 16










v











Disabilities 49


Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56


Data Sources 57


Data Analysis 60



Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


iii



















iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

CHAPTER I 1





Assumptions 4


Delimitations 11

Limitations 12



Summary 15

CHAPTER II 16










v











Disabilities 49


Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56


Data Sources 57


Data Analysis 60



Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

CHAPTER I 1





Assumptions 4


Delimitations 11

Limitations 12



Summary 15

CHAPTER II 16










v











Disabilities 49


Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56


Data Sources 57


Data Analysis 60



Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


v











Disabilities 49


Disabilities 50


Summary 54

CHAPTER III 55

Methodology 55


Rationale 56


Data Sources 57


Data Analysis 60



Summary 62

CHAPTER IV 63


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


vi

Results 63



Job Category 64

Gender 65


Education Level 66










Question One 78

Question Two 79

Summary 80

CHAPTER V 82

Discussion 82




Setting 86

Participants 86

Knowledge 88

Understanding 89


Responsibility 90


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


vii

Training 91





Perceived Impact 98

Thematic Results 98









Summary 106

References 108

APPENDICES 116

IRB 116

IRB Approval 119





viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more


viii

ABSTRACT












ix

LIST OF TABLES


42 Gender 66

















1

CHAPTER I
























2


















Research Questions






3

























4







2006)

Assumptions










Definition of Terms






5









(TEA 2011)








Bryant 2008)







6





















Kolstoe 2000)




7






(NSTTAC 2011)















al 2007)




8























Chadsey 1998)


9

























10























11











Delimitations














12





Limitations




















13

























14























15

Summary








16

CHAPTER II



















federal funds






17




years




















18






(Bryant et al 2008)



















19


much slower pace























20









2002)
















21
























22






(Bryant et al 2008)



















23



(Wehman 2011)

























24


























25

























26



amp Brown 2006)






















27













life













28































29

























30
























31










Palmer 2005)














32
























33

























34

























35

























36



life













postsecondary life








37








program structure

















38



critical






















39

























40


(IDEA 2004)






















41

























42


















postsecondary goals







43











2007)














44
























45


with disabilities























46







decisions


















47

























48

























49



(Levinson 2001)






















50












2011)













51



common themes












(Moon et al 2011)










52

























53

















Research Questions






54

Summary














postsecondary life


55

CHAPTER III

Methodology















disabilities

Research Questions







56

Rationale
























57











Data Sources














58

























59



1994)










2010)










D)


60

Data Analysis








(AAPOR 2011 p1)






(Glesne 2006)










61























62

Summary













disabilities







63

CHAPTER IV

Results























64











Research Questions




Research Questions






Job Category




65








41


_______________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________







Consultant 2 28






________________________________________________________________________

Gender






66


________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________


Male 12 169

________________________________________________________________________

Age of Participant








________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


26-30 3 42

31-35 6 85

36-40 2 28

41-45 16 225

46-50 8 113

51-55 14 197

56-60 10 141

61-65 8 113

66-70 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Educational Level





67






________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Doctorate 1 14


________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


3-5 3 42

6-10 9 127

11-15 6 85

16-20 18 254

21-25 8 113

26-30 11 155

31-35 7 99

36-40 5 70

41 and above 1 14


68






(Table 46)


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


6-15 20 281

16-30 19 267

31 or more 5 70

________________________________________________________________________








________________________________________________________________________


________________________________________________________________________

Age 4842 1091 20-25 66-70



_______________________________________________________________________


69










setting


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Suburban 7 101

Urban 19 275


No Response 2 28

________________________________________________________________________

Employment Setting








70




________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Alternative 2 34



District 2 24



________________________________________________________________________

Research Questions









grade 397 10th

grade 265 11th

grade 250 and

12th



71


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


27

397

are conducted 10th

18 265

11th

17 250

12th

17 250


None provided 4 49

No response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________








employee) 2 28



Do not know 1 14

Varies 3 42

Skipped 16 225

________________________________________________________________________


72











________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________



Limited 9 126

Little or no 2 28

Skipped 2 28











73





________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________




Self-study 17 239







None 3 42

Other 1 14

Skipped 3 42

________________________________________________________________________













74


_______________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________






Work Values 26 366

Personality 23 323


Donrsquot know 2 28

No response 4 56

________________________________________________________________________

















75





____________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________













Portfolio 9 33 19 216 61




Authentic 26 27 7 168 60


________________________________________________________________________









76











2006) at 153


77


________________________________________________________________________


or Heard of

________________________________________________________________________




Skills Inventory









Of Careers




Other 0 0 10 ID 15

Unsure 2 0 0 ID 2


________________________________________________________________________










78


________________________________________________________________________

Variable Category n

________________________________________________________________________


Moderate 33 468

Minimal 22 309


No Response 3 42

________________________________________________________________________









themes and content

Question One










79















Question Two










80





Summary



















81




82

CHAPTER V

Discussion






















83




















disabilities





84
























85


















Demographics of the

Participants


Assessment



86


Setting


















Participants





87

























88

















Knowledge








89

Understanding

























90












2010)

Responsibility










response


91









Training
















92




















Areas of Assessment





93

























94












Types of Assessment












95







mean of 286


















96



















format






97

























98



Perceived Impact










2004)







Thematic Results





99


questions























100













(Moon et al 2011)












101





natural environment










assessment









102

























103



















(Miller et al 2007)






104






















(IDEA 2004)


105













confusion









an extent


106














Summary









the study


107


















108

REFERENCES









wwwvccauedus





195-207








Weekly 53(03) 57-59


109





Austin Pro‑Ed






CA Sage














110




Austin Pro-Ed



Brookes




17








Education






111























112







44-51




CA Sage



Pearson Education











113










78-93















114










frameworkesc18net






Routledge



from www2edgov


Works




115



httpwwwnsttacorg


Brookes


Brookes






116

APPENDIX A

IRB


117



Robin Lock PhD


Kathryn J Tucker


I Rationale

























II Subjects












118

III Procedures





disabilities

















V Consent Form





119

APPENDIX B

IRB Approval


120


121

APPENDIX C



122

February 9 2012









at




(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


123

APPENDIX D



124

February 9 2012

Dear Participant
















(806) 742-1997 ext 288

Sincerely


Doctoral Student



Box 41071


8067421997 x288

Fax 8067422179


125

APPENDIX E

Survey Instrument


126








time



A) Rural

B) Suburban

C) Urban




A) 9th

B) 10th

C) 11th

D) 12th

E) All grade levels



127






E) Consultant

F) Campus Educator





A) Middle School

B) High School

C) Alternative
















128


high school include





E) Interests

F) Personality

G) Work Values







this

Use this Have not

heard of

or use

this


Career Aptitude


Teacher Observation


Student Survey




Interviews



129

Authentic

Portfolio

Teacher Made

Curriculum-Based


Learning Styles

Situational

Other





or use this

Microcomputer

Evaluation of

Careers and

Academics (MECA)

Reading-Free

Vocational Interest

Inventory 2 (R-

FVII2)

Transition Planning

Inventory (TPI)

Brigance


Inventory

SEM (Special Ed

Manager)

Myers Briggs Type


130




A) Significant

B) Moderate

C) Minimal

D) Little or no




A) Very Clear

B) Moderately Clear

C) Limited

D) Little or No

Indicator

O-Net Career

Interest Inventory

Picture Interest

Career Survey

(PICS)

Wide Range Interest

and Occupation Test

WRIOT2

Arc Self-

Determination Scale

COPS-PIC Picture


CITE Learning

Styles Inventory

Other


131





B) 1-day workshop









K) None




next question








132





Age Range Response

20-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-45

46-50

51-55

56-60

61-65

66-70


A) Male

B) Female




C) Doctorate

D) Other


133




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41 and above


134




1-2

3-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26-30

31-35

36-40

41-or more

Documents

A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONALS’ …